Monday 29 July 2013

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson


Journalist Mikael Blomqvist is licking his wounds after being found guilty in a libel cause bought by business owner Wennerstrom when he is approached by Henrik Vanger, head of the Vanger Corporation.  Vanger's niece Harriet disappeared in the sixties and was never found, leaving Henrik to suspect she has been murdered.  In need of a new job, Blomqvist agrees to investigate the case and the complex Vanger family, who hide many secrets.  Along the way he is helped by Lisbeth Salander, a private investigator and hacker with a troubled past.

I'm not a big reader of crime or thriller books, but my husband bought me the Millennium trilogy when they became massive a few years ago and finally I decided to pick the first one up off the shelf and give it a try.  I wasn't expecting to like it, but I really did and I'm now looking forward to the second in the trilogy.

The original Swedish title of the novel was Men who Hate Women, and this is by far a more accurate description of the book.  It's really a furiously angry assault on society and in particular, the amount of rape and sexual assault that occurs in Sweden, but also across the world.  Each part of the novel starts with a statistic that makes for grim reading.  I am fortunate enough to have never experienced sexual assault myself but it's scarily common; statistics vary but between one in five and one in three women in the UK will experience sexual violence in their life.  It's something I feel strongly about and it's a crime that I think isn't taken nearly seriously enough.  To see a book like this, that became as popular as it did, tackle an issue like that can only be a good thing;

"'Because it's so easy' he said.  'Women disappear all the time.  Nobody misses them.  Immigrants.  Whores from Russia.  Thousands of people pass through Sweden every year."

Whilst the writing in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo isn't the best I've experienced, the story is well plotted with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing.  The pacing at the beginning was quite slow, whilst Larsson got across the necessary background information, but the pace soon picked up and I couldn't put the book down by the end.  Once Mikael and Lisbeth met, the book became a whole lot better.  There is a graphic rape scene in the book but it's not gratuitous as it fits the themes of the novel.

Most readers who have read this book loved Lisbeth and I was expecting to as well, but in the end I just liked her.  I felt like Larsson was trying too hard to tell the reader how alternative she was, how outside of the mainstream of society.  I liked her and thought she was a great main character, but I didn't love her.

I would recommend A Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, as the plot is good enough to overcome any issues with the writing.  I'm looking forward to getting to the remaining two books in the trilogy.

Source: Personal copy
First Published: 2005 (Sweden)
My Edition: Quercus, 2008
Score: 3.5 out of 5

24 comments:

  1. I loved this trilogy. Lisbeth is difficult to like but despite her breaking the rules she is one heck of a kick ass heroine. Have you read the other two in the series?

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    1. I've not read the other two yet, although I definitely intend to.

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  2. My fiance has listened to the whole series and he really liked it. I own the e-book, but we'll see if I ever get around to it! *fickle*

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    1. I am a fickle reader too, it only took me about three years to finally get to this one....

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  3. I HATED this book. Okay, maybe not hated, but I really didn't like it, though, oddly, I also found it hard to put down. It has that kind of pull that drew me in even though I didn't enjoy it (a lot like Twilight). My two biggest complaints were the awkward writing (which is likely a translation issue) and the fact that I didn't have a chance to solve the mystery (he figures it all out based on pictures that aren't in the book - it is a big pet peeve of mine when reading a mystery to not be given the tools to solve it). But I do agree that it does important work in drawing attention to the prevalence of sexual violence, and that the original title was a MUCH better fit.

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    1. Sometimes bad books can be very hard to put down!
      I agree the writing was awkward, it would be interesting to see a different translation of a chapter or so, to see if it is a translation issue or a writing issue.
      I don't try to solve mysteries myself, even when the clues are presented to me, so that didn't bother me.

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    2. Oh, wow, I can't resist trying to solve mysteries. I even tell my husband my predictions beforehand to prove (to him? myself?) that I figured it out. I'm usually wrong, lol.

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  4. I've been wondering what you would think! I agree that the beginning of the novel is really slow and I know several people that have given up before it starts to get good. I think the first book is the weakest in the series, though...you're in for some fun with the rest!

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    1. It was slow, but not so slow I was going to give up. Glad the other two books are even better, I'm looking forward to them :)

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  5. I really enjoyed this book - and the others that follow it - but agree about it being rather slow at first. Hope you continue the series though :-)

    Tanya Patrice
    Girlxoxo.com

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    1. I will definitely continue, I've heard good things about the other two.

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  6. Thank you for this review. I've been on the fence whether pick these up. I've heard about how "different" and awesome the female character is, but I already had the fear that I would come away with the same emotion as you in those regards, and it's good to know that beforehand, if I ever do choose to read the trilogy.

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    1. I think the main character has been over-hyped, but it is still a good book.

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  7. Ultimately, I didn't end up enjoying these books as much as others. I didn't even get through the third book, to be honest. The terrible editing just isn't something I can get over. The first 200 pages of the first two books just need to be eliminated. The rest of the books also need a good slashing. They just have a very raw manuscript feel and could have been so much better. BUT the story is excellent and gripping. I really did like Lisbeth.

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    1. I agree that there is a raw manuscript feel and I think there are some translation issues too. It's lucky the story gripped me so much!

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  8. I don't know how I've made it this long without reading these! I get all jerky about a book (or series) when it becomes popular for some reason. Like, oh it's too mainstream for me. Which is just stupid, lol.

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    1. I do too...I always end up reading hyped books, but years after everyone else. I did the same with the Night Circus, maybe I'll get to it in three years time or so :P

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  9. I read this a while ago and while I liked the story and twists, I just felt like I was being lectured a lot - mostly about the libel and business issues rather than the female issues! I bought the second book but have never read it. It's been sat on my bookcase for years!

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  10. I heard about the Swedish title for this a while ago, and I think it's very interesting, and says a lot about the UK/US that it got changed to 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo'. Like... Men Who Hate Women hits a bit too close to home or something, dudes?

    I don't know. Anyway! I'm glad you enjoyed this because I've had these books for a while now and totally haven't even started this one, but I do really want to! And now I want to extra!

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  11. I read this when it was *hot* and thought it was quite good, but I didn't love Lisbeth, either. She is very compelling and hard to look away from, but her amorality bothered me, especially when I tried to read the second in the series. Needless to say, I never read it or the third book.

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  12. I don't tend to read a great deal of thrillers either. I have read this series though and really enjoyed it. I wouldn't say I loved Lisbeth but I thought she was very cool. I hope you enjoy the rest of the series.

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  13. A favourite of mine! I am a huge crime fiction fan and when someone who isn't loves a crime book, I know it has to be really good. As it happens with the Millenium triology, there's something more than the crime: Larsson's criticism of the many flaws of Swedish society that could be easily extended to any other European country.

    I hope you like the second installment, it is as good as the first one ;)

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  14. I finally picked up a copy at a used book sale not too long ago... let's see how long it takes me to actually read it now ;-)

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  15. I loved the Millenium Trilogy, it was such a good crime fiction story! I think I will do a reread soon

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