A Google user
I loved Lisbeth Salander in” The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” and am thrilled that she takes center stage in this sequel. She has been traveling the world, so she is a little savvier, but just as intriguing, complex and irresistible. She is truly a damaged soul, which is part of her charm. Her strong moral character is juxtaposed by her own set of rules concerning what is right or wrong. Layering this on top of her spunky dare devil attitude makes for one fascinating heroine, she steals the show. As with the first book the plot is fast paced, well researched and tight, a page turner with twists and surprises that will leave you wanting more. Compared to “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” there is not quite as much mystery and although satisfying the ending does not pack as much punch, but it’s equally as riveting. In addition to complex unique characters, Stieg Larsson also gives us a fantastic thriller full of psychological suspense and insight into Swedish social and political culture. I am sure I am not alone when I say I look forward to the final book in this series and am sorry there will be no more
A Google user
Lisbeth Salander is accused of murdering three people. The evidence against her is strong and she decides to go into hiding.
Newspapers are fed information about her past and they print many negatives about her, making her look like an out of control, sexually deprived mad woman. The tables seem stacked against her but Mikael Blomkvist and a few loyal friends are not swayed by public view.
The magazine "Millenium" was about to publish a story by two of the people murdered. The story was about the abuse of prostitutes in Sweden. It was going to point out who was behind the abuse and provide names of a number of influential people who were involved.
In a strong, plot driven novel, we follow the bashing of Lisbeth, the official investigation and the parallel investigation run by Mikael and his staff at the magazine. Another old friend has some of his employees working with the police. Lisbeth is also working behind the scenes, attempting to clear her name and find the killer.
Lisbeth is one of the finest characters in fiction. The manner in which the author provides her background enables the reader to know more about her and sympathise with her situation. She is a gutsy, relentless and extremely intelligent character. She appears to be bi-polar and her actions are unique.
The plot is complex and there are many characters. Many of the characters have names which are similar, making it confusing to follow, there is Blomkvist, Bjurman, Bublinsky and Berger who is married to Beekman. Other than that, the plot is original, there are nice plot twists and the novel was an enjoyable reading experience.
A Google user
Read in January 2011, while suffering from a cold. I thought this the weakest of the trilogy, but I still gobbled it up. It's an uncharitable thought, but if Larsson wasn't dead, I don't think I would have finished the trilogy. These aren't characters you'd want to spend that much more time with. It also would've been nice to have included at least one sympathetic female character who didn't fall into bed with Blomkvist.