Lisbeth is in prison for her actions in the previous book, although she’s still not looking to make any new friends. Her live-alone attitude remains true but her character seems somewhat altered.
All the sharp, edgy features that made this series so great have quickly become blunt tropes thrown in for nostalgic effect.
The once down-to-earth writing has gone full-on fast and furious, throwing out any remaining credibility for another cash grab.
Here Lisbeth is kicking more ass than ever, and I think that’s my biggest concern. When Lisbeth Salander finally confronted her half-brother in The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest, it felt like a triumphant moment in her life.
She gave as much as she got, she was smart in her decisions about using his advantages against him, and most of all, it was believable.
Fast forward to An Eye for an Eye, and Lisbeth has almost morphed into a superhero who floors the most aggressive of criminals without blinking.
So many times she enters a room and then seemingly attacks thugs, murderers and kingpins for what? It doesn’t matter how many times you read that ‘size isn’t everything’, it still doesn’t feel credible.
Salander the Bore
Salander’s charm is dying a slow death. All the things that made her such a great character in the first three books are now starting to wear me down.
The beating of men twice her size, as mentioned above, teamed with her blatant disrespect of any rules and her inability to tell anyone anything is starting to grate.
No matter how it’s written, if the main character has trust issues that stretch to the point of her not wanting to tell even her closest friends what is going on, then surely they’d get bored of her games and walk away.
You can’t just ping a message to someone after a year and expect them to carry on the relationship as if your still best mates. There are no repercussions here what-so-ever.
A second super-villain is introduced into the story in the form of an old mad doctor who wants revenge on Lisbeth, who else, and is willing to kill her loved ones to do so.
Despite this sinister plot, and the sub-plot of two twins separated at birth because of her, she’s never much of a threat; not to all-conquering Salander who is kidnapped towards the end of the book, but then escapes almost immediately.
What’s the point? All this does is make her look overpowering and the baddies look like complete idiots!
In case you need it spelling out, I really didn’t enjoy The Girl Who Takes An Eye For An Eye.
How many situations are there where Lisbeth and Mikael need to team up to fight the bad guys? Also, do these scenarios need to be in every book?
I know that’s what made the original trilogy so great, but can’t they have individual paths that cross at intersections, rather than being utterly intertwined in such a convoluted manner.
This is only made more ironic by the fact that the story never really comes together. Plot points drag on and seemingly leave way for another book, released August 22nd.
No real mention of Camilla, the series cartoon super-boss from The Girl in the Spider’s Web, so I can only assume Lisbeth, and her story is to be concluded in the new release.
I’m just praying for this new release will be the last one. Please don’t diminish this series anymore!
Closing Thoughts
I’m not sure how I feel about the Dragon Tattoo series anymore.
While the first three were great, and the previous Girl in the Spider’s Web wasn’t terrible, this one is.
It leaves me in a position of wanting/hoping that the new book will be much improved, but then I doubt it. And I’m partially to blame.
Instead of continuing to go out and buy these books the day they’re released, maybe I should give up. I don’t see the series getting any better from here on out, at least not under current author David Lagercrantz.
But that’s the catch-22.
What if I do miss out on a truly spectacular book? Bloody fear of missing out.
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2 comments
Could not have agreed more with this review. I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of this old woman with cancer killing off people to keep a lid on projects that would have made a backpage story at best. Lisbeth disabling a 6’4” warden with a few punches from her admittedly tiny frame was eye roll inducing. Even trained boxers with more weight on them rarely score knock outs on fighters their own size, because they are too small. Size matters in these cases. But we’re to suspend disbelief that it happened and then accept the victim didnt get back up and teach her a lesson. Or the moment she confronts a plotting Islamist and instead of this extremely violent criminal exacting his revenge on the spot, he says ‘I’ll find you’… good grief. I cant do it anymore, and will likely not be purchasing the next installment.
Well, I’ve just read the newest addition (review coming very soon) and it only gets worse. My advice – save your time, and money!