Japanese Tattoos

Nothing to do with Japanese Tattoos really (although the tattoo could be Japanese I guess), but I thought I would share with you a great book that I recently finished – ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ by Steig Larsson (winner of the British Book Awards, Best Crime Thriller of the Year, 2009).

I am not what you would call a book connoisseur or acclaimed critic, but I thought the book was a gripping, rip roaring crime thriller, which was virtually impossible to put down (meaning quite a few late nights, particularly as the second and third books are just as good – yawn).  The films are great too.

This is how Amazon sums up the story …

Forty years ago, Harriet Vanger disappeared from a family gathering. Her body was never found, yet her uncle is convinced it was murder – and that the killer is a member of his own family. He employs journalist Mikael Blomkvist and the tattooed, truculent computer hacker Lisbeth Salander to investigate.

When the pair link Harriet’s disappearance to a number of grotesque murders from forty years ago, they begin to unravel a dark and appalling family history. But the Vangers are a secretive clan, and Blomkvist and Salander are about to find out just how far they are prepared to go to protect themselves.

Sadly the authour did not live to see the worldwide phenomenon his trilogy has become.

Personally, I think a fair rating for the book overall is 90% – highly recommended.