The Girl Who Played with Fire

A Lisbeth Salander Novel

By: Stieg Larsson, Reg Keeland - translator

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 18 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

The electrifying follow-up to the phenomenal best seller The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ("An intelligent, ingeniously plotted, utterly engrossing thriller" The Washington Post), and this time it is Lisbeth Salander, the troubled, wise-beyond-her-years genius hacker, who is the focus and fierce heart of the story.

Mikael Blomkvist, crusading journalist and publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to publish a story exposing an extensive sex trafficking operation between Eastern Europe and Sweden, implicating well-known and highly placed members of Swedish society, business, and government.

On the eve of publication, the two reporters responsible for the story are brutally murdered. But perhaps more shocking for Blomkvist: the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to Lisbeth Salander.

Now, as Blomkvist, alone in his belief in her innocence, plunges into his own investigation of the slayings, Salander is drawn into a murderous hunt in which she is the prey, and which compels her to revisit her dark past in an effort to settle with it once and for all.

Listen to the rest of The Millennium Trilogy.

©2009 Stieg Larsson (P)2009 Random House

Critic reviews

“Boasts an intricate, puzzle-like story line . . . even as it accelerates toward its startling and violent conclusion.” (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times)

“[A] gripping, stay-up-all-night read.” ( Entertainment Weekly)

“Gripping stuff. . . . A nail-biting tale of murder and cover-ups.” ( People)

irritatingly engrossing

I live in Beijing. I drive or take the subway several times a week and that is when I listen to Audible books. I do not listen to them at home. If I did, I would go through my Audible library much too quickly and my credit card balance would, all too soon, reflect the damage. I am highly disciplined about this. When I get to the door of my apartment, the book clicks off, and podcasts or music must suffice during housework or down time. I know that this is a slippery slope, so I am far too wise to make exceptions.

I listened to the last four or five hours of this book while baking, taking a bath and, finally, lying on my bed, transfixed. Unacceptable!

It breaks my heart that Stieg Larsson is no longer with us. On the other hand, it is going to make it a lot easier for me to return to a regime of no Audible.com books at home.

Some readers have found the detail in the book overwhelming. For me they were an important part of the texture of the story which moves like real life. When the author puts so much at stake for the characters, the realistic details become loaded--which of them will prove to be crucial, life changing? Which of them are simply part of the unimportant background? If Larsson had not created such engaging and fascinating characters or a situation so charged with danger and dark possibility, they would be tiresome. Instead, I found myself picking my way through them as through a mine field.

In addition, the plot works like a well oiled machine, a very complex machine. In the end you must just give yourself up to it and live it out to the end with Salander, Blomkvist and the fifteen or twenty other memorable characters in the book. Brilliant work!

Full of references to homo/bisexual encounters

I was disappointed in this book and stopped listening after several descriptions of sexual encounters involving: 3 people, bisexual relationships, and homosexual relationships. In fact, sex is a very casual thing between characters in this book.

I should have stopped listening after the first reference to these situations, but I gave the book another chance. Finally, it got so nasty that I had to turn it off.

I am a more conservative reader so I understand that there will be many who do not find these things offensive. I respect your right to your own opinion. I write this review so that other readers who don't enjoy these kind of sexual behaviors will be warned before buying the book.

This Is Erotica

The customer reviews and Audible's own recommendations for similar novels (including Brown's The Lost Symbol) convinced me that this was a novel worth downloading. What it's proven to be so far (having listened to Part I) is erotica disguised as an action/mystery novel.

In the first seven chapters, the author describes or portrays sex, breast enlargement, naked self-examinations, lesbian sex, etc. And these encounters are not woven logically into the plot line, but crammed in, creating what read to me like blatant author intrusions.

Shame on me for not reading the "back cover" more closely (which even if I did hardly prepares the reader for the volume of sexual material). And shame on Audible for not clearly identifying this novel for what it is. If portrayed "as-is" on the big screen, The Girl Who Played with Fire would surely get a very strong R rating; or perhaps the producers would even be forced to cut material or sell it to XXX theaters.

This is a book for sex addicts (not trying or caring to recover) and lovers of erotica. So blatant are the author intrusions that it has left me wondering if the author himself is obsessed with sex. Or at least he has sold his talents for more money.

