June Book Challenge – Day 25

Today’s question: If you could have a dinner party with fictional characters, which 4 would you invite?

Lisbeth Salander (Millennium Trilogy), Albus Dumbledore (Harry Potter), Susan “Stargirl” Caraway (Stargirl), Heathcliff (Wuthering Heights).

- Took me a while to think of my choices, and they are fairly random but it would make for an interesting party!

Lisbeth Salander – because she’s a difficult character but she has that edge.

Dumbledore – because he is a fascinating character who seems benevolent but there is something more underneath.

Stargirl – because she is a true unique individual who defies the norm at the risk of ostracising herself from her peers.

Heathcliff – because he is the ultimate moody male, and a tortured but romantic hero.

Book Review: The Girl who kicked the Hornet’s Nest

I have just finished reading the last in the late Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy “The Girl who kicked the Hornet’s Nest”.

It is a brilliant book and a fantastically complex but satisfying end to the trilogy, with a fair bit of information which eventually comes together. Lisbeth’s life comes under immense scrutiny all the way through the book, as do the lives of several other characters. The story is riveting and well-written and makes you eager for the whole truth to come out in the end, and is particularly satisfying with the annihilation of the many characters who try to control Salander throughout her life and the trial – seeing these twisted and malicious people get their comeuppance was long awaited and i was not disappointed!

Lisbeth is an extraordinary and unique heroine, with her amazing skills and sharp mind, and even though she has her tough exterior and seemingly tough interior, we do learn that she has a vulnerable side, but her instinct to survive and to punish those who do her wrong give her an amazing strength as a character.

I would love to read more about her, but unfortunately Larsson passed away before he could even witness the immense popularity of his books. I am grateful that his work was published, as he was clearly a good writer, as his books keep the suspense going and are so complex in places that it is difficult to see where events are headed but the end result is just brilliant.

I give this book 9/10, and the whole Millennium Trilogy a 10/10 for uniqueness, utter brilliance and fascinating characters. I definitely recommend reading these books!

Book Review: “The Girl Who Played With Fire” by Stieg Larsson

Cover of The Girl Who Played with Fire

I just finished reading The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson, and thought it was a very good read, really gripping! I loved reading more about Lisbeth Salander and the aftermath of the previous book in the Millennium Trilogy, and was desperate to find out the truth behind the murders!

This book is quite dark in places, with violence cropping up constantly, and we delve deep into many people’s secrets, the most crucial of all being Salander’s. Slowly her mysterious past is uncovered and we discover so much about her character and how she came to be the way she is.

It ends quite dramatically with the mystery being solved, but the book ends on what can only be described as a cliffhanger, which immediately made me want to get on and read the 3rd book!

Another well-written book, which keeps you guessing until the end! Gets a little bit frustrating when you are fed little tidbits of the mystery all the way through and your brain goes crazy trying to piece it together and then the ending always surprises you!

I give it a 9/10 for originality and some excellent writing. I’m definitely starting to see why it has been such a bestseller!

Book Review: “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” by Stieg Larsson

I have just finished reading “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” after struggling with reading it for the last 2 months or so. I finally got into it a few days ago and once i was hooked, it pretty hard to put the book down!

I think it is a very good book, if a little dark at times, but then most crime novels are.  I can see why the Millennium series is so popular, it is definitely an interesting read!

Without spoiling the plot for anyone who hasn’t read it yet, the story follows Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist who faces prison after losing a libel case, who is hired by the elderly Henrik Vanger, the rich CEO of a large international company, who has spent the last 40 years or so trying to discover what happened to his young niece Harriet who disappeared without a trace. Blomkvist investigates this case with little belief that they will ever find out what happened to her, but after a few important incidents, the dysfunctional Vanger family’s lives start to unravel and secrets come pouring out. Blomkvist, with the help of Lisbeth Salander, an expert hacker in her twenties and with her own troubled past, has to go through all the stories and lies to find out the truth.

It really keeps you guessing all the way through, and it is a little bit hard to follow at time, making you wonder what on earth is going on, but eventually the loose ends are all tied up and the ending is pretty good.

The characters are really well written, and Lisbeth Salander in particular brings a lot to the plot, with the theme of the novel being about the abuse of women by men. The original Swedish title of the novel was “Men who hate women”, and that certainly shows throughout the book.

Overall, for a crime novel, this is extremely well written, and although i found certain parts of the plot a little disturbing at times, it is still an excellent read, and i really recommend you try it, even if you don’t normally go for crime fiction. I am not a huge fan of crime fiction, but i always like the suspense of a mystery which you can’t wait to solve!

I give it 9/10 for originality, suspense, and a fantastic plot with great little twists and lots of great detail!