Girl Who Played With Fire

OK, I'm on a Stieg Larsson kick right now. I just started THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE last night and had to blog right away. It's so good already (and I'm only on page 56). Lisbeth Salander is kicking butt already. And a certain heinous minor character from the last book has reared his ugly head. I hope Salander kicks his butt good this time. But, I'm a little worried. He's digging up information on her.

As in THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, Larsson does not shy away from the grittier topics. Something really horrible happened to Salander when she was young. You get a glimpse right away in the prologue. But the full extent is not known yet. And I feel a little sick about it. I don't want to know what it is. Yet, I need to know what it is. And the #@&%@!! who did it (whatever it is) will need to suffer greatly by the end of the book. (Or at least by the end of the series.)

By the way, the last book in the trilogy now has a title. It will be called THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET'S NEST. Seems appropriate. Pub date still to be announced.

A while back in my neighborhood, there was a creepy guy driving around asking girls for directions and then flashing them. Everyone was in an uproar, rightly so. I remember talking to a group of kids one day and saying, "I hope that guy tries something when I'm around." The kids were astonished. I responded, "That guy's worst nightmare would be a pack of moms!"

I was definitely channeling my "Inner-Salander" that day. It surfaces, whenever kids are put in potential danger. I can completely relate to some of her impulses. Others impulses, not so much. She is an awesome character and I can't wait to see what she does next.

I'd better go - gotta read! Oh, and by the way, the creep in the car did get caught. I heard through the grape vine that when he called his wife from jail, all she said was, "Not again." Sometimes real life is as strange as fiction.