The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a piece of fine detective craftsmanship and is a tribute to the career of author Stieg Larsson, arguably one of the best Swedish crime writers of the decade, who died in 2004. Within the novel there is two key plots which occur simultaneously. In the first one, Blomkvist a Swedish investigatory journalist publishes a libelous attack about a corrupt and very powerful industrialist, which has serious repercussions for his magazine's future and lands him with a jail sentence. In the second plot, Vanger, another Industrialist, hires Blomkvist to investigate the disappearance of his 14 year old grandniece who he last saw 36 years ago and who is presumed dead. Although there has been no trace of her, every year her granduncle receives a mysterious gift of a
… read more...pressed flower on his birthday, mimicking the gift his missing grandniece used to give to him. These flowers torment Vanger and he desperately wants to find out what happened to her. Blomkvist needs an assistant to help him solve the murder and he teams-up with Lisbeth, a tattooed, computer hacker who rides a motorbike. The unlikely team delve into the sinister past of this tightly-knit family and descover Nazi connections and unknown secrets. This is a wonderfully gripping read, full of social conscience and compassion. The compelling characters transport you into the tale and totally consume you until it's finished. Clear your diary, because this book just wont let you put it down!Read More read less...