The Millenium Trilogy by
Stieg LarssonThe Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
In the first book of the Millenium Trilogy Mikael Blomkvist, publisher of the Swedish political magazine Millennium, loses a libel case involving allegations about billionaire industrialist Hans-Erik Wennerström. Soon afterwards he is invited to meet Henrik Vanger, retired CEO of the Vanger Corporation, unaware that Vanger has checked into his personal and professional history. The investigation was carried out by Lisbeth Salander a taciturn young woman, anti-social, fiercely private and highly intelligent; she works as a surveillance agent.
Blomkvist is promised considerable financial reward and solid evidence against Wennerström in exchange for writing the Vanger family history. Vanger believes that his great-niece, Harriet, was murdered by a member of his family 36 years earlier, and has spent the intervening years obsessively trying to solve the mystery.
Blomkvist moves to the island and begins his research into the history of the Vanger family and Harriet's disappearance. While searching through the evidence he decides that he needs a research assistant, Vanger's lawyer mentions Salander. When he sees the report she prepared for Vanger, Blomkvist realises that Salander has hacked into his computer. He confronts her, and Salander agrees to assist in the investigation.
Lisbeth Salander is under the care of a legal guardian, Holger Palmgren, who suffers a stroke and is replaced by lawyer Nils Bjurman, a nasty piece of work who takes advantage of his position to beat and sexually abuse Lisbeth. After using a hidden camera to record Bjurman's assaults on her Lisbeth takes her revenge, torturing him and threatening to ruin him unless he gives her full control of her life and finances......
Now, I'm of the opinion that if a person commits a heinous crime against a helpless victim then the perpetrator deserves severe punishment, and the punishment that Lisbeth exacted on the odious Bjurman is divine.
There is violence, harsh language and some scenes of a sexual nature (love that phrase), but that's what happens when bad people do bad things. It is a brilliant story, very well crafted, I really couldn't put the book down, but didn't want to finish it.
There are a lot of characters in this first novel so I wrote notes in the back of my book to keep track of who they all are.
I absolutely thoroughly enjoyed all three novels. I think Stieg Larsson was a brilliant writer.
I haven't read the trilogy, but I've read this one and it's amazing. In fact, you've made me want to read it again. Good movie, too. Shame Stieg Larsson never saw any of his success.
ReplyDeleteI read the books first and then watched the movie, I saw both versions, English and Swedish, both very good, I think I slightly preferred the Swedish version. I had forgotten he had died, that was tragic, so much talent. I need to alter the tense. Thank you Mike.
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