Julie's Review: The Girl Who Play with Fire

Summary: Mikael Blomkvist, crusading publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation. On the eve of its publication, the two reporters responsible for the article are murdered, and the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to his friend, the troubled genius hacker Lisbeth Salander. Blomkvist, convinced of Salander’s innocence, plunges into an investigation. Meanwhile, Salander herself is drawn into a murderous game of cat and mouse, which forces her to face her dark past. ~amazon.com

Review: These books are so intense that I took a long break in between reading the first two of the series. The Girl Who Played with Fire is intense from the get go. While I enjoyed the mystery around The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo I loved that this book delved into Lisbeth and her past. I admire Lisbeth for her strength and her perseverance. Do I think she has some issues? Heck yes but most of her reactions have always been because she needs to survive. She's been surviving all her life. She doesn't know how to need someone because she's always relied on herself.

I found the exposition of her life fascinating. Perhaps it's because it's so different than what most of us have known and also because you wonder how someone is still functioning after her childhood. I loved how Mr. Larsson slowly revealed bits and pieces of her life. They were always well timed and always wanted you leaving more.

I thought it was great how Mikael was still involved in the story and spent a lot of his time trying to prove Lisbeth innocent of the crimes she was accused of in the novel. As a reader, you wonder if Lisbeth is guilty but you know that she can't possibly be.

This book never stops. I had to put it down several times to just catch my breath and my thoughts. I finally just had to stay up late to finish it. Luckily, my edition had the first chapter of The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest so I can wait until the paperback comes out in early 2012 to read the final novel.

If you haven't read the first book, I highly recommend it. I don't think I've ever read a character as interesting, intriguing and complex as Lisbeth Salander.

Final Take: 5/5