If you live under a rock, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by the late Swedish author Stieg Larsson is the first of a crime/thriller trilogy, and I have to say, it's been diligently fighting its way onto my bookshelf. My mom and grandma have both read it and have been continually recommending it to me. I started it sometime last summer and wasn't initially impressed, so I quickly moved on and picked up another book.
I'm glad I gave it another shot. Although I would still assert that it starts excruciatingly slow, I concede to the fact that a slow start was necessary for the sheer amount of background information required. The novel deals with an incredible amount of topics including, but not limited to, business fraud, women victims, family secrets, sexual sadism, and the list goes on. And yet, amazingly, the story never really seemed scattered or fragmented, but included all these themes seamlessly.
I have but one further criticism which regards the title. The original title was Men Who Hate Women, and is in my opinion, far more fitting than the new title. Though I can't deny that it's catchy, the old title feels much more representative of the book's main themes.
Overall, I would definitely recommend that my friends (who also picked up and soon put down this book in the past) give it another shot and stick with it. I will definitely be moving on to the subsequent installments of the trilogy-- stay tuned!
