Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Los hombres que no amaban a las mujeres

The short review is that the book truly starts to pick up in the middle and is very good overall. The story was very intriguing and well done and kept me interested. The long review is that unfortunately there were several unnecessary scenes in the first half of the book that did nothing to advance the plot or to assist in character development. These could have certainly been excluded without affecting the storyline at all as they felt like they were included for shock value. It should also be known that Lisbeth doesn't truly start to come into the story until about halfway through which was frustrating. Beyond that, the female relationships that the main character has feels very much like it was written by a man, which was wholly annoying and disappointing in comparison to the rest of the books writing.

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samisaidhi's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

2.5

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paigespages's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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alexray's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

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mbrogs2024's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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bookstore_plantlover's review against another edition

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1.5

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cerealceec's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

huh, ok. went into this with a sense of obligation because i've heard a lot about this book (and movie adaptation) and wanted to form my own opinion. i'm sure i would have had a much harder time staying focused and invested if i'd read it, but as it turned out, vance's reading was so perfectly done that i thoroughly enjoyed listening to even the "boring" parts. this might actually get me into audiobooks for good.

it's hard to say exactly what it was about the characters, but i found them and their relationships just fascinating. many of them weren't portrayed with unusual depth, but i guess i loved how unflinchingly their flaws were portrayed. i love that lisbeth is infuriating at times in her anger and propensity to fly off the handle. it makes perfect sense for her character.

mikael's relationship with erika was such an unexpectedly loving, earnest portrayal of relationship anarchy and nonmonogamy that i couldn't believe i was reading it in such a well-known book. i'm really curious how it'll be expanded on in further books, especially with lisbeth involved.

i'm not a great plot critic but i was more or less satisfied with the resolution; not sure how i feel about some aspects of the villain's portrayal but i'll have to think on that one.

lots more thought but i'll sit on it, probably going to check out the next one.

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sat on it, updated thoughts:

started the next book and it's unfortunately put the first book's flaws closer into focus... think i might give up on this series. blomkvist's Nice Guy characterization is starting to get on my nerves, especially the way all female characters can't help but be attracted to him... also the page on lisbeth's breast implants, jesus christ. think it's best to appreciate the first book for what it was and leave it there.

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meganeorcx's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book was a spontenous purchase after having discussed parts of both the novel and the film adaptations in class but I ended up regretting spending money on it. I dreaded reading 500 pages of a genre I'm not that into, written by a man, no less. I finally got around to reading it and it was great! It's long and slow but the pay-off is so good. The content is harsh but with the diversity of characters and the mentioned statistics, it doesn't come across as exploitative at all. I do agree with the introduction, though, that it isn't perfect in how it also portrays abusive situations. I also didn't particularly like Lisbeth and Mikael's sexual relationship together. Luckily, the book overall was good enough for me to see past that. In fact, I might end up reading Larsson's other two Millennium books because my curiosity is piqued!

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