I just finished (12:42 am) Denise Mina's gritty Garnethill. I initally started reading it because I was wondering if Stieg Larsson had borrowed anything from Mina's protagonist in creating Lisbeth Salander. And my, it is refreshing to read a few books with unlikely protagonists. Unlike Salander, however, who has mad skills, Mina's Maureen O'Donnell is more of an everywoman...just a little (okay a lot) tweaked.
Her mother's an alcoholic, her brother's a drug dealer (the nice kind), her father raped her, and she may or may not be a paranoid schizophrenic. She's also funny as hell, with a mouth that could best my kids' on a bad day. And, somehow, she manages to put together the pieces of the puzzle and come up with a fitting punishment for the marauding therapist cum rapist cum murderer.
It's a triumph for the rights of women and the mentally ill. It is, therefore reminiscent of Larsson's books, at least, it reaches much the same conclusions, only on a much smaller scale.
Surprisingly, my copy came with a "reader's guide," despite the book's total unsuitability for all but the most masochistic of book groups. Ultimately, though, the message gets through the grime: you don't have to be a detective to solve a crime, or a certifiable genius either. Pluck, self-confidence, and shady friends sure help, though.
On to book two of the trilogy: Exile.
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