Marie-Françoise Colombani

I recently won a Twitter contest by Tantor Media and when I was allowed to choose an audiobook I could not pass up this selection. Since I had recently finished the Dragon Tattoo series I was interested in knowing a little more about the man behind it. This book did not disappoint.

Although they never married Eva Gabrielsson was Stieg Larsson’s lifelong companion. Sharing thirty-two years together Ms. Gabreilsson is able to relate some of Mr. Larsson’s childhood and early life with the reader as well as the kind of man he was as an adult. The reader learns about his career ambitions and the road his life took in that respect. She also shares his strong moral beliefs on a variety of subjects.

Any book dealing with his life cannot omit what happened after his sudden death in 2004 at the age of fifty. Ms. Gabrielsson not only writes about her understandable grief but also discusses the difficulties surrounding the Millennium series (with family, lawyers and the government) with a grace that I feel I could not muster under similar circumstances. Although admittedly one sided, since she is the author of the book, I feel she deserves kudos in that department.

In reading other reviews of this book I realize many people were disappointed that it was not more of a tell all (behind bedroom door type secrets) but I do not believe that was Ms. Gabrielsson’s mission in writing this book. As it stands this book was an interesting insight into the man behind the phenomenal success of the Dragon Tattoo books, but also an opportunity to get to know a little bit about a woman who is quite amazing in her own right.… (meer)