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The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo: Wiki content for your Kindle
NB: This is not the novel by Stieg Larsson. You can find The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo here.
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This book provides background information on the novel "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," written by Stieg Larsson.
Read a plot summary, information about the characters, themes, and film adaptations.
Wish you could read your favorite wiki content conveniently on your Kindle device? Now you can with the "Wiki content for your kindle" series.
This book provides background information on the novel "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," written by Stieg Larsson.
Read a plot summary, information about the characters, themes, and film adaptations.
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Published February 7, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
July 24, 2023
Nice thriller gripping book
Read
February 9, 2012Enjoyed this a lot - interesting characters. Intrigued to know where he goes to in the next 2 books now
July 22, 2022
re read 3 stars Lennox dragon guard Tessa Mooreland VAEPANTHER.
May 3, 2023
I could not put this book down.
January 28, 2012
Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has achieved global fame ever since it was published in 2004. The internationally award winning story was later adapted by the great David Fincher in 2011. Fincher does an excellent job in adapting the text into film, translating the story’s character into a memorable cast, producing an original film score that invokes the story’s ominous dark mood, and establishing an atmosphere that lingers with the audience long after the movie’s credits.
Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist for Millenium magazine, has recently lost his libel case against the corrupted Hans-Erik Wennerstrom, losing his life savings and credibility. The situation Blomkvist finds himself in soon becomes a great opportunity for Henrik Vanger to hire an investigator to solve the mystery of the murder of his 16-year old granddaughter, Harriet, forty years ago. If Blomkvist is able to solve the mystery, then Henrik will hand over a valuable piece of information that Blomkvist needs to put Wennerstrom in jail. As Blomkvist finds himself closer to the truth, he requests a research assistant –Lisbeth Salander. Lisbeth, as Blomkvist finds, becomes a valuable factor in the solving of this mystery.
What made me fall absolutely in love with the story are the incredibly original and realistic characters that Larsson creates. Lisbeth’s character has made me emotionally attached to her with her introverted, yet insane, personality. She is pale, anorexic, and dresses completely in black with piercings and tattoos throughout her body. The setting of Sweden allows for the detraction of her affiliation with certain groups that would be found in America and serves as a way to show that she dresses and presents herself the way she does in order to keep people away. The winter barren landscape of Sweden also adds to the foreboding feeling of the mystery, and the dismal secrets that lies behind closed doors. Lisbeth’s dark past greatly draws the reader to constantly turn the page to uncover who she really is and why she is who she is.
One of Larsson’s central theme in his story stems from an experience he had as a teenager. At the age of 15, he witnessed a gang rape of a young girl, which has haunted him for the rest of his life. As a result, we see this theme of sexual violence against women. Lisbeth’s character certainly projects this idea. Early in the story, Lisbeth is presented as a cold girl, living and surviving on her own. But when her new legal guardian, Nils Bjurman, rapes her, there is nothing that one can do except to cringe at the brutal experience that befalls the helpless Lisbeth. Quickly after the event however, Lisbeth retaliates as she plots her revenge on Bjurman. Surprising him at his house, she tasers him, ties him up and tortures him in order for him to abide by her rules and allow for her independence. Before she leaves, the terrified Bjurman lies on the floor with his eyes in fear and his mouth duct taped as she threatens him, “I will kill you. Do you doubt anything I’ve said? Do you doubt what’s in the reports about me? What do they say when you sum them up? They say I’m insane.” As he vigorously shakes his head no, she says, “No, it’s okay. You can nod because it’s true. I am insane.” The story and insanity of Lisbeth, however, is not a story of hatred towards men due to gender, but a story of being oppressed.
This same theme translates to Blomkvist as well. As his life spirals down due to Wennestrom, he picks up the pieces of what he has and establishes a stepping stone in order to subdue the man that is oppressing his life and career. When the paths of Lisbeth and Blomkvist intertwine, they begin to find themselves drawn to each other. Their relationships begin to reveal another side to Lisbeth when we see the walls that she worked so hard to build to keep people away, breaking down. Her vulnerability ends up leaving her crush at the end of the story when she watches from a distance with Blomkvist’s Christmas present in hand: him and his longtime lover.
The characters of Lisbeth and Blomkvist make the story but the mystery that Larsson creates adds the thriller element to this mystery. As we find the duo uncovering the mystery with its dark ties to Swedish Nazi roots, it is difficult to stop until we discover what truly happened to Harriet. Although the mystery is resolved in the end, the lives of Lisbeth and Blomkvist continue and leave the reader anxious to read the next book in the series, The Girl Who Played with Fire, where the mystery and history behind Lisbeth becomes further uncovered. As for now, anybody interested in reading a mystery with a badass heroine, you have got to pick up this book!
Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist for Millenium magazine, has recently lost his libel case against the corrupted Hans-Erik Wennerstrom, losing his life savings and credibility. The situation Blomkvist finds himself in soon becomes a great opportunity for Henrik Vanger to hire an investigator to solve the mystery of the murder of his 16-year old granddaughter, Harriet, forty years ago. If Blomkvist is able to solve the mystery, then Henrik will hand over a valuable piece of information that Blomkvist needs to put Wennerstrom in jail. As Blomkvist finds himself closer to the truth, he requests a research assistant –Lisbeth Salander. Lisbeth, as Blomkvist finds, becomes a valuable factor in the solving of this mystery.
What made me fall absolutely in love with the story are the incredibly original and realistic characters that Larsson creates. Lisbeth’s character has made me emotionally attached to her with her introverted, yet insane, personality. She is pale, anorexic, and dresses completely in black with piercings and tattoos throughout her body. The setting of Sweden allows for the detraction of her affiliation with certain groups that would be found in America and serves as a way to show that she dresses and presents herself the way she does in order to keep people away. The winter barren landscape of Sweden also adds to the foreboding feeling of the mystery, and the dismal secrets that lies behind closed doors. Lisbeth’s dark past greatly draws the reader to constantly turn the page to uncover who she really is and why she is who she is.
One of Larsson’s central theme in his story stems from an experience he had as a teenager. At the age of 15, he witnessed a gang rape of a young girl, which has haunted him for the rest of his life. As a result, we see this theme of sexual violence against women. Lisbeth’s character certainly projects this idea. Early in the story, Lisbeth is presented as a cold girl, living and surviving on her own. But when her new legal guardian, Nils Bjurman, rapes her, there is nothing that one can do except to cringe at the brutal experience that befalls the helpless Lisbeth. Quickly after the event however, Lisbeth retaliates as she plots her revenge on Bjurman. Surprising him at his house, she tasers him, ties him up and tortures him in order for him to abide by her rules and allow for her independence. Before she leaves, the terrified Bjurman lies on the floor with his eyes in fear and his mouth duct taped as she threatens him, “I will kill you. Do you doubt anything I’ve said? Do you doubt what’s in the reports about me? What do they say when you sum them up? They say I’m insane.” As he vigorously shakes his head no, she says, “No, it’s okay. You can nod because it’s true. I am insane.” The story and insanity of Lisbeth, however, is not a story of hatred towards men due to gender, but a story of being oppressed.
This same theme translates to Blomkvist as well. As his life spirals down due to Wennestrom, he picks up the pieces of what he has and establishes a stepping stone in order to subdue the man that is oppressing his life and career. When the paths of Lisbeth and Blomkvist intertwine, they begin to find themselves drawn to each other. Their relationships begin to reveal another side to Lisbeth when we see the walls that she worked so hard to build to keep people away, breaking down. Her vulnerability ends up leaving her crush at the end of the story when she watches from a distance with Blomkvist’s Christmas present in hand: him and his longtime lover.
The characters of Lisbeth and Blomkvist make the story but the mystery that Larsson creates adds the thriller element to this mystery. As we find the duo uncovering the mystery with its dark ties to Swedish Nazi roots, it is difficult to stop until we discover what truly happened to Harriet. Although the mystery is resolved in the end, the lives of Lisbeth and Blomkvist continue and leave the reader anxious to read the next book in the series, The Girl Who Played with Fire, where the mystery and history behind Lisbeth becomes further uncovered. As for now, anybody interested in reading a mystery with a badass heroine, you have got to pick up this book!
April 25, 2012
I have tried to avoid SPOILERS but I may reveal some minor details in my review. I have not given away the ending.
There are two stories within this book. I enjoyed the Vanger family mystery up until the ending, which I found disappointing. The Wennerstrom strand begins and ends the book and I think that the book would have been better without it. I found it boring, confusing and ultimately pointless. The last 70 pages droned on, giving far too many details, even down to the clothes the characters wore and the dullest email conversations ever, transcribed over 12 pages.
It seems that the main theme of this book is men's attitude/relationship to women. Almost all of the women have been abused by men in some way. However the Wennerstrom story has nothing to do with this and towards the end the author goes off on a rant about the corruption of the stock market.
