This is not a book I would have ordinarily picked up. I think apart from anything else, there's been so much hype about it, that I found it kind of offputting. But someone offered to lend it to me, so I almost felt obligated to give it a go, especially as they were so enthusiastic about it.I'm not sure I could say I enjoyed the book, as I think that's the wrong word. (I've watched Wallander on the BBC - another series based on a Swedish crime thriller - and there's a bleakness to that as well. So maybe it's a Swedish thing?)
However, having said that I certainly found it compulsive reading and I couldn't really explain why, especially as for the first part nothing really seemed to happen. If anything, I think it was the prologue that pulled me in, I wanted to know who was sending the flowers. And I think I was also genuinely surprised by the identity of the killer - which doesn't happen that often, I have watched far too much CSI, Law and Order etc. etc. to be surprised on a regular basis. So it makes a refreshing change.
A lot of it made for uncomfortable reading. I think it's not just that it has a misogynistic feel, I don't think it's that complimentary to men either. But Lisbeth Salander is one of the most interesting characters I've read about in a long time.