If such things do offend you, especially in excess, avoid this novel. There are far more intelligently written novels with which to spend your time.

Super story, remarkable reader!

My personal rule for audiobooks is that I only listen while I'm doing something constructive. Thanks to Mikail and Lisbeth, my house is now clean, the weeds are pulled in my yard, and my dog has had more walks and runs than he ever thought possible. I could not stop listening! I slowly came to appreciate Lisbeth in Tatoo, but I was in her corner from the start in Fire. Steig Larsson's incredible literary talents are wonderfully complemented by Simon Vance's fabulous narration. This book made me squirm in places, but over things we all need to squirm about.

This Is Erotica

The customer reviews and Audible's own recommendations for similar novels (including Brown's The Lost Symbol) convinced me that this was a novel worth downloading. What it's proven to be so far (having listened to Part I) is erotica disguised as an action/mystery novel.

In the first seven chapters, the author describes or portrays sex, breast enlargement, naked self-examinations, lesbian sex, etc. And these encounters are not woven logically into the plot line, but crammed in, creating what read to me like blatant author intrusions.

Shame on me for not reading the "back cover" more closely (which even if I did hardly prepares the reader for the volume of sexual material). And shame on Audible for not clearly identifying this novel for what it is. If portrayed "as-is" on the big screen, The Girl Who Played with Fire would surely get a very strong R rating; or perhaps the producers would even be forced to cut material or sell it to XXX theaters.

This is a book for sex addicts (not trying or caring to recover) and lovers of erotica. So blatant are the author intrusions that it has left me wondering if the author himself is obsessed with sex. Or at least he has sold his talents for more money.

If such things do offend you, especially in excess, avoid this novel. There are far more intelligently written novels with which to spend your time.

Better than the first, great on it's own!

While I really enjoyed the first book, this second takes all the first book's strengths and eliminates the weaknesses to create a true "page turner!"
As with the first book, characters are fascinating and very well developed but I just find this story more interesting than the first and there isn't so much boring background. Where the first book spent time going into the history of companies and families, this book is much more direct and, in turn, interesting. I still feel the first book was a solid 4 star book but this one is worthy of a 5 star rating.
While it is a way different genre, if you like this book check out Peter F. Hamilton's work for more excellent character development and engrossing plots.

If Only to be Half as Smart or Tough!

I am as bummed as a person can get! I have finished The Girl Who Played with Fire. It is 18 hours long and I could have listened for another 18 easily. Lizbeth is smart, savvy, tough and cool and I would give my iPhone and all the apps to be like her! She is a computer genius and math wiz and the author, Stieg Larsson, must have been as well, because I envision a wall full of character equations to keep track of everyone and all of the plot twists and turns. If you haven't listened to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I envy you because you have it to look forward to and I have in my past, but listen to it first or you will be lost by all of the characters. In Played with Fire, the author will keep you absolutely tuned in because it feels like if you miss a name, or location, or computer file title you may miss a major story line. I found myself skipping back to catch details because I didn't want to miss anything. I can't wait till the next book comes out but then I will go into mourning because it is the last from this author. It is a loss.

excellent thriller

I am rather new in this genre, but I find that Larsson is a master storyteller. Indeed, the story starts a bit slow, with background info and descriptions of the people involved without nothing really striking happening, but this works well to build the scaffold of the story, and once this is ready it shoots out like a rocket. I could not stop listening to the third part and heard it in one single sit (into an untimely hour). Kudos for Larsson.
Simon Vance delivers a decent job, he is not my favourite reader, but he never bothered me or distracted my attention from the story, so I take him as successful.
The very end of the book is one of the best closures I have read.
All in all, full marks for this audiobook.

addicted

Missed work and ignored the phone for two days. Larsson was a consummate story teller. I am totally hooked. Vance brought to life a slew of Interesting and well developed characters that took me from "the girl with the dragon tattoo" immediately into the sequel. Looking forward to the next (and sadly, Last) of the trilogy. I'll probably get fired this month!

YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT THIS DOWN!

What a thrilling book. But you must read 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' first to get the full story. These are the best books I have ever purchased from Audible. Simply AMAZING!