Things I liked about this book were the details of Swedish life and descriptions of the settings, the interesting and eccentric members of the Vanger family and the author's laid-back style of writing. Things I disliked were that there were lots of peripheral characters and dead end strands of narrative, some aspects of the violence and that the motives and personalities of Blomkvist and Salander were never fully explored or explained. Why does Blomkvist sleep with every woman he encounters? Is he actually James Bond? (His character is played by Daniel Craig in the film) Why is he emotionally stunted? Why doesn't he have a relationship with his daughter? Why doesn't he mind that his girlfriend is married? Why does he have such a weird attitude to women?
Regarding Salander, I found her impossible to relate to and difficult to like. It became clear that all her tattoos and possibly her piercings had significant meanings - the wasp was her hacker name, the band around her ankle was a reminder of rape. Consequently I was waiting for an explanation of the title - The Dragon Tattoo - but it was never referred to. Her character was inconsistent, especially as it was indicated that she may have Aspergers. For example, she can't bear to be touched yet she sleeps around. She is very private yet she lets Blomkvist stay at her flat. And what did the bizarre incidents with the latex breasts have to do with anything?
I was dreading extreme violence from what I had heard about this book. However I didn't find it shocking or too unnerving. There is one scene of explicit violence and rape but the author's deadpan style made it less disturbing. I skimmed over it only half looking which is what I do when I'm reading something nasty. I understood the author's motives in describing this scene, as an example of the suffering the character has lived with and in trying to explain her reactions and ways of coping but I don't think it was necessary and could have been cut. There are descriptions of murder cases that were described as newspaper/coroner reports. Even though the details were extreme and disgusting there was no personal or emotional details for the reader to engage with so they seemed somewhat distant. The final scene of torture was brief and nothing I haven't read before. It didn't shock or upset me.
This book should have been severely edited. I wonder if it wasn't because the author died before it was published.
There are two stories within this book. I enjoyed the Vanger family mystery up until the ending, which I found disappointing. The Wennerstrom strand begins and ends the book and I think that the book would have been better without it. I found it boring, confusing and ultimately pointless. The last 70 pages droned on, giving far too many details, even down to the clothes the characters wore and the dullest email conversations ever, transcribed over 12 pages.
It seems that the main theme of this book is men's attitude/relationship to women. Almost all of the women have been abused by men in some way. However the Wennerstrom story has nothing to do with this and towards the end the author goes off on a rant about the corruption of the stock market.
Things I liked about this book were the details of Swedish life and descriptions of the settings, the interesting and eccentric members of the Vanger family and the author's laid-back style of writing. Things I disliked were that there were lots of peripheral characters and dead end strands of narrative, some aspects of the violence and that the motives and personalities of Blomkvist and Salander were never fully explored or explained. Why does Blomkvist sleep with every woman he encounters? Is he actually James Bond? (His character is played by Daniel Craig in the film) Why is he emotionally stunted? Why doesn't he have a relationship with his daughter? Why doesn't he mind that his girlfriend is married? Why does he have such a weird attitude to women?
Regarding Salander, I found her impossible to relate to and difficult to like. It became clear that all her tattoos and possibly her piercings had significant meanings - the wasp was her hacker name, the band around her ankle was a reminder of rape. Consequently I was waiting for an explanation of the title - The Dragon Tattoo - but it was never referred to. Her character was inconsistent, especially as it was indicated that she may have Aspergers. For example, she can't bear to be touched yet she sleeps around. She is very private yet she lets Blomkvist stay at her flat. And what did the bizarre incidents with the latex breasts have to do with anything?
I was dreading extreme violence from what I had heard about this book. However I didn't find it shocking or too unnerving. There is one scene of explicit violence and rape but the author's deadpan style made it less disturbing. I skimmed over it only half looking which is what I do when I'm reading something nasty. I understood the author's motives in describing this scene, as an example of the suffering the character has lived with and in trying to explain her reactions and ways of coping but I don't think it was necessary and could have been cut. There are descriptions of murder cases that were described as newspaper/coroner reports. Even though the details were extreme and disgusting there was no personal or emotional details for the reader to engage with so they seemed somewhat distant. The final scene of torture was brief and nothing I haven't read before. It didn't shock or upset me.
This book should have been severely edited. I wonder if it wasn't because the author died before it was published.
January 20, 2012
This book surpassed my expectations. I was not expecting it to be as good as it turned out to be. The story built up did take some time but the author who unfortunately is dead, had reasons behind that. Lisbeth Salander is the most different type of female lead that I have come across. I really wanna know what happened to her in her childhood. Mikael Bolomkevist(sp?)also turned out to be one hell of a character. I had somehow guessed that Martin Vanger would have something to do with the death of his sister. I was right on only one account. About Martin Vanger's involvement. The rest, again surprised and petrified me. Both father and son were sick. I can't imagine people like that existing. And I know that somewhere in the world, these kind of monsters would be existing. The whole Wennerstorm affair was also interesting. The book was very well plotted and was presented in such a way that you really can't put it down.
December 20, 2011
Primarily,all the fantastic reviews you hear about this book are indeed true.An impeccable story that forces you to speculate on the antagonist while being succesfull in immediately proving you wrong.Though introducing many characters from the vanger family might have helped the author in dragging a story little bit(WARRANTED!!),but you would be already relishing in the plot before you start any complaining
January 4, 2012
I actually listened to this as an audiobook. Until about half way the story I was wondering what all the fuss was about, although the narrator had a great voice and was enjoyable to listen to, the story was really tedious with details etc. ... And then the story kicked in. The treatment of women in particular was quite shocking and confronting but the story and intrigue was great. I loved the two main characters for all their peculiarities. Will definitely read the next two in the series.
January 5, 2012
AWESOME!!!! Loved every minute of the book. I couldn't wait to turn each page. Superbly written and the story was capitvating. The characters seemed to drink lots of coffee and have tons of sex and buy IKEA furniture, but somewhere in between all of that a four decade old mystery was solved, criminals were exposed and dealt with and the good guy seemed to fininsh first instead of last......lol......I loved it, so I am on to the next chapter of Lisbeth's life and adventures......
February 6, 2012
I liked this book, especially once it got going and I really liked Lizbeth's character. However, it felt a bit like two stories were crammed into one book and some of the material was very dark. Overall, there is some very thrilling storytelling in this book and it kept me reading, but I would be careful about who I recommended this book too.
January 22, 2012
Downloaded the free taster to my Kindle because people told me it was a good read, lots of twists and turns that keep you reading. I was very disappointed with chapter one, far too much information, long rambling back stories, we don't even get a sniff of the girl in the title. I wasn't interested enough to bother getting the rest of the book. Maybe it gets better in Chapter 2!
January 23, 2012
I must admit this is a slow starter and took me a few attempts before I could really get past the beginning and into the good stuff! A thrill ride of twist and turns, it really keeps you on the edge of your seat and the ending was not what I expected. It is haunting in its violence but brilliant. A page turner ;)
June 9, 2012
I've put this book on hold several times because I found it slow to get into it but because I've heard so much about it I decided to start it again and now that I'm nearly finished, I'm glad I have! To be continued.....
December 29, 2011
Great book. The author clearly went to great lengths to create background, characters, plot, and pages that keep someone up reading all night. I loved Salanders character the most and she was written with much more depth than I have seen in a while.
January 7, 2012
It's a wonderful masterpiece. I think I was one of the lucky ones who got through with the first try. The beginning can be rough, but then when everything actually starts it's hard to put it down. I couldn't sleep two days, because I had to read and finish. I enjoyed every chapter of that book.
April 12, 2012
This was a brilliant book, however I struggle to get through the seven first chapters - which was really frustrating but the story it self is brilliant. Can't believe that this author is dead.
Love Lisbeth, think she is an amazing character and well developed.
Love Lisbeth, think she is an amazing character and well developed.
February 5, 2012
Fantastication!!
December 25, 2011
Great read! Next comes the Girl who Played with fire and Kicked the Hornet's nest. Well worth investing in the series. Looking forward to the Daniel Craig movie.
December 31, 2011
The hype is all true. It really is worth reading. Got me into crime novels again.
Want to read
February 19, 2012Sadly gave up with this book, as it jumped about a bit too much and the foreign names made it too much hard work .
January 4, 2012
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. You do have to pay attention as many characters have similar names but I like to be kept on my toes. A good thriller with an ending I did not predict.
Read
January 29, 2012excellent could not put it down
January 6, 2012
Every book in this series was a page turner. Loved them all. My girlfriends and I fought over the books.
January 18, 2012
An above average thriller, no more, no less. Can't quite see what all the fuss is about.
January 22, 2012
i liked it very much. it is an interesting story but not the best of all...
June 11, 2012
It starts quite slow buy really picks up at the halfway mark. The final page is rather an anticlimax though!
January 29, 2012
I am not a thriller reader and I realize it once again after I read this. I read the whole book and that too at a stretch, though I have been thinking when will it end.
August 27, 2012
I liked this, but the beginning just dragged on for ever...I won't be tackling the others until I've finished a lot more of my to-read list...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews