Rating:  Summary: Defilement Review: This novel offers so much, weaving together mystery, thriller, tragey, and black comedy under the guises of such concepts as the past, the present, death, rebirth, obsession, and even apocalyptic absolution. Harris is a dense writer, meaning, each chapter is loaded with important info. It's terribly brave of Harris to take his character and situations in such an "unexpected" direction. This is a story about people haunted by events, each other. For me, the story tempers the waters of Marquis deSade (in Juliette & 120 Days...), Miribeau(Torture Garden), even Dante (Inferno & Purgatorio). While not for everyone, this exquisite novel is a must read for those interested in an artist who answers to no ones vision but his own.(A warning to those expecting Silence Of The Lambs: it pays tribute to the book/film but then goes 1000 miles in another direction. You are forewarned!)
Rating:  Summary: This book is horrible Review: This book is a horrible book. It did not live up to expectations considering how good silence of the lambs was. If you have not read this book and you enjoyed silence of the lambs then I suggest you pass on this book.
Rating:  Summary: An Unsatisfying Sequel Review: I didn't have the problem with the ending that others have had, but I felt the book was too forced. Why were characters such as Barney and Jack Crawford brought back if they were not going to be utilized at all? (particularly Barney -- I just didn't buy him going to work for Verger. Did this intelligent, capable, courteous man from Silence of the Lambs morph into something else between books?) I think the biggest problem was that Doctor Lecter is worthy of our fascination and grudging admiration when he is the hunter, but when he becomes the hunted our sensibilities as readers must undergo a dramatic shift that most of us are uncapable of adjusting to. Also, since Paul Krendler has been such an unworthy adversary for Clarice (unlike Jame Gumb), we are left unmoved and unsatisfied by his fate at the hands of Lecter, and therefore unwilling to suspend our disbelief at Clarice's conversion. I hope she has a happy life of luxury with the good doctor. The lambs may have stopped screaming, but I'm not sure the reading public has.
Rating:  Summary: This really sucked. Review: I loved both Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs (even more than the movies). But this one...eeeeccchh! I think Thomas Harris just picked up a copy of Silence of the Lambs and wrung out what he could then filled in the rest with crap. It was slow. It was dull. It was a novel already so impressed with itself that it obviously didn't feel it had to try. Worse than anything was the ending...stupid, illogical, unbelievable and disappointing. Hannibal himself wasn't even scary, let alone horrifying. It actually made the prequel look bad in retrospect. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
Rating:  Summary: Hilarious! Review: I don't know if Thomas Harris was aiming for the funnybone or not when he wrote Hannibal but he had me rolling on the floor! It's refreshing to read an author who doesn't take himself or his characters too seriously. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter has become such a part of our culture (is there anyone who doesn't recognize the name?) what else could Harris do with him but take him over the top? Hannibal's "dinner party" scene near the end is a perfect example -- could any serious-minded author have written that? Whether you were a fan of Silence of the Lambs or not you must read Hannibal if only to find out why Jodi Foster refused to play the part of Clarice in the upcoming movie (I don't think you'll blame her!). If nothing else