The internationally acclaimed Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is not a book that I would generally pick up; crime fiction is not really my thing. But just as with the Da Vinci Code, this was recommended to me by several people, and I was intrigued by the trailer for the Swedish film, so decided to give it a shot.Unlike the Da Vinci code, I found this to be stimulating, enjoyable and very readable novel...despite some of the more graphic scenes that I could probably have done without.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is Lisbeth Salander, a slightly unusual but highly gifted private investigator working in Stockholm. The titular girl is not the main protagonist in this first instalment. That falls to Mikail Blomkvist, the charming magazine publisher who at the start of the novel loses a libel case and exiles himself fom the business world to recover. He is soon approached to write a biography of the renowned Henrik Vanger, CEO of Vanger Enterprises, and his family. Part of his commission is also to investigate the disappearance of Vanger's great-niece decades earlier.
Yes this is a mainstream crime novel. But it is also primarily about sexual violence against women. Some of the descriptions are quite graphic and unpleasant and even shocked this steely blogger. But none of the references are overly gratuitous and are designed to be abhorrent to the reader rather than a form of entertainment. I have since read that the author, Larssen, had been emotionally affected by sexual violence against women after witnessing rape, and part of me finds it surprising that he would writew about such things with this amount of detail. Then again, with any type of trauma, confronting the issue is often the best way of dealing with it, so perhaps this was his way.
Violence aside, this is a highly readable book. The main character is a charming and likeable man, and there is something altogether appealing about Salander. The crime itself was intricate enough to keep the reader guessing up until the last, and left the characters wide open for further stories. An entertaining enough read, though perhaps not enough to sway me to other crime fiction novels.
Other blog reviews:
Gemini Moon
You Can Never Have Too Many Books
5 comments:
I just finished this book and could not put it down. It was recommended by my Dad, who took 4 years to finish the last book he read, but finished this one in 2 weeks. I can't wait to enjoy the next one.
I enjoyed this an awful lot, though I also found the sexual violence tough to get through. As much as I liked it, I think I'll feel awkward about recommending it for just that reason. I want others to read it, but I know those sorts of scenes will be incredibly triggering for some readers.
Thanks for reviewing this. I loved the graphic scenes but I also find it can be awkward to recommend it to someone and mention that I loved them.
A story about a "slightly unusual but highly gifted private investigator working in Stockholm"?
That sounds like it has to be awesome lol. I might have to check it out.
Sarahf - I love it when a book gets you hooked!
Memory - Yes the violence was a little shocking in places and I wish perhaps that I had been warned a little beforehand.
dazedlittlemiss - its always awkward recommending a book when the topic is this graphic.
Marcus - Its certainly different from my usual fayre!
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