The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

I'd have to say, that out of the three books in this series, I found this one the strongest.  It had plenty of plot twists, the best pacing out of all of them, and complex characters.  And being that it's a trilogy you definitely have to at least read the second book before this one (the first has its own storyline and isn't quite as important).  And that being said, I will be including details from the 2nd book in this review, so if you haven't read it, you're about to find out key plot elements if you continue reading.

Lisbeth is in the hospital after being shot in the head and buried alive by her father and brother.  Because she is wanted by the police, she has to remain there even as her health slowly improves because one she leaves, she'll be transferred to prison.  While she heals, Mikael, her journalist friend, is searching desperately for all the key evidence that will prove her innocence, and gearing up for a big expose of his own in which several key government officials will have much to worry about.  The problem is that there's someone trying to shut him down before he can destroy an organization that has long been hidden in the shadows.

Lisbeth was more likable this time around.  She's still strange, but she shows a little more humanity in this book and it makes you start to sympathize with her even more.  She also does what she wants though, and is very independent.  Mikael I liked at about the same level, which is to say not much at all.  I find him too "perfect" and his ease of getting women into bed unbelievable.  It kind of detracts from the story honestly (not the sex scenes, just the fact that he's in them).  Yes he is a good guy, just not one that I like very much.  Erica featured a little more in this story, and I was glad to have more information on her, because I find her character interesting, albeit a  little strange.

The pacing was much better in this book.  Sure there's still more detail than you really need, but its more condensed and the story moves along at a moderate pace.  It wasn't as hard to drag yourself through the first half of the book (like you had to with the others).  I also liked that it tied up the loose ends, yet was still exciting and had you at the edge of your seat for most of it.  I found myself getting frustrated with the bad guys, which is a good emotion to have when you're reading a book, it means it's written well. 

This was definitely a strong conclusion and my favorite book out of the three.  If you haven't tried this series and like suspenseful books with maybe just a tad too much detail, this is definitely one to check out.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Copyright 2007
658 pages