I looked forward to reading this book for months. I couldn't wait to find out how in the world the author would pull all the threads back together. Incredibly, he managed to do it in a conclusion that worked for me. This volume had less action and more exposition than the others. There was still more backstory than is typical in modern fiction. Backstory is against the "rules" of modern fiction, but I enjoyed it as readily as I had enjoyed the action in the earlier two volumes. The characters are so interesting, I wanted to know their earlier history.
As she did in the previous two volumes, Lisbeth continued to astound me with her brilliance and creativity. Blomqvist actually started to emerge as a fully developed character, who became somewhat intriguing in his own right. In the earlier two books, I found him to be uninteresting, at least compared to the amazing characters with whom he was surrounded. For me, he kind of came into his own by the end. I liked that.
Some of the minor characters grow in importance, and in interest. A lot.
For me, the third volume was as gripping as the two prior installments, but in a different way. The nature of the action changes from brutal violence to intricate mind games, but, like a plane landing, Larson puts on the brakes here, screeches to a halt, with tires smoking, while still maintaining the suspense up to the last minute.
Unlike a series from a living author -- where as soon as I finish reading a story in the series, I start looking forward to reading the next one --, I felt sad to know that the amazing saga of Lisbeth Salander is over, forever.
It was a super ride, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I plan to read the entire series again because I raced through all three books so quickly the first time, I know I missed a lot of detail.
Finishing the last of a great series makes me feel a little sad. I enjoyed all three of Larsson's books.
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