Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Les hommes qui n'aimaient pas les femmes

Considering how popular this book was, I’m genuinely quite shocked at how dark it is. It is a good psychology thriller (especially for a male author) although there are multiple smaller storylines that could be edited out in my opinion.

I did like the book overall and see why it was such a craze, but there are just so many moments where Larsson makes his gender biases known and he doesn’t even seem to understand his own female protagonist.

This is also personal opinion but there was literally no need for Salander and Blomkvist to have a sexual relationship. It really highlights Larsson’s inability to have a female character who isn’t at some point sexualised, even in a consensual manner.

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ladylexi's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this is such a great thriller! the main characters are so interesting and the writing is great. 10/10

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mjohn058's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

All things considered, it’s very good. The topics/themes, the plot, the writing, all good.

However,

the entire subplot of the sexual relationship between Lisbeth and Mikael is completely unnecessary. You could simply flip a switch to make their relationship platonic, and both only would nothing fundamentally change, it would actually have been better. Why must she fall in love with him? It’s so out of character with zero justification or pay off.

And this is a minor point, but

why on earth is it titled the way it is? It sounds good. It sure is mysterious. But the book isn’t *really* about her. And her ooooo spooky dragon tattoo is not relevant to the plot at all.

Aside from that, very good.

Content Warnings

h_elene's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

0.25

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o_ohan_n's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

It definitely shows the views of females at the time, with every female character being sexualised. It was enticing, but it did also spell out every metaphor and event. There was no room to guess and analyse the mystery.

Content Warnings

allymcbroom's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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