Stockholm, Aug 25 (EFE).– Fans of late Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy are eagerly awaiting the release this week of “The Girl in the Spider’s Web,” the fourth installment in the best-selling series.

The latest book in the series, which has sold more than 80 million copies around the world, was written by David Lagercrantz, a Swedish journalist and author selected by Larsson’s heirs to continue the Millennium franchise.

“The Girl in the Spider’s Web” once again reunites hacker Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist in a story whose plot has been closely guarded and focuses on the illegal trafficking of confidential information.

The book will officially be released on Wednesday by Swedish publishing house Norstedts, but a chapter from the book has been published in several newspapers.

Larsson, who died in 2004 at the age of 50, wrote “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “The Girl Who Played with Fire” and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest.”

In the new story, Millennium magazine has changed hands and Blomkvist finds himself taking a call from an investigator who specializes in artificial intelligence and says he has information of vital importance to U.S. intelligence agencies.

The 52-year-old Lagercrantz was chosen to continue the series by Erland and Joakim Larsson, the father and younger brother, respectively, of the series’ creator.

Lagercrantz’s work will now be judged by fans of the Millennium series based on an entirely new book.

The author’s book has no connection to the unfinished manuscript that Larsson was working on at the time of his death from a heart attack and is in the hands of Eva Gabrielsson, his partner of 32 years.

Gabrielsson has no rights to Larsson’s works, which are owned by the late author’s father and brother, and were at the center of a battle for control for years. EFE