The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
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Book Reviews of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Book Review: A Fantastic read!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book was the best read I have had in months (and I do read a lot!). Nothing since has come anywhere near the sheer 'immersion factor' this gripping novel exerts on the reader. The plot is complex, clever, the characters all utterly convincing (Lisbeth being a real masterstroke ), the general atmosphere rather spooky and very nordic...It is a hit on all sides and I could not recommend it strongly enough to everyone. The only downside is the cover jacket and the title, misleading potential readers into believing that the book is about a chinese woman. A very stupid decision from the english publisher.
I wish to add to this review, that I wrote when I only had read the first volume , in english. Now a few months later, I have read the two following volumes in french, because I could simply not wait years until the English publisher decides to release the whole three. This waiting time in between volumes is simply ridiculous as we are dealing here with possibly the most gripping trilogy ever written.
I must say that the two to come are just as brilliant, clever and immensely satisfying as the first. Rarely is a plot so twisted, so interesting, the characters so genuine and ultimately the whole story so resounding.
I deeply regret that Larsson died (or was help to die ??) and that we will never have another chapter in the tormented life of Lisbeth Salander.
Book Review: I would give it six stars if it were allowed!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is probably the best book I have read since The Devil in the White City. I couldn't put it down and it has all the elements I look for in a good book! Mikhael Bloomvist (excuse me if I misspell any names because they are all Swedish) is in a desperate spot and then asked by a wealthy elderly industrialist (Henrik Vanger) to solve a 40 year old mystery around the disappearance of his granddaughter (Harriet Vanger). Mikhael doesn't realize what he bargained for when he agrees. As the story unfolds we start to learn little tidbits of the Vanger family involving secrets, jealousy, hate etc. that is was more intriguing than the Collins family was in the old Dark Shadows tv show.
Eventually, Mikhael needs to call on the services of Salander a punk rockish type of computer hacker who is an entire story all by herself. As Mikhael and Salander start coming up with new clues, bad things happen. Along with the danger of unraveling the mystery, Mikhael faces jail time for a problem that occurred with an enemy of the Vangers and the possible collapse of his publishing company (Millenium).
This was a book that I did not want to end but I noted on the jacket that the author wrote two more forthcoming books just before his unfortunate death and they will be coming out this year so I will eagerly look for them.
Book Review: A classic page turning mystery
Summary: 5 Stars
This isn't the sort of book I would normally read, but after hearing a very positive review, I decided to try it.
The author sets the stage for the drama by describing the lives of the main characters: Pressed flowers being sent anonymously to a wealthy aging industrialist; a crusading journalist taken down by a libel suit; a young woman whose boss sees her as a talented private investigator and a disfunctional enigma.
From there we watch as the author creates a clever story about murder, abuse, and the dark side of Sweden using these people and the people around them. The journalist is coerced into taking a job offered by the industrialist to find out who murdered the industrialist's niece, a girl who disappeared 40 years earlier. The dysfunctional PI becomes the journalist's assistant in the search. As the two of them get closer to the truth, new twists are discovered and the tension continues to get ratcheted up.
As I got further into the book, I found myself thinking about it when I was busy doing other things, wishing I could read a little more. I finally got up early one morning to finish it, and since then, have been wishing I hadn't. Not because I didn't like the ending, but because I wanted more. I immediately got online to see when the next book in the series would be released.
Book Review: Best mystery of 2008
Summary: 5 Stars
If I had to pick the best 2008 mystery book, I would vote for this one. When I got it, I knew nothing about the tragic fate of its author or even about the book's success in Europe. Somehow I missed all this rage. Nevertheless, I was spellbind from the first page and couldn't put the book down before I finished the last page.
The novel is about the financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist who is hired by financial magnate to investigate the 40-year old case of his missing niece. The girl with dragon tattoo is an extra-ordinary private investigator ("the best hacker in Sweden", as she admits), who also turns out to be in the middle of investigation.
I don't want to give any spoilers, so if you like well-written mysteries, "classically done", but happening in a modern world, this book would be perfect for you. True, it does begin a little bit slow for thrillers that we are used to, but isn't it the way it happens in real life?
One warning: the second book in this trilogy is not getting out in US before July. You might be seriously tempted to order it from Amazon UK, where it was published in January. I am still not sure whether I'd be able to wait patiently for next three months.
Book Review: Surprisingly good after the first 50 pages
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a terrific book, even better than I expected. It started off a little slow, with about 50 pages of somewhat dense material on Swedish financial journalism. But this book is well worth the patience needed to get into the meat of the story. The plot itself is intricate, interesting and original -- what starts out as an investigation into a seemingly "locked room mystery" from a single day in 1966 morphs into an investigation of a major mystery covering decades of misdeeds and numerous different individuals. But what really drives this story is an incredibly unique, arresting, complex character who plays a central role in the story. Lisbeth Salander is a freelance investigator for a PI firm who is drawn into the investigation headed by Mikael Blomkvist, a disgraced investigative journalist licking his wounds in the wake of a libel conviction. Lisbeth is brilliant, quirky and utterly compelling. To call her a "heroine" is to redefine the term....but in a great way. Blomkvist is also an interesting character, although less compelling compared to the unforgettable Salander, and the development of their relationship (working and otherwise) brings an added dimension to the story.