A grisly torture-murder, a haunting northern Sweden backdrop, and a dark drama of twisted sexuality collide memorably in &#197;sa Larsson&#8217;s masterpiece of suspense&#8212;a tale of menace, hope, longing, and darkness beyond imagining.<br><br>The dead woman was found on a frozen lake, her body riddled with evidence of torture. Instantly, Inspector Anna-Maria Mella knows she needs help. Because the dead woman&#8212;found in workout clothes with lacy underwear beneath them&#8212;was a key player in a mining company whose tentacles reach across the globe. Anna-Maria needs a lawyer to help explain some things&#8212;and she knows one of the best.<br><br>Attorney Rebecka Martinsson is desperate to get back to work, to feel alive again after a case that almost destroyed her. Soon Rebecka is prying into the affairs of the dead woman&#8217;s boss, the founder of Kallis Mining, whose relationship with his star employee was both complex and ominous. But what Rebecka and Anna-Maria are about to uncover&#8212;a tangled drama of secrets, perversion, and criminality&#8212;will lay bare a tale as shocking as it is sad&#8230;about a man&#8217;s obsession, a woman&#8217;s lonely death, and a killer&#8217;s cold, cold heart.