Rating: 
Summary: The reader must sift the wheat from the chaff.
Review: For those who gave the rock-bottom ratings, perhaps you should re-read certain portions of the book. Certain areas are truly the most 'palatable' ever since SOTL. I won't say Harris 'outdid' himself, but he did provide the most remarkable additional insight into his beloved Dr. Lecter. We see Lecter (eventually) from a variety of perspectives and angles and each one (excluding the way-too-contrived history of Lecter's sister) provides a remarkable insight into the cultivated, articulate, purposeful, and intelligent mind of Hannibal Lecter. This particular aspect of the book takes some active searching, footnoting and contemplation, but I assure future and present readers of the book that such a venture will yield satisfaction. One sidenote: The exuberantly artful and detailed writing concerning Florence (before we see Lecter) is a necessary device which provides a worthy introduction to Lecter and enables the reader the satisfaction of adjusting to Dr. Lecter's highly cultivated passions and interests. Such a switching of diction and style a third of the way through the book represents an important investment in our main character and how he is perceived by his audience. For those who enjoyed SOTL and RD, read this book just for the pleasure of sifting out information concerning Hannibal Lecter: his tastes, his passions, his cultivation, etc. Certain parts of the book could have been re-written to provide more cohesion with the trilogy (the ending for one) but overall, Cheers to Harris!
Rating:
Summary: Torture to read, but couldn't put it down!
Review: Thomas Harris tortures reader with endless circumlocution! Other than that, I look forward to another book or possibly a "movie"?
Rating: 
Summary: LOVE OR HATE?
Review: It seems that readers either loved or hated Hannibal. I , myself, thoroughly enjoyed it. I had to read it twice to catch the nuances of character and story. There were way too many unbelievable characters, but as we know, "Too many is too many but way too many is just right." Hannibal's Florence was his Florence, not the everyday Florence.
Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: Some say they were disappointed, but I was thrilled! I found this book to be very erotic and psychotically romantic, which was great. The ending completely surprised me. Loved it.
Rating: 
Summary: Has its moments, but...
Review: "Hannibal" kept me interested all the way through. The book is beautifully written. Harris is a fine writer who knows how to create suspense to keep the reader's attention. With characters like Verger and Krendler hot on his trail, I couldn't help but root for Lecter. I found the scenes in Italy a little slow. And what the heck was that ending all about. The last fifty pages ruined the book. Totally implausable and ridiculous. I think we (the readers) deserved a better ending. Still, I recommend this book. If your a Harris fan and have read his previous novels, you must read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Hannibal Rules!
Review: I enjoyed this book immensely and can only hope that the Lecter saga shall continue in a fourth book. Perhaps my reading was enhanced by hearing Jodie Foster's voice every time Clarice spoke with her soft southern accent and picturing Anthony Hopkins with his depth of character, style, and grace which he imparts to Lecter. In my own mind's 'palace', their characters live on and I anticipate where their saga should lead next. Well done, Mr. Harris! Please don't keep us waiting.
Rating:
Summary: OK until bad finish
Review: darkly fascinating, I read Hannibal after reading The Triumph and the Glory--golly was THAT a change of pace--talk about opposite ends of the spectrum--but found it frustrating to read, Hannibal was very uneven in quality, poorly edited, and then would be brilliant for 40-50 pages, then wallow in nonsense for awhile, then grab me for another few dozen pages, then deteriorate into gibberish. Was Monica Lewinsky stopping by now and then while Harris was trying to write this baby ? Were there distractions that interrupted the flow of his writing. Something went haywire somewhere. This book could have been so good, with maybe one more draft and some major league editing it could have been superb.
Rating: 
Summary: Would have been 0 stars, but that isn't an option.
Review: The final (hopefully) book for the Hannibal character disgusted me, bored me, and finally angered me. The book's plot is very convulted. I nearly quit this reading this book and found myself struggling to finish it. There is plenty of gore and loads of wasted detail on Florencian history. If there is one complaint I have about Thomas Harris, it is that he kills the reader with detail that is useless.Hannibal is turned into a super-human psycho, with a nose that a hunting dog would envy, cultery skills that puts Martha Stewart to shame, and a knowledge of Florence that borders disbelief. The complex Clarice Starling of Silence is now a thug who becomes entranced by Hannibal. Mason and his sister are completely uninteresting characters. The first 100 pages gravy-trains Silence. The next 150 pages have no use at all. The real "plot" doesn't begin until the reader is in the 300's. The ending is so totally unbelievable, I wanted to throw the book through the window. I'm going back to non-fiction for a while.
Rating:
Summary: Blatant Attempt to Cash in on Reader Interest
Review: What a waste of money and time. Couldn't even finish it...flat characters, dumb plot. Written just for "jolt value".
Rating:
Summary: I understand why it took 10 years to write...
Review: Unfortunately, it may take you 10 years to finish it. That is, of course, if you wish to have a complete understanding of Thomas Harris's minute' of references. Harris delves deeply into the mind and mood of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, far deeper than the reader wants or needs or perhaps, can tolerate. It is a fascinating work in terms of the painstaking research that Harris has done. However, it will leave the above average reader of this genre wondering why he would reach so far in his need to explore Lecter's artistic side, when almost everyone pangs for, but doesn't quite receive, a closer look at the evil that Lecter is so expert at providing. Retribution of evil against evil leaves the reader a bit on the sidelines, offering no real protaganist to root for. One might argue that Clarice represents that character, but her fate and loyalities are left translucent. In the end, the reader is left with too many unanswered questions, an interesting way to set up the trilogy, let's just hope we don't have to wait 10 more years for our questions to be answered.
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