My Introduction to Stieg Larsson

If someone was to call me a book junkie, I wouldn't object though I have always seen myself more of a book junkie wannabe. 

I love to read, though it is difficult when going through the daily 9 to 5 grind. So, when I am in a land where books are considerably cheaper and more importantly armed with the luxury of time, I am closer to shedding the wannabe title.

When it comes to selecting the books to read, there is no particular genre that I prefer but it is  the topic that matters. In any case, I rarely pick up crime novels when buying books. There isn't any particular reason why but when I found out that the flight was delayed by 2 hours and there was no wifi at the airport, I bought one of the thickest book available and that was how I got introduced to Stieg Larsson.

Initially, I was put off by all those Swedish names and locations which was difficult to absorb. I am familiar with Grand Central Park or Madison Avenue but names like Hornsgatan and Södermalmstor? Really? How do you even pronounce them? But thanks to Larsson, tourists in Stockholm are now looking for the buildings written in the book or join a Millennium tour.

It also didn't help that because I was reading the last book of the series, I had no knowledge of the past events that had happened to the character when mentioned.

In order not to spoil the fun for those of you planning to read the book, I will not go into the details of the story. Overall, I enjoyed his book for a few reasons.

The main protagonists in Larsson's book has characters quite different from your usual American/ British profile and I liked the change. I mean when was the last time there was a husband who didn't mind his wife having an affair with her best friend? How about the journalist who has strong work ethics, so likable as a person but have commitment issues? And of course, there is the main character who is so misunderstood by people around but yet is such a genius in cyberspace.

Though the story of the main protagonist is unravelled through three books, each book has a crime theme that is intriguing on its own.

First the mystery of a missing girl of a wealthy family, followed by the story of corruption and organised crimes and the last was the uncovering of a secret government unit (think KGB type).

Be warned though that at certain parts of the books, you will find detailed graphical description of events that won't be everybody's cup of tea.

Finally, it definitely was the unexpected twists and development that got me reading into ungodly hours on some nights. This was definitely not one of those books where you would already know who the culprit was or how it would all end before you are even midway through. But then again, I am not a seasoned reader of crime novels so maybe I need to sharpen my "investigative intuition".

After finishing all three books, I felt like I could finally catch my breath. Though there are times when I felt like giving up because each book is a good 500+ pages, I am glad that I finished it as the author had taken much effort to round up all the events and plots. The gratification of closure just like when watching dramas.

Time to breathe now.

Update: I had watched "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" on HBO and it was pretty disappointing as compared to the book. Many details which made the book a real suspense was left out (as always when the movie is based on a novel) but I did enjoy seeing the actual places that the book was describing.