The Girl Who Played With Fire - Review

I have to say, I enjoyed the second installment of the series much better than the first. It was equally as exciting but I found it more palatable. There was still plenty of violence but I found it less disturbing.

Lisbeth Salander emerges as a sympathetic character. She still lacks likability but you can at least understand how she came to be the way she is. You learn about her past and how the "system" has failed her. It is not hard to relate to her mistrust of authority and society at large.

I do not want to say too much more because I would be in danger of spoiling the story but after having read The Girl Who Played With Fire, I am anxious to read the final book of the series. Salander is such a damaged individual. I wonder if there is any possibility of a happy ending for her...?

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Review

I decided to read this book and start this series for a number of reasons. My grandmother, aunt, friends, former co-workers, and acquaintances all recommended it. If that was not enough, the books were international and national bestsellers. I figured, how could this not live up to the hype?

Based on that introduction you might think I am going to say I hated it. Not true. It was extremely well-written, exciting, suspenseful, and interesting. That being said, the subject matter SUCKED.

I am not usually a mystery reader nor do I gravitate toward grizzly material. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo covered the gruesome gamut of incest, rape, torture, animal mutilation, and murder. Seriously? I was actually scared to go to sleep last night for fear of the nightmares I was sure to have.

I wanted to read the book before I saw the movie but now having read the book, I will most certainly not see the movie. My imagination conjured up enough horrific images.

I find it interesting, considering how safe and pristine Scandinavian society is, that the graphic violence of the story would take place in Sweden. It seems out of place. Then again, part of what makes the mystery so great is that the dastardly crimes are so well-hidden. On the surface everything seems fine, but underneath lies something more sinister than anyone could believe.

"The Girl," or Lisbeth Salander, is an intriguing although mostly unlikeable character. The other main character in the story, Mikael Blomkvist, is charismatic and likeable but also a total man whore. I find his ability to make women drop their pants a little unrealistic. I mean, who is he? The Swedish James Bond?

Would I read the rest of the series had I not bought the trilogy on my kindle? Probably not. That has nothing to do with the quality of the work, but in the future I would not willingly read something so disturbing. It kind of makes me wonder about the people who said they "loved it". Haha.

The Hunger Games Trilogy - The Morning After

I cannot stop thinking about these books! I do not think I conveyed in my previous posts about The Hunger Games just how deeply the story and the characters have touched me. I mean, they feel so real to me. Hats off to Suzanne Collins. She is a master storyteller.

Ever since I finished the series last night I have not been able to release myself from its hold. I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about it and I was thinking about it during work today. I am genuinely sad that the experience of reading it is over. I do not want the story to be over! I mean, I am pleased with the conclusion of the series and I think Collins did a good job of not extending the story farther than it should go, but I miss it!

This has got to be some of the best/most enjoyable reading I have done in years. These books will definitely be added to my all-time favorite list. I will absolutely read them again. I was even thinking that they might become required reading in the public school system one day. When/if I have kids I will definitely push these books on them.

While I was consumed with thoughts of The Hunger Games last night, I realized that religion did not play a role at all. I wonder if this was done purposefully or if religion would have added complications that Collins was not interested in exploring. I was thinking that Collins could have excluded religion as a partial explanation of how society became so barbaric. In other words, a society without a moral compass or higher being to answer to might be more cruel and callous because the assumption is that there are no consequences. Then I proved my theory wrong because people have killed in the name of religion for thousands of years and some of those people think they will be rewarded for their murderous deeds. It just strikes me as interesting because religion in some form or another is present in every nation and culture in the world and yet, it was absent in Panem.

Mockingjay - Review

I made the most of my day off and finished The Hunger Games trilogy!

Overall, I liked Books One and Two best. The action of the Hunger Games was really riveting material. Book Three is the most tragic of the bunch because characters you have followed from Book One or Book Two die. The war between the rebels and the Capitol also takes center stage, which can be tiresome. Also, I really missed the banter and lightness of Katniss and Peeta's relationship since he spent a majority of the book as the Capitol's prisoner.

Because the rebellion was the "star" of Mockingjay, I felt like the relationships were neglected/not given as much attention as I would have liked. Gale played a more prominent role than Peeta, which finally gave me a chance to "get to know him". Gale would be great in a pinch. He is really instinctive, strong, and can turn off his emotions (maybe a little too easily) to do what needs to be done. He and Katniss are too similar. I cannot help but think that as well as they work together, they would not make a happy couple. They would always be looking over their shoulders, hunting something.

I liked that Suzanne Collins did not shy away from what one assumes are the realities of war - death, brutality, hardship, deprivation despite the fact that these are young adult books. I also like that she constantly had you questioning who the good and bad guys were. What you end up taking from it is that some people lean more toward one side or the other but even the good are capable of bad and vice versa.

I recommend this series to anyone with an imagination and a sense of adventure. You will fall in love with the characters (I did) and not want the story to end. It is an emotional roller-coaster ride, if you allow yourself to get as invested as I did.

Love triangle spoiler ahead...
















My horse won the race - this was the first thing I said to my husband when I finished the book, which is in reference to Peeta getting the girl. I was so relieved. Unfortunately, their reunion was pretty anti-climactic and squeezed in at the very end.

Catching Fire - Review

Wow. I thought the story could not get more exciting but I was wrong!

When I first started Catching Fire I was a little put off by what seemed like a very contrived plot element - the love triangle. If anything, this is the part of the story that reminds me it is a young adult series. That being said, I can forgive the cheesiness as long as Katniss picks the "right" guy. Also, this is the only aspect of the story that I believe can be used to compare The Hunger Games and Twilight. That is where the similarities end.

I have been getting really annoyed at the comparisons in the media lately all because the movies are getting ready to come out and surely, they will be expected to compete with Twilight's success. Granted, I have never read the Twilight series (never would) but from what I have seen in the movies it is silly fluff. The Hunger Games is far more complex in its ideas, presentation, and realistic implications. But I digress. Back to Catching Fire...

There were a lot of shocks, which I did not expect. Just as in the first book of the series, I was kept on the edge of my seat. Once I got past the first few chapters, there was no putting it down. I liked Katniss a lot more in this book. I think she is a much more realistically vulnerable character than she was in the first book. Life's tragedies have really hardened her but I appreciate how she lets her emotions show more.

I still looove Peeta and cannot quite grasp the allure of Gale. He is a little more present in Catching Fire than he was in the first book but aside from the history that he and Katniss share (that we are not privy to), I do not see how he is a better match for her. Just my opinion!

Without giving too much away, I like the direction that the world is heading in toward the end of Catching Fire. There are important lives at stake but there is hope for a better tomorrow.

Reading FAIL/2012 Reading Resolution

I have been extremely busy the past couple of months with traveling/moving apartments/holiday and family obligations. Consequently, I have REALLY neglected my reading.

2012 Reading Resolution:

1) Complete the final two books of The Hunger Games triology
2) Start and complete The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo triology
3) Read more classics
4) Finally attend one or more of my meetup book club's monthly gatherings