Book Review: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

I have finished reading the The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and I have to say that it was a fairly enjoyable murder mystery.  I haven't actually read a murder mystery in about seven years.  That was the good 'ole days when I was a librarian at Franklin High School.  Yes, I was a librarian my senior year of high school.  I had the extra time and it gave me an opportunity to order the books that I wanted.  I was a big Thomas Harris (He created Hannibal Lecter) fan because he wrote a lot of crime solving books.   I like books where mysteries are solved by the main character putting puzzle pieces together and discovering conspiracies.  Consequently the Hannibal Lecter Trilogy were the last murder mysteries, much less recreational reading that I did since now. 

Back to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo...it was a fairly easy read about an investigative reporter solving the murder of a girl nearly forty years earlier.  Don't worry I won't reveal any spoilers. (its not my style)    When I picked up my Kindle and started reading, I was a little surprised by the main theme of the book.  This book was originally written in Swedish with the title "Men Who Hate Women".  This title was more in line with the contents of the book than the American title.  From the Swedish title you can gather that it was a novel about crimes against women.  It wasn't American Psycho bad, but it was graphic enough.  The interesting part of the story was that the investigation is performed by a financial crimes reporter.  This contrasts the FBI agents that are the main characters in the Harris stories.  He took on the case because his reputation took a big hit because he lost a court battle to a major financial corporation about on of his reports.  The other main character was a girl (with the Dragon tattoo) who perform background checks for a security firm.  They were tasked with solving the missing person mystery that happened on an island in the 1960s by the Grand-uncle of the girl.  He suspected murder, because his family was as twisted as they come.  I do not want to reveal the story, but it is an understatement that the family in the novel has a couple of skeletons in the closet.


My one critique of the book, is that the climax of the story occurred when I was about 75% through with the book.  (I know 75% because my Kindle keeps track...and it does my laundry j/k)  At that point one of the main character's ethics are challenged and some readers might feel disappointed.  The last quarter of the novel is spent settling the score for one of the main characters.  However, I did like how the last pages of the novel read.  The author ended the story on a very realistic note, after building up the reader to think that the story was going to be very cheesy.    I think that Steig Larsson is a pretty good author...to bad he died earlier this decade.  Decade, wow, I wonder what this first decade will be remembered by?  Probably the Afghanistan and Iraq wars sadly and probably Lady Gaga.  Oh well, 2011 bring it on!!!

Stay Frosty,

JoJo