All I can say is WOW! These books are soo good! But, be warned, lots of swearing (I read a lot of F bombs) and lots of violence, especially towards women. So, if you rather not read stuff like that, then don't bother reading these.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - I, at first, had a hard time getting into the book. There is a lot of background set up. That makes it hard to get into. I started reading it in the paperback edition I got for my birthday last year. Then, once we got our Kindles, I switched to reading it there. I don't know if it was the fact I had a Kindle, but I just read through these really fast. Anyway, the series follows the girl, Lisbeth. She is all kinds of weird. But the story doesn't start with her. The mystery is set up in the first chapter with the old man and a package he gets on his birthday, a framed pressed flower from an unknown sender. For every birthday in the last 40 years, he has gotten one. But from who? Then we jump to Mikael Blomkvist, the journalist that just got convicted of libel. The story gets going faster and soon we find out the mystery of the old man and there you go. That's where all the fun begins.
I really liked this book. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend this book. But again, be warned, it's not for the faint of heart, or for people with higher standards than me.
The Girl Who Played with Fire - This books starts off following Lisbeth. She has gotten herself all upset over something and has run away (sorry, don't want to spoil it for anyone) to get away from her problems. But, as always, she always finds trouble to get mixed up in. We leave her and follow Mikael. He is approached by a freelance journalist who has a huge scoop about illegal trafficking of Eastern European women into the sex trade. Prostitution is not illegal in Sweden, but human trafficking is. But then, something really bad happens and Lisbeth is implicated and everything goes to hell in a handbag. Here starts a crazy story of government cover up, abuse, and secrets of Lisbeth. Her only friend is Mikael. And she doesn't want to see him at all.
This book was crazy. It took me by surprise with all it's twists and turns. I often found myself going, WHAT? WAIT? The second book was as good, if not better, than the first. It kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was done reading it in a few days. It was that good! Again, fair warning, lots of F bombs and more violence. Stay clear if that makes you uncomfortable to read.
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - It picks up right where the last book left off. We're following the same story line, but things change. Mikael keeps digging and is finding the source of the cover ups. He gets help from Lisbeth old employer and her former guardian, to help turn things around for Lisbeth. But on top of that, Mikael's long time friend, lover and editor in chief, leaves the magazine for a daily paper and ends up in her own mess. But what is going to happen to Lisbeth?
This book as just as good as the last two. It's amazing. I, again, found myself going, WHAT? WAIT? I like this book because we finally get to see the whole picture of what happened to Lisbeth. Why is she the way she is. And the whole government spy stuff is awesome.
A little background on the writer, Stieg Larsson. Larsson died of a suden heart attack in late 2004. Just after he put in the manuscripts for these three books. As a teen, he saw the violent gang rape of a young woman, and has beaten himself up for not trying to put a stop to it. That is why his books have focused on the violence done against women. When he died, a 4th book was in the works, and mostly completed. With an outline for a 5th and 6th book. His plan was to have 10 book series. His long time partner, Eva Gabrielsson, has stated that she could finish the 4th book. And maybe the other two books. But she doesn't think it's fair for a ghostwriter to finish up. It's all up in the air because his family has the rights, and she does not. She is trying to get the rights to his work, but so far, has not been able to. (Taken from Wikipedia...just my summary of it)
That being said, I think if you are into a mystery thriller about a weird girl and a successful journalist, then go for it! You won't be sorry! Plus, the American version of the film is going to have Daniel Craig as Mikael. Yummy!
The Swedish movies of all three books are on instant watch on Netflix.
All three books can be found at Amazon for $9.99 (for the first two) -$12.99 on Kindle and $8.19 for the 1st paperback, $10.85 for the 2nd paperback, and $17.94 for the third. Or, just go to your local library! That one is free!
3 comments:
It's interesting that you mentioned the swedish movies because my son was telling me that they were much better than the books, but I still want to read them. I think I have the first one on my shelf, but have yet to read it.
I have heard so much about these books but I always stray from them because I had heard they were a little heavy on the language. I am sad, but they probably aren't the right books for me :( Man, you are a readaholic girl!!!
I'm glad you wrote about this. I've been debating whether or not to read it.
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