The Millennium Series, by Stieg Larsson, is a series of three books which revolve around the central character - Lisbeth Salander. When I first picked up the book ‘The girl with the dragon tattoo’, my expectations were minimum in spite of some glowing reviews. I ended up liking it very much that I ordered the next 2 books in series from Flipkart in quick succession and during the last 2 weeks I’ve been spending some late nights. The series has three books and let’s see a short synopsis of each of these books.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist in Millenium magazine and who is also serving time for libel, is requested by a business tycoon (Vanger) to find out what happened to his grand-daughter a few decades ago. Blomkvist, with the help of Lisbeth Salander, tries to playback history and unravel the mysteries behind the Vanger Industries. He also has to deal with Wennerstrom who sent him to prison.
The Girl who played with Fire: Blomkvist is working on a story on illegal sex trafficking in Sweden when two of his friends are murdered. And it turns out that Lisbeth Salander is wanted for the double murder. In spite of the nation wide search, Lisbeth manages to evade all of Swedish Police force and investigates into the murders. Blomkvist believes that Lisbeth is innocent and starts his own investigation into the matter. The police have their own. Three investigations converge to a explosive climax.
The Girl who kicked the Hornets’ nest: This is a continuation of the 2nd book. Lisbeth Salander is brought to trial for attempted murder. Somebody high in the Secret Police (Sapo) wants her locked up in a mental asylum for ever to protect one of Sweden’s greatest secrets. An explosive book that show what Lisbeth is truly made of and makes her realize that she does have friends to help her out.
Stieg Larsson, in the form of Lisbeth Salander, has created one of my favorite female fictional character to date. Lisbeth is a highly talented girl with unparalleled hacking skills and photographic memory, but socially awkward. In spite of her child-like appearance, she doesn’t back off when it comes to fighting with stronger opponents. It is just impossible to sum up Salander in this blog post and it would be a crime if I attempted. Just read the books and you’ll fall for her too.
Stieg Larsson is undoubtedly a gifted writer. He takes time in building his plot and does it meticulously including all the details. In each book, right from the first page, he manages to grab your attention and takes you along a ride that is entertaining and fulfilling. He manages to handle several plots with ease and each sub plot is gripping in its own respect. His character building is top notch as they are consistent through out the book and you’ll get the feeling of being with real people. It is a shame that he has passed away after writing this series.
I strongly recommend The Millenium Triology as it is not only a fine crime series but also gives us one of the greatest characters of all times – Lisbeth Salander.
No comments:
Post a Comment