Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 614
 Scooby Doo - Where are you? November 20, 2009
Emily G.
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The main mystery reminded me of a Scooby Doo episode - from the heroes putting together tenuous clues to the villain spilling all his secrets before he kills the hero to the ridiculous saving of the hero's life. I almost expected the villain to yell "And I would have gotten away with it too if it wasn't for you pesky kids!" as he sped away.
The secondary mystery was convoluted and boring. The characters are so flat and the writing is so bad that I don't have any interest in the cliffhanger third mystery. Much of the story is descriptive where it should have been dialog. For example:
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For five minutes they discussed Blomkvist's shortcomings in the most irritating terms. Blomkvist leaned back and pretended to be insulted, but he frowned when Berger made some cryptic remarks that might allude to his failings as a journalist but might also have applied to sexual prowess.
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If the author cannot come up with any witty "cryptic remarks", then maybe that paragraph doesn't belong in the book.
If the book had a good editing, some story lines and characters dropped, and the violent sex turned down, it could have been a passable Grisham clone. As it is, it was a very disappointing book and not the "literary masterpiece" the critics are raving about.
 hard going November 19, 2009
Prudence W. Kent (Bay Area, Ca.)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I had heard so much about this book that I couldn't wait to read it. I did think it was interesting, very different and did hold my interest. However, I also thought it was hard going and a bit tedious at times to get through.
 A very solid addition to the genre November 19, 2009
Librum (CA, USA)
TGWTDT is, as one would hope, a fast and entertaining read, chock-full of suspense and unexpected twists. It is a thoughtful procedural with a well-developed -- and, for the most part, credible -- plot-line, and solid characters. I am rarely moved to read books straight through (I generally prefer dipping into several at a time). TGWTDT had me hooked from start to finish. One star docked for some instances of unnecessary sensationalism and a few less-than-fully-credible plot devices. Though I did roll my eyes from time to time as I read TGWTDT, for the most part I found it absorbing. Given the subject matter at the core of Larsson's novels, I'm not sure I 'look forward' to reading his other two, exactly, but I do plan on reading them for sure.
Bad translation? November 18, 2009
In Annapolis (Maryland)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
A friend who read it in its original language loved the book, so I eagerly awaited the English translation. I read less than a chapter. The English is clunky. The expressions are dated, as though the translator learned English in the 1970s.
 This book is boring. November 18, 2009
Hobbit (Lake Worth, FL)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I don't know what all the fuss is about. I thought this book was boring and dull. It took me a long time to finish, but I did finally finish it. The plot is plodding and unexciting, and the main character is a putz. I really didn't feel that much affinity for him. The girl with the tattoo is more interesting however the book is not about her, she is only a supporting character, and she is very weird and cold, so it is hard to feel very sympathetic toward her. The plot is tedious, on and on, beating around the bush and dragging it out, and when you get there, it is anti-climactic and disappointing. And, on and on some more (it's long), about coffee and sandwiches and binders and walks and more coffee... I really ended up not caring about the details of the story at all. I was disappointed. I'd say skip it and move on to the next one..
Showing reviews 6-10 of 614
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