Book Review: "The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson

A missing teenage girl, a down on his luck journalist and a punk, tattooed deviant are at the center of this mystery infused tale. The real twist is how all three are connected and what becomes of the mystery surrounding Sweden’s wealthy Vanger family.

I have to be honest, I only purchased “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” because of all the hubbub that surrounded it last year. Yes, last year, 2010. That’s when I purchased it and began reading it. I believe it was a beautiful June day, I was sitting outside and decided to finally crack it open. I kept rereading the first two pages during the entire two hours I was outside. I had difficulty, to say the least. It took me at least two months to get through the first few chapters because I just couldn’t get into it. The detailing about the Vanger family was just that, too detailed. I was bored reading about the flowers Henrik Vanger was being sent every year on his birthday, where they were grown, conditions they had to be grown in, etc. And that was only the first chapter.

So this year, the beginning of March I believe, I picked the book up again determined to finish it. Of course, it was not easy because I found it to be dull until about halfway through when it ultimately begins to get good. The heroine of the book, Lisbeth Salander, finally gets more interesting. We learn more of what makes her tick and why she is such an eccentric character. We also get into the mystery the book surrounds. What mystery you ask? Well, the mystery of Henrik Vanger’s missing niece, Harriet Vanger. The protganist, Mikael Blomkvist is a journalist Vanger hires to find the missing girl. Not only does Blomkvist have problems of his own (he’s going to jail for libel), but he gets so involved in the mystery that it creates even more problems for him. But that’s what makes this book worth reading. You fall in love with the characters and become so involved in what happens to them that it’s all you can think about.

The details surrounding Harriet’s disappearance are not only important, but hard to piece together. There’s no way to figure out what happened to her on your own. Believe me, I tried. I guessed a few times and was wrong, until Blomkvist laid out a few details which triggered something in me. But I only had it half correct. Oh well…

Salander is, by far, the most interesting character—as she should be—because of her seemingly shy attitude, attention to detail, and messy apartment. Yes, the apartment makes her interesting. You have to wonder how someone can put together a report which is detailed down to the punctuation but lives in a pig sty. If that doesn’t make you want to know more about her, I don’t know what will. She’s tough yet quiet, but when she speaks, she does it with purpose. She does not mince words and she’s very intelligent. See, bet you want to know more about her too, don’t you?

Overall, I would recommend the book because it’s an interesting read. Just not right off the bat. I think the longwinded particulars of the Vanger family may seem like an important detail, but to my mind, they were unnecessary and merely served as way to throw you off from figuring out what happened to Harriet. But, Larsson could have had something completely different in mind and I’ll get it on my second read-through. Though I must admit, I was just as invested in what happened to Harriet as Vanger, Blomkvist and Salander. I had to keep reading even though my eyes were shutting of their own volition from exhaustion. If you can make it past the first 200 pages of this book, you won’t be disappointed. Don’t worry, there’s 644 pages.

As an aside, I cannot wait to read “The Girl Who Played with Fire.” There is a sneak peek of the first chapter at the end of the “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” and already I am intrigued—not only by the synopsis of it and what mystery there is to solve, but also, for it being the second book in the trilogy, it’s off to a much better start than the first. But don’t just take my word for it. Get thee to a bookery and find out for yourself!

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Elle

Writer, mother, realist, cloud lover, daydreamer, dessert enthusiast, sweet tea addict, perfectionist, and lover of life and Christ, but not in that order. http://www.fanfiction.net/~vikingloverelle