Book of the Week: The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest

I have to agree with a lot of the criticism often levelled at Stieg Larsson and his--in my opinion--engrossing Millennium Series novels. Yes, journalist Larsson infused his stories with a lot of detail. You get pages upon pages of Swedish political history and countless descriptions of a character's day or meals. Admittedly, I skipped over some of it, but I also think that adding in some of the mundane stuff can act like a window into the life of a character that you don't always get to see if the author is cutting right to the action.

Then there is crusading journalist and ladies' man Mikael Blomkvist, who is likely a thinly veiled stand in for Stieg himself, but no matter how many women he beds I found something sympathetic about Blomkvist. I didn't exactly get Blomkvist's new relationship this time around, but overall I found him a sympathetic character. Probably because he at least tries to do the right thing and mostly because he was loyal to Lisbeth Salander throughout the books.

Some have also said that The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest, the supposed last in the Millennium trilogy, was kind of slow. And it did seem to plod along in places. I think one of the main reasons was lack of Salander. For the majority of the book Lisbeth is out of commission and the plot stalled in some parts because of it. As soon as Mikael smuggles Lisbeth's Palm into the hospital its like the entire story got a second wind. Lisbeth Salander is one of those raw, unlikely heroines that you can't help but root for and she and her schemes are something I wish there were more of.

Which I guess is why, ultimately, I enjoyed this book. Like the previous two I found myself eagerly turning pages. True, there wasn't as much mystery this time around but I was invested in Lisbeth and needed to know that end turned out okay for her. I also respect the author's attempt to shed light on a common problem -- the violence perpetrated against women, mostly by men. Sure there were some unnecessary subplots (like the whole Erica-SMP thing), but I won't go into specifics so as not to give anything away for those who haven't read it yet. I will say that I think the ending was...appropriate. Now I can't wait to watch the Swedish movie version of the novel. Have you read this book? What did you think?

Book of the Week: The Girl Who Played with Fire

I've been meaning to get around to this one for awhile. I really enjoyed the first of Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and I was almost hesitant to read the second, The Girl Who Played with Fire, because with these sorts of things the sequels tend to be disappointing. Not so here. Sure, some of the plot points were a bit far fetched, but I think where Larsson excelled was in the nuances and the characters. I can't recall another protagonist in recent years as compelling and complex as Lisbeth Salander, the girl in the title. I almost wrote heroine and then thought better of it, because I can see Salander hating the word even though she seems pretty adept at saving herself

Rooney Mara - the "American" Lisbeth Salander [via]

I won't spoil this one for anyone who hasn't read it yet, but I thought it was interesting that even though Lisbeth is absent from a lot of the direct action in the book her figure continues to loom large over the story. It was also great to find out more about her past and what makes her tick. Some of it is hard to read, but I commend Larsson for weaving social commentary into a great suspense thriller. Can't wait to start The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest and to watch the Swedish movie version of Fire--plus I'm looking forward to the American movie adaptation starring 007 Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara.

Have you read this one?

What do you think of the Millennium trilogy?

Book of the Week: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

So once again I'm late to the party and only just got around to reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The novel, published posthumously after the death of the author Stieg Larsson, is the first in the Millenium trilogy. Despite its length I finished the book in two days. I'm not sure if the book lives up to all the hype (what ever does?), but I found it an absorbing read and am looking forward to delving into the next novels in the series.

For those who haven't read it yet the book centres on Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist and part owner of the magazine Millenium.  As the novel opens Blomkvist has been convicted of libel against a ruthless industrialist, Hans-Erik Wennerström, who is making it his mission to sink Mikael and his magazine.  It is at this low point of his career that Blomkvist is approached by the elderly Henrik Vanger, the wealthy retired CEO of the declining Vanger Corporation, with an investigative assignment.

Vanger asks Blomkvist to look into the decades-old case of the disappearance of his niece Harriet from the family island under the pretext of ghostwriting Vanger's autobiography.  Blomkvist grudgingly agrees and no one is more surprised than he when he actually starts making progress and has to pull in a "research assistant" in the form of Lisbeth Salander, the girl of the aforementioned tattoos.

I have heard the character of Salander described as "feral" and I think that's a good word.  Salander is an obviously troubled young woman who is a computer hacker and expert PI.  Blomkvist and Salander become an unlikely team and bond over the unravelling of the Vanger mystery.

The plot of the novel is sprawling and at first its hard to keep all the characters--especially the Vanger family--straight.  Some of the content is difficult to swallow and its easy to understand why the original Swedish title of the novel translates to Men Who Hate Women.  There are more than a few of those in this novel, but there are also characters who are good, who help one another and search for the truth. 

Overall, I think Dragon Tattoo is a worthwhile read and an engrossing mystery/thriller and I will now be moving on to the second installment of the trilogy, The Girl Who Played With Fire, as I'm eager to know more, especially about the tough yet lovable Salander's past. 

Apparently there is also a North American movie version of the book in the works.