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THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNETS’ NEST, published in 2010 is a mystery, thriller & suspense novel by Stieg Larsson. It’s book 3 in the Millennium series.
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNETS’ NEST spent 9 weeks at #1 on the NYT Bestseller List. The Swedish version of the movie was released in 2009. The US version of the movie is not yet complete.
“Imbecile,” Blomkvist said.
Table of Contents
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST Synopsis
In the third volume of the Millennium series, Lisbeth Salander lies in critical condition in a Swedish hospital, a bullet in her head.
But she’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll stand trial for three murders. With the help of Mikael Blomkvist, she’ll need to identify those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she’ll seek revenge–against the man who tried to killer her and against the corrupt government institutions that nearly destroyed her life.
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST Analysis of:
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest is used as an example in the following posts. Check them out!
| Past vs Present Tense | A comparison of past vs present tense including modern fiction examples. Which is right for your novel? |
| Past Tense | Writing a story in past tense is most common in genre fiction. Learn about 5 times to choose past tense. |
| Essential Characters | These are the 6 must-have characters for any novel: protagonist, antagonist, sidekick, skeptic, mentor, and love interest. Learn why with modern examples. |
| Main Character | Learn the 3 required qualities of main character with modern fiction examples. |
| Secondary Characters | Every novel needs more secondary characters than just the essential ones. Learn the six roles of secondary characters with modern examples. |
| Character Relationships | Learn the 8 relationship types and why your novel needs them all. Plus, see modern examples. |
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST Reviews
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest is the third book in a series. It does NOT work as a standalone book.
I read the first book (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) years ago, so I had some familiarity with these characters. However, I’d never read the second book so I was missing a lot.
The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest is long and there are so many unnecessary details. I felt like reading it was punishment for wanting to use it as an example here.
Perhaps, if you’ve read the prior 2 novels (recently), you’d like this book. But I’d recommend skipping it. What do others think?
In the end, ultimately, the book is quite satisfying.
– Pursuitist
Once the book hit the midway mark I was so invested that I couldn’t put it down for too long.
– Redital Group
While Larsson has social axes to grind, he sharpens his plot to a riveting edge that compels the reader to keep turning pages without pausing to ponder injustice.
– Door County Pulse
Writing Practice
It’s time to do some writing exercises and prompts using THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST as inspiration.
Prompt
Your Task: This is the opening paragraph of the novel. Ignore everything you know about the story and use it as a writing prompt.
Using as much detail as possible, write another 300+ words.
Chapter 1: Friday, April 8
Dr. Jonasson was woken by a nurse five minutes before the helicopter was expected to land. It was just before 1:30 in the morning.
“What?” he said, confused.
“Rescue Service helicopter coming in. Two patients. An injured man and a younger woman. The woman has gunshot wounds.”
“All right,” Jonasson said wearily.
Although he had slept for only half an hour, he felt groggy. He was on the night shift in the ER at Sahlgrenska hospital in Göteborg. It had been a strenuous evening.
Exercise: Mix and Match
This exercise is all about being creative. We’re going to merge a character from HORNET with a scene from LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD.
Your Task: Rewrite the following LITTLE RED scene. Replace Red with Lisbeth Salander.
Lisbeth is a completely different person than Red. You can’t substitute the names and expect it to work. Each would have different reactions and dialogues. How would Lisbeth have handled this scene?
LITTLE RED-CAP Excerpt
‘Oh! grandmother,’ she said, ‘what big ears you have!’
‘The better to hear you with, my child,’ was the reply.
‘But, grandmother, what big eyes you have!’ she said.
‘The better to see you with, my dear.’
‘But, grandmother, what large hands you have!’
‘The better to hug you with.’
‘Oh! but, grandmother, what a terrible big mouth you have!’
‘The better to eat you with!’
And scarcely had the wolf said this, than with one bound he was out of bed and swallowed up Red-Cap.
Exercise: Dialogue Tags
Check out the dialogue tags used in any chapter of the novel except chapter one.
Your Task: List all the different dialogue tags used (and how many times each was used).
Total Lines of Dialogue: ______
- No Dialogue Tag: _____ times (______%)
- Description or Action instead of dialogue tag: _____ times (______%)
- Said: _____ times (______%)
- <Others, list them individually>:_____ times (______%)
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST Facts
THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST Thoughts?
Have you read THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET’S NEST?
If so, what did you think? If not, will you?
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PS. share your exercises in the comments below. I’d love to see them.
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