This last year has had me searching for good books to read, and I have to admit that it seemed like a slim year with a couple of exceptions. The series by Stieg Larssen about a reporter and a hacker; the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, the Girl who Played With Fire and the Girl who Kicked a Hornets Nest had me riveted. It’s been a long time since I was so engrossed in a book, let alone a series of books.
Crime novels are not at the top of my list, hell- they are not even on my “to be read” list.
This series is and exception to that rule. For all of you who normally read Charlaine Harris, Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Janet Evanovich this will be a new experience for you- it was for me.
The original title in Swedish was “Men who hate women.” Fair warning- this book contains graphic violence toward women. It’s a theme that runs through the series and sets the stage for the final battle.
The two main characters, Mikael Blomkvist (the reporter) and Lisbeth Salander (the hacker), carry us along and though they are not always together, they manage to maintain a relationship throughout the series. The series starts off slow for about the first 100 pages as it sets up the circumstances for you, moves you to a few WTF moments and then whips you along a few roller coaster hills and turns along the way. Add to this momentum an attraction to the wrong people, attraction to the right people and attractions to easy people and you got a caldron of action you won’t expect.
