One Quarter of the Way Through the BOW Challenge

Well dear readers, we have reached a bit of a landmark here at NovelTease: as our thirteenth book-of-the-week has just been finished, we are officially one quarter of the way to 52 books--in other words, reading one book a week for an entire year. While this is by no means extraordinary, I have to admit, I'm pretty proud. Over the last three months, we have gone through thirteen great works, ranging from classics in the canon to contemporary thrillers, from favorite authors to fresh new voices. Now, while we still have a ways to go, I am pretty jazzed, and think that this mini-milestone warrants an invitation to all of my loyal readers to consider playing along, even if it is only now and again. I really would love hearing your feedback on the various BOWs, and am totally open to the idea of choosing future BOWs based on reader suggestions.

Okay, that's enough self-congratulation for one post! On to this week's BOW: Stieg Larsson's The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. For those of you who have been following along over the last few weeks, you know I've recently read and enjoyed the first two installments of Larsson's Millienium trilogy, appreciating the brisk pace, smart twists, and well-developed characters. As the third and final chapter of Larsson's saga, TGWKTHN is similarly satisfying, even while it takes a different bent in terms of plot and pace.

Again, I have no interest in being a spoiler, but let's just say this installment focuses more on the "catching" part of the "catch the killer" concept, and shifts gears by focusing on unraveling a decades-old governmental conspiracy that is intrinsically linked with our heroine's own fate. While at times a little too tidy in terms of linkages (it's hard to think of a single loose end!), this thriller offers up exactly what it should: just enough surprises to keep the reader on her toes, and more than enough reasons to root for Lisbeth Salander--a truly unique and absorbing hero. I would definitely recommend this series to anyone looking for a engrossing read over the holidays--all of them make for great airplane reads (and I don't think you'll be at risk of crying).

So what's on the docket for next week's BOW? I think I'm going to shift gears pretty dramatically and take on Thomas Pynchon, a contemporary American author notorious for complex and reference-laden novels. However, since I'm only giving myself a week to take on this fearsome literary master, I decided I'd make it slightly easier on myself by selecting The Crying of Lot 49; at just under 160 pages, Pynchon once described this novel as a "short story, but with gland trouble." Well, we'll see how much trouble those glands give me!