the girl with daddy issues.

BAHHH. I barely have time to read for pleasure at the moment, as you can tell by my scarce number of entry's last month. Grad school is kicking my ass. I am taking four classes this semester, and I think my hair is falling out. Okay, no it's not, but I feel like something dramatic should be happening. WAHHHH.

I knew that this dragon tattoo series would take over my life, regardless of how much reading I have to do for school (which is A LOT by the way, okay I'm done complaining). In the second installment, The Girl Who Played With Fire, our girl Lisbeth Salander is just as odd as ever, thank god for that. I have to say, Stieg Larsson did not make me want to rip out my eyeballs as much this time around. Readers were given the chance to learn more about Salander's childhood, which was nice because the first book was mildly vague on her past.

The story revolves around murder, as every good thriller should I suppose. Salander somehow got mixed up in the murder investigation of two people that she did not even know. If you read the first installment of the series, then you know Salander, and you shouldn't be surprised. Her life is a bit unfair. Throughout the book, we are kept on edge. Not knowing if Salander is a murderer, or if the killer is one of the many other screwed up characters we meet along the way. Then there's Mikael Blomkvist, whom I adore. Salander has kept her distance because of their past romance, and her inability to express actual love for another human being. She desperately needs his help, which he is always willing to give, but will her stubbornness end in her demise?

I am not going to say that the second was better than the first, because that would be a lie. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but I did wonder a little bit about Larsson's thinking as I read. He kept us wondering and curious through the entire book, and then gave us the answers so nonchalantly. I was just kind of like, "oh." That's how I felt, "oh."  Not,  "OOOHHHHH," not "OHHHH NOOOOO," just "oh."  However, he is dead and unable to defend himself, so there will be no criticism here. I cannot wait to see what's in store in, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest.