I thought I would save this for the plane I am going to be on on Saturday, but thought ‘I’ll just crack it open and read a few chapters so that I’m properly into it on the plane’ and now I CAN’T STOP READING! I want to read it ALL THE TIME.  I don’t know what to do.  If I finish it, I will have to read something significantly less gripping on the plane.  But I cannot put it down.  AAA Lisbeth Salandar, you are tearing me apart…

This book was so good!  I loved the first one by Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and this followed the two main characters from that book, a year later.

Journalist Mikael Blomkvist is planning another massive expose, this time about the exploitation of eastern European women in the underground Swedish sex trade.  A couple are working on the story of the decade - Mia is writing her PhD into the topic and her husband is making her paper into a book and cover article for Millenium.  The book and article are going to be filled of shocking revelations - police, journalists, politicians - tens of high profile people paying for illegal sex will be named and shamed.

But then they accidentally uncover something that has been hidden by the Swedish government for twenty years and they both end up dead - shot execution style in the head.  The gun used to kill them has Lisbeth Salander’s fingerprints on it.  When the police try to contact her guardian, he turns up dead. How does the expose on Swedish sex slavery link with Lisbeth and her disturbed past?

Gripping read!  I can’t believe the next one is still in hardback and I have to wait until April of next year to get the paperback!  It ends on such a cliff hanger - what’s going to happen next!?

The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson

I read this yesterday in the train from Cardiff to London (two hours), so it is not a long book.  I was on the train with a whole group of colleagues, some from the BBC, some from product licensee companys, none of whom I knew very well.  I ended up sitting on my own, which was fortunate because I really wanted to read this book, but I really didn’t think it was the time or place to start wailing on the train.  Luckily I managed to constrain myself, but I definitely had to wipe away tears.

On Chesil Beach is not sad because of dramatic deaths or sudden events or anything like that.  It is just about the way that ordinary life can get in the way of the future you always wanted. I know this feeling and it tore me to bits on the train. This is a brilliantly written book, but I found it so sad I am not sure I could recommend it.  But then I guess I have to because it would affect everyone in a different way and I would love to know what other people thought of it.

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan

Have you read it? What did you think?

I’m just going to put it out there that about 30% of this book did pass me by.  Not having grown up in the UK in the 70s/80s meant that I missed a lot of cultural reference points in here. Even obvious things like Bagpuss - I mean, I have seen it, but it wasn’t part of my upbringing.

The reason I bought the book is because a very funny friend of mine contributed three pieces to it.  Even though I didn’t get everything, the bits that I did remember (Inspector Gadget, Knight Rider, why Sarah Beeny thinks you’re a twat, etc) were fantastic. I particularly love the chapters on Jah-neen’s Evil Hug Face and Jim from Neighbours’ amazing CV. Even the bits I didn’t quite ‘get’ were still generally amusing as there are a lot of personal stories - how telly affected people, rather than just the show itself.  There are also pieces from Emma Kennedy and Boyd Hilton, both of whom I love to bits.

Definitely one for the telly-loving 30-something year old on your Christmas list but maybe not so much for the foreign friends in your life.

Shouting at the Telly (edited by John Grindrod)