Basically, I had the same reservation. And I've learned that global popularism did not necessarily reflect my tastes. Sometimes I like popular stuff and sometimes not. For example, I cannot believe "The Hurt Locker" was such a hit, either with critics or with the public. And, when it comes to books, I've been burned so many times with thrillers/sf/fantasy that I usually prefer renting them free from my library rather than buy them.

But, imo, "the girl with the dragon tattoo" is actually good, with the politics not really interfering much with the storyline. There are stats at the head of some major parts in the book and they're totally unrelated to the story and don't make particular sense (20% of swedish women have been threatened. OK. 50% of swedish women have been victim of a sexual assault of some sort. OK. But, huh, wait a second? So 30% of women have been victim of an assault without ever being threatened?! Interesting...) but that's about the extent of my disagreement - except for the fact that BDSM is basically misrepresented in a secondary plot...

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