The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Title: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Author: Stieg Larsson
ISBN: 9780307454546
Publication: Vintage Books, Random House, 2008

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has become a national bestseller, and received rave reviews. I have to agree with the reviews with regard to a couple of things. The author certainly has an intriguing plot and thoroughly fleshed out characters, but that's where my agreement ends.

I normally finish a book of this length in a matter of days - I've been working on this one for over a week, and I'm not even half through. It's boring. Yes, the plot is great, but the pacing is off. True, the characters are well developed, but their interactions are stifled. Great effort has been made to detail odd props, while almost no effort has been made to trigger any senses beyond the visual. I know, I know: it's cold. That's nice. Show me what cold means, let me experience cold.

As intriguing and developed as the plot is, the story really plods along. I'm bored, and I don't bore easily. Besides my boredom - I am pretty sure I know what the "twist" at the end is going to be. If I really figured it out this early, if I am right, then that is really going to steam my carrots.

Maybe if I put the book down and come back to it in a couple of months my impression will differ.

The Mirror's Edge

Title: The Mirror's Edge
Author: Steven Sidor
ISBN: 0312354134, 9780312354138
Publication: St. Martin's Press, April 1 2008

The Mirror's Edge is fast paced, cut-throat, and immensely entertaining. The narrative is perfectly paced to keep readers engaged, but without the normal stall tactics and switchbacks normally employed to break up the action. Cover-to-cover, this book is pure action.

Don't let all that action fool you - this is a psychological thriller, not just a bunch of action packed nonsense. With every page the mind sinks deeper into the dark underbelly of the human imagination. The settings and characters are so richly detailed that it's easy to forget you're reading a book.

What most impressed me about the novel is Sidor's ability to tackle the tricky subject of satanism in a way that stays one step ahead of cliche but still provides enough mainstream imagery to strike a chord with the reader. This book was frightening in a very tangible way. When the pages are closed and the novel settled back onto the shelf, you will be left with lingering fingers of fear. I guarantee it.

Another thing about this book - I really liked the language. Throughout Mirror's Edge Steven Sidor uses a very sharp clipped style of writing that I felt fit perfectly with the subject matter and the characterization of the narrator. One of my primary problems with writing is that I tend to go overboard. I say too much and in such a convoluted way. I was actually able to learn something from Sidor about paring it down - I can say just as much without it sounding like too much detail. He's able to work in the nuances of a situation without you even realizing that he provided them to you - the way something smells, the taste, etc. This book is really well written, and I cannot wait to read more from this author.

Just for the record - I liked this book so well that for the first time ever, I actually contacted the author to tell him.