• The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest © 2007
• Viking Canada: Penguin (English Translation © 2009)
• 566 pages

The Millennium Trilogy was quite a phenomenon. It’s difficult to find anyone who hasn’t at least heard of Larsson’s books. This third and final book was a bit of a departure from the first two, but no less thrilling.

Unlike  the first two books, there was a lot less physical action. Normally, that would make for a boring read, but not here. Courtroom intrigue, aggressive journalism, and police work keeps your mind engaged. To be honest, I read the 566 pages in two days.

My only quibble is a poorly related side-mystery that I won’t give away. It was interesting, but didn’t really relate to the rest of the book.

It’s a shame Larsson’s not around to continue writing. The books he left us with are utterly captivating mystery novels with an international flair.

• The Girl Who Played with Fire © 2006
• Viking (Penguin) 2009
• 503 pages

This is one fast-paced, gritty, heart-breakin’ ride. I bought it as soon as it was released and finished it a couple days later. 500 pages never went by so fast.

This second novel comes quite close to living up to the glory of it’s predecessor. Larsson made a great decision when he anchored the theme of this work in a tangential event from the first book. Before long you’re yearning for justice—or at least vengeance.

The central theme is one of humanity’s earliest and most persistent philosophical questions: what is justice? More specifically, how does your personal morality influence your view of justice. The heroine, Lisbeth Salander, certainly has a unique perspective to offer.

In the end, the second book lacked a bit of the complexity of the first novel while increasing the level of I-can’t-believe-that-actually-happened-ness. For this reason I found it slightly inferior, but well worth reading.

• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo © 2005
• Translation by Reg Keeland © 2008
• Knopf
• 465 pages

I bought this because I felt like reading something different. I don’t often read murder mysteries, but Barnes & Noble had a stack of these books at the front of the store alongside a very persuasive write-up.

The book was so compelling, I read the last half of it in four hours straight, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.

The characters are all quite flawed, which gives them a harsh realistic quality. The last few paragraphs made me grieve at the pain fallen humanity can cause by its own selfishness. (I’m not sure that this was Larsson’s intent—it was likely my Christocentric worldview coming into play.)

This book is not for the faint of heart, but if you’re looking for somthing to keep you awake at night this will do the trick.