I’ve always wanted to read Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — I’ve actually had a copy sitting on my shelf for several months now, but for a while there was some hype about it and I wanted to wait for it to dial down a bit. And then when I was looking for a book to read this weekend, the chartreuse cover got my attention so I finally took it out of its packaging, covered it in protective plastic (of course), and started to read it.

Originally written in Swedish, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the first book in Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy. The novel has won multiple awards, including Sweden’s Glass Key Award in 2006 for best crime novel of the year, the 2008 Boeke Prize, the 2009 Galaxy British Book Awards for Books Direct Crime Thriller of the year, and the 2009 Anthony Award for Best First Novel.

Michael Blomkvist is a journalist under fire for libel, having published a damaging article about Swedish tycoon Hans-Erik Wennerstrom without any proof to defend his allegations. After a highly publicized trial, Blomkvist is sentenced with a hefty fine and three months in gaol.

Eager for time off the limelight before he has to serve his prison term, and wanting to save the reputation of  his magazine, Blomkvist is off to a sabbatical from his post as publisher of Millennium when he gets an interesting proposal from Henrik Vanger, the aged patriarch of a wealthy industrial family.

What Blomkvist doesn’t know is that prior to the proposal, Vanger commissioned a thorough investigation on his character, carried out by Lisbeth Salander, the “girl with the dragon tattoo.” Salander is a 25-year old  freelance detective who operates on her own rules, by her own moral standards. She is a highly interesting character, slight in stature, but with a tough-as-nails exterior: spiky hair, black leather, statement shirts (preferrably black), multiple piercings, and multiple tattoos. She’s also a kick-ass sleuth, a master hacker, and a ruthless avenger for justice.

Henrik’s grandniece Harriet disappeared forty years ago and Henrik is convinced she was murdered by one of the family members. He has spent four decades obsessing over the cold-case, and he asks Blomkvist to try and solve what appears to be a closed-room mystery, under the cover of writing the history of the Vanger family.  Although dubious of the murder — no body was ever found — Blomkvist agrees under the promise of support for the Millennium magazine and material to use against Wennerstrom by the end of the project. He moves into a guest cabin on Hedeby island, where Harriet was last seen, and where most of the Vangers reside.

In his research, Blomkvist comes across new material giving credence to Henrik’s belief, and decides to  find an assistant to help him verify some details. Vanger’s lawyer lets slip about Salander’s impressive investigation and Blomkvist enlists Salander’s help in the case.

Blomkvist and Salander’s lives are in peril as they start to uncover an evil that has been lurking beneath the surface for decades.

I’ll leave it at that before I start revealing crucial information.

It’s a pretty straightforward thriller that touches on the Swedish financial industry and the five generations of the Vanger clan. It took a few chapters to get into the story; the similar-sounding names can get confusing, and I was wondering where Lisbeth Salander would come in and she isn’t introduced until after some chapters, but I perked up as soon as I got that far. The chapters then alternate between Blomkvist at Hedeby island and Salander in Stockholm until they partner towards solving the mystery, which is compelling to the end.

While not as predictable or as absurdly unbelievable as a Dan Brown novel (which a friend calls a “leave your brains at the doorstep” mystery, although hey, I’ve enjoyed the Dan Browns, regardless of believability), Mikhael Blomkvist reminds me of a less nerdy Robert Langdon, especially as he makes his way through the ladies throughout the course of the story.

Lisbeth Salander is another story, though, and adds the edge to this novel; her wise-cracking, cantankerous, character (packaged in a punk-rocker get-up) keeps the surprises coming, and is bound to make Nancy Drew cower in her penny loafers. There is much more to Salander than meets the eye, of course, and while the first novel gives us a peek into her life, there is a lot more mystery surrounding her character, which will probably unfold in the next two books in the trilogy.

I really enjoyed this book as I haven’t read a page-turning thriller in a long, long while, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was a satisfying read, exactly like my best friend Mika (check out her new book blog!) said it would be. I just got the next two in the trilogy yesterday; hopefully I’ll get to read them soon!

***

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, trade paperback, 4/5 stars

Book #91 for 2010, book #1 for the Chunkster Challenge – 608 pages (am about 60% done with 2666 then four more chunksters to go!)