My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Being the third in the trilogy this book picks up where the Girl Who Played with Fire left off...namely at the end of the action. This book is 593 pages of closure. Most of the heart-racing do or die moments have already taken place and the majority of this one is setting everyone up for their justice. Somehow, thanks to Larsson's detailing of his engaging characters' every movement, I was still drawn in and kept racing along. It is a good ending to a fantastic, gripping story.
There were some flaws that afterwards left me a little puzzled. Why the story with Erika Berger going to SMP? Why the story with her stalker? In truth it had nothing to do with Lisbeth except that she helped figure out who it was. Seemed completely irrelevant and unnecessary.
Also, there were two story points that felt entirely unresolved, perhaps due to Larsson's untimely death:
1. What happened to Camilla Salandar? she's alluded to and a complete mystery. Reading the message boards it seems that Larsson planned 10 books around Lisbeth so I'm guessing at some point she would have been introduced back into her life.
2. Why was nothing found for Lisbeth to do or to spend her millions on? The obvious (maybe cliche) choice would be some sort of foundation for women. Especially the money left from her father should have gone to stopping trafficking or domestic violence or something. They kept focusing on Lisbeth becoming a responsible citizen but in the end she's left sort of wandering aimlessly.
Otherwise I will say that I felt a sense of relief to "be" in the courtroom when Teleborian was torn apart. Most novels like this stop when the person gets caught but Larsson lets you see his bad guy twist on the stand and you are an eye witness to justice being served. Almost all the ends were tied up satisfyingly. Such a good story, sad we won't have any more from him.
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Wednesday, August 17, 2011
The End of (Another) Trilogy
Monday, July 4, 2011
The Hunger Games Trilogy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I finished these books in record time thanks to the long holiday weekend and Collins' amazing pacing. While providing every detail necessary to draw you into Katniss' world, the speed of the events of these three books is breathless. I'm actually finding myself excited for the movies because they would have to try really hard to mess this up. It has everything from larger than life characters, action, worlds exploding, good and evil, cool gadgets and mystery. I am anxious though to see how they play out the core of what this book was to me. Without spoiling anything for anyone who hasn't read it yet, the "love triangle" goes on in a completely new way and it's telling what its process and resolution means to everyone involved.
For me there was only one way this story could end and I'm so glad that's where she took it. By the last chapter I was sobbing hysterically and reading really slowly because I just didn't want to leave these characters. It's so rare that one book comes along that makes you leave your life behind for hours on end and get transported to another place wholeheartedly and become completely invested in a make-believe world. Even more rare that there are three that are equally as compelling.
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Thursday, June 30, 2011
The Hunger Games
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Wow. It's been a long time since I was so excited about a 374-page book that I read it in about a day and a half. A day when I worked for over 8 hours! I absolutely could not put this book down. And when I did, I still felt like I was there, in Panem, sometime in our sad future. Katniss is the perfect heroine and Collins' telling of the story could not be any more riveting. The world she creates is one of sadness and despair but hope and joyful respect. Her supporting characters are wonderful and any of them could run away with the story. The landscape is described in a way that sucks you in and while it's so alien it is also completely recognizable. The deprivation of District 12 sounds astounding. People are going hungry and The Capitol isn't doing anything? But isn't that exactly what happens here, now? Aren't there spheres of our society that are as ignored, as beaten down?
I'm excited to see where the next two books will go. I felt like I had to fly through this book just to see who survives The Games so I may be able to take the next one a little slower and enjoy the ride a little more. All I know is I'll be heading to Borders as soon as I'm done working...because I'm hooked!
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