The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

If you had told me three weeks ago that I would actually be writing this, I would give you a classic Tiffany look and call you crazy without saying a word.  Then today, I would eat my words and hate you for being right.  

Less than an hour ago, I finished reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.  Before I give my two cents on this book, I feel that I need to point something out about the author that I thought was morbidly interesting.  Just before he passed away in 2004, Larsson finished this trilogy without any intention of having them published and one of the main characters in his books is based on young woman he witnessed being gang raped when he was 15.  Reading a little blurb about him, I've got to say that I can relate to him mainly because he started writing for one of the main reasons I did: as a way to unwind each day.  Also, it is said that he left an unfinished fourth book, and the beginnings to a fifth and sixth book.  Crazy!

So, I have to say, the first 200, 300 pages were almost painfully boring and made me consider putting this book down and continue reading The Divine Comedy.  I have found that most books that start out this way usually picked up half way through the book and the reader usually has to hold on for dear life for the rest of the book and that was definitely the case.  The story was insanely written, despite the fact that this was originally written in Swedish.  It is a murder mystery about an old man who turns to a journalist who has just been burned to find out what happened to his niece thirty years ago. This one kept me guessing until the very end.  Who I thought could be the crazy person wasn't who it turned out to be.  What I loved about this book is that it leads right into the next book, The Girl Who Played With Fire, which I will be reading as soon as I can get my hands on it. 

I really don't want to say too much about the story because I want more people to read this.  Unlike some of the book series that are out there, I would actually recommend this one for two reasons...well, three actually.

1. It is well written
2. It takes you on one hell of a ride and keeps you wanting to know what happens next
3. Because in a way, Larsson wrote about situations that happen all the time that can and have been swept under the rug.  (You'll know what I mean when you read the book.)

Read it and let me know what you think!