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andrew298's review against another edition
4.0
If you have ever read a Swedish mystery or thriller from the early 90's onwards then the assassination of Olaf Palme will almost certainly have been mentioned. The case has mystified Swede’s and the world about how this case has never been solved, considering who the victim was. The book was a very fascinating look into the assassination, and all of the conspiracy theories that have surrounded the event for decades. Steig Larsson’s passion for fighting right-wing extremism comes through and highlights how he was a part of the investigation even if only working in the background.
The book is a very good look at all theories regarding the investigation and the investigative nature of Stocklassa does come through, but ultimately the book struggles in two places.
1) Not sure if it comes down to translation or not, but at some points through the whole book it becomes almost impossible to keep track of all the characters and how they relate to the timeline of the narrative. It hurts the overall book because it can be a slog to get through and is even more dissatisfying when the tangential thread is left unexplored or not return to.
2) Finally, the end. It almost felt like the author got to the same point of his investigation as with the book and just decided to wrap things up with an unsatisfactory ending. It feels hard to believe that someone who had dedicated his life to uncovering the truth would just decide to stop when he was so close to the end (even if the methods may not have been legal) and that is ultimately what drops the book to a 4 (would have been a 3.5 but for Goodreads system)
Overall if you want to know more about the Palme assassination, then this is a good place to start as well as giving you the option to explore and draw your own conclusions regarding what happened on February 28th, 1986.
The book is a very good look at all theories regarding the investigation and the investigative nature of Stocklassa does come through, but ultimately the book struggles in two places.
1) Not sure if it comes down to translation or not, but at some points through the whole book it becomes almost impossible to keep track of all the characters and how they relate to the timeline of the narrative. It hurts the overall book because it can be a slog to get through and is even more dissatisfying when the tangential thread is left unexplored or not return to.
2) Finally, the end. It almost felt like the author got to the same point of his investigation as with the book and just decided to wrap things up with an unsatisfactory ending. It feels hard to believe that someone who had dedicated his life to uncovering the truth would just decide to stop when he was so close to the end (even if the methods may not have been legal) and that is ultimately what drops the book to a 4 (would have been a 3.5 but for Goodreads system)
Overall if you want to know more about the Palme assassination, then this is a good place to start as well as giving you the option to explore and draw your own conclusions regarding what happened on February 28th, 1986.
gracefullypunk's review against another edition
2.0
Made it halfway through but it just didn't do anything for me...
_evyn_'s review
medium-paced
4.75
A little tricky to follow and slow in the middle but very interesting.
mad_about_books's review against another edition
challenging
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
5.0
When I started reading THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO," I nearly relegated it to the 'did not finish' pile — am I glad I didn't! I went on to read Larsson's next two books he wrote about Lizbeth Salander. I actually read them after his death in 2004. It was devastating to learn that there would be no more. I did ultimately read the next Salander trilogy by David Lagercrantz and found them equal to the efforts of Steig Larsson. When I came across Jan Stocklassa's book, I felt compelled to read it.
Swedish prime minister, Olof Palme, was murdered on February 28, 1986. He was shot point blank on a street in Stockholm. More than thirty years later, this crime remains unsolved. In some ways, the various investigations sound like police procedurals you might watch on television. A theory of the crime is introduced, and the blinders are donned. There cannot be any scenario other than the one the lead investigator endorses. The investigation into Palme's assassination was carried out this way by several heads of the inquiry. One of them even arrested and convicted 'his man.' The conviction was thrown out on appeal because there was literally no evidence.
Jan Stocklassa, quite literally, stumbled upon the massive collection of notes that Stieg Larsson made during his own research into Palme's death. Steig, a reporter and researcher, was amassing information on right wing extremists in Sweden. He made extensive charts showing connections between people and organizations. He was relentless in this quest.
The idea of right-wing extremist organizations in Sweden does not comport with my idea of the country, but my view is of blonde, blue-eyed, happy people enjoying a sauna with snow fields in the background — ah, propaganda at its best.
THE MAN WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE is endlessly fascinating and filled with international intrigue like any good assassination of the head of state story should be. Stocklassa himself describes the book as a "work of creative nonfiction." There is an Afterward that explains the embellishment of facts and documents to make a more readable story.
The first part of the book is about Steig Larsson and discovering his vast archive connected both to extremism and the assassination. Without coming out and saying so, Stocklassa is showing that Larsson used himself as the model for journalist Mikael Blomkvist. This alone makes the book worth reading by anyone who was captivated by the Millenium series. I would be remiss not to mention that you might need a box of tissues to get through the short chapter depicting the death of Stieg Larsson. It is dramatic and touching.
Jan Stocklassa has given us a look behind the curtain into the world of international, political crime and that could be a very dry read indeed. It consumed one man and led his successor in the quest to spend eight years trying to name the assassin. Unlike movies and television, THE MAN WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE isn't able to name the perpetrator. Still, it is a damn good read.
djryan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
mkaybaker07's review against another edition
3.0
This would've been better if I had a better understanding of Sweden's politics. When I sat down and read it, it flew, but I was rarely motivated to pick it up.
aoosterwyk's review against another edition
2.0
A very detailed look at the journalist process, using a well known author’s work as a hook.
paperbacksandpines's review against another edition
3.0
I think anyone with an appreciation for Stieg Larsson's writing may be drawn to a book like this. What initially drew me to this book was Larsson's dogged determination to investigate far-right criminals, both in Sweden and throughout the world. His investigation went on for decades and his investigation techniques were able to uncover facts that typical journalists wouldn't have been able to uncover.
While this book initially sparked my interest, it seemed like it started to go in circles after awhile. After Larsson's death, the investigation into Sweden's prime minister Olaf Palme, seems to get stuck in neutral. Despite Stocklassa's continued investigations, the murder remains unsolved nearly 40 years later. While Stocklassa seemed to have faith that the murder would be solved soon, I felt that the individuals without pods of power will continue to live their lives scott free.
While this book initially sparked my interest, it seemed like it started to go in circles after awhile. After Larsson's death, the investigation into Sweden's prime minister Olaf Palme, seems to get stuck in neutral. Despite Stocklassa's continued investigations, the murder remains unsolved nearly 40 years later. While Stocklassa seemed to have faith that the murder would be solved soon, I felt that the individuals without pods of power will continue to live their lives scott free.
radbear76's review against another edition
3.0
I was curious about the Palme assassination after it was mentioned in Larsson's books and a couple other boiks and TV shows. Apparently it's the European version of the JFK killing and like that murder it's spawned many conspiracy theories. This book appears to lay out the basics of the assassination but like other conspiracy theories it hangs a lot on implication, supposition, and the assumption that the people involved would never talk. It's interesting but like the JFK theories reason says it's probably wrong.