Stieg's Sophomore Slump

The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson

After reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and discovering that it could, indeed, live up to the hype, my expectations were way high for the second installment in the trilogy.  I was not dramatically, but mildly, let down.

Played With Fire picks up about a year after the events in Dragon Tattoo and life for Mikael Blomqvist has returned, somewhat, to normal. (Although, really - is there ANYONE this dude doesn't sleep with?)  Not so for Salander, who has cut Blomqvist off and is living off the proceeds of her last caper in Dragon Tattoo.  Except, of course (Salander being Salander) she gets in boiling water and Blomqvist is the only one who can help her.

Mara Rooney

Noomi Rapace. Swedish Salander or Hollywood Salander? You decide.

While Played With Fire takes even longer to reach the main plot than Dragon Tattoo did, it didn't feel as long in this book because I had an emotional investment in the characters this time around. And on the topic of characters: As complex and multi-layered as Salander is (and I totally agree with the majority that she is one of the most interesting, unpredictable female characters in the history of ever) I find Blomqvist to be equally....well, not flat, exactly, but I don't see the charisma that makes every woman he meets want to sleep with him. Larsson tells us he's charismatic, but he doesn't show us. I like him, but I don't get him. Finally, I found some of the big plot reveals to be kind of predictable...but then again, I point out foreshadowing for a living, so I'm kind of a tough crowd.  On the plus side - the descriptions of Stockholm, the Swedish countryside, and the minutiae of daily life in Sweden kind of make me want to live there for awhile - and that's something I NEVER thought I'd say!

I found out from a student after I finished the book that it's a set-up for the last book in the trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (which I own but have not yet read) and that made sense.  It felt like a "bridge" novel, kind of the print equivalent of The Empire Strikes Back.  When reading over this review, it strikes me as much more negative than my actual experience of reading the book was.  I really did enjoy the book, it just didn't have the "wow" factor of Dragon Tattoo.