Quercus snares new Millennium trilogy from Swedish author Smirnoff

In what is billed as its biggest acquisition for years, Quercus has scooped the next three Millennium instalments, to be written by bestselling Swedish author Karin Smirnoff.

Katharina Bielenberg, publisher at MacLehose Press, and Quercus m.d. Jon Butler acquired world English-language rights from Magdalena Hedlund at the Hedlund Agency, Stockholm, who is acting on behalf of the Stieg Larsson estate.

Larsson’s first three books were a runaway global success, selling a combined 6.2 million copies for £34.6m through Nielsen BookScan in the UK, and were later followed by another three from David Lagercrantz, which sold around 600,000 units for £4.5m. Now, for the first time, the series will be written by a woman and a female translator is also being lined up. Emma Thawley, head of rights at Quercus Books, sold subsidiary rights to Knopf, US and Penguin Random House, Canada.

The untitled seventh novel will be published in the UK and export territories by MacLehose Press on 31st August 2023 and in North America on 5th September 2023. MacLehose is planning an “unmissable and wide-ranging” marketing and publicity campaign across all platforms and Smirnoff will be in the UK on publication.

The author, whose books have sold more than 700,000 copies in her native country, has hinted that the setting of the seventh Millennium novel may move from Stockholm to northern Sweden, where communities are facing rapid change as a result of increased business investment.

She said: “It feels almost solemn to write the sequel to Millennium. I said yes to the project without hesitation, even though it postpones my own ideas for new novels. It’s an exciting opportunity to independently create and make something new based on a unique fictional universe that is known worldwide. The Millennium books are classics in their genre, where the combination of unforgettable characters and the strong political and societal engagement still fascinates readers. I will continue to build on Stieg Larsson’s core themes, such as violence, abuse of power, and contemporary political currents.”

Bielenberg said: “The Millennium series has been a constant at MacLehose Press and Quercus since Christopher MacLehose acquired Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in 2008. Everything we know about Karin Smirnoff and her work tells us she has the perfect sensibility not only to continue on from David Lagercrantz’s trilogy with great drive and imagination, but also to make the series her own. And it feels just right that Lisbeth Salander’s universe should now be brought to life by a woman. We are absolutely thrilled to be working with Karin on these next instalments.”

Butler added: “The Millennium series—‘the Dragon Tattoo books’ to most people in the English-speaking world—of course constitute one of the biggest publishing stories of the last 20 years, selling over 100 million copies worldwide. Stieg Larsson’s iconic creation, and the brilliant sequels written by David Lagercrantz, reached people who rarely buy books, which is the holy grail for any publisher. So, we couldn’t be more excited to announce a new trilogy, except that I probably am more excited. Karin Smirnoff is a literary talent of the highest order and a huge bestseller in her native Sweden.”