Unscrupulous and arrogant murder detective Evert Bäckström finds himself with the hardest case he ever had when a skull pierced with bullet holes is found on an uninhabited island in the archipelago.

A journalist is aided by a young female hacker in his search for the killer of a woman who has been dead for forty years.

As computer hacker Lisbeth and journalist Mikael investigate a sex-trafficking ring, Lisbeth is accused of three murders, causing her to go on the run while Mikael works to clear her name.