The Afterlife of Stieg Larsson

Wow! The drama and intrigue of the late Stieg Larsson's family and long-term lover are nearly as compelling as his novel, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which I blogged about here.

That novel, the first installment of the Millennium trilogy crime thriller series, was wildly successful. All three books are soaring best sellers, translated into multiple languages, and adapted into mainstream films.  All of that translates to -  as we say here in the 'hood - "BANK!"  But Larsson, who died at the age of 50 of a massive heart attack before the first book was even published, has never seen a single cent...er...a single Swedish kroner.  Without a will, that money (which just keeps pouring in) goes to his estate, his brother and father. His long-term lover and partner of 30+ years, Eva Gabrielsson,  is not recognized under Swedish law.  With no children together, and having never gotten married to Larsson, she is Nobody.  Interesting, that in socially liberal Sweden, there is no such thing as common-law marriage - only the real deal (gay or straight) traditional "Married"  with a capital "M."

And the bitterness, allegations, insinuations, and accusations are flying...Money! Who gets all the dough?  What is she entitled to? His brother and father were legally awarded half the apartment that Larsson and Gabrielsson shared, then demanded an arrangement of Gabrielsson to buy them out, and later caved to social and moral pressure to just give her the Larsson half outright.  Mystery!  What were Larsson's intentions?  And now even, who wrote the books? She has alluded that she had a hand in creating them.   Family strife! She says Larsson was estranged from his brother and father. Psycho girlfriends!  Brother and father say, of course, that Gabbrielsson is "mentally unstable."  (Grrrr...don't get me started on that one!)  Revenge!  Despite it all, she still holds a great hand of cards.  Why?  Because Gabrielsson just happens to have Larsson's laptop with the nearly complete manuscript, outline, and notes of a 4th novel .  That's right, folks, more "BANK!"

So, there's quite a drama behind the crime thriller trilogy.  The subtext, the sub-plot, the intrigue make for a whole other bestseller.  I'm fascinated! - and staying tuned for the next installment of Reality Lit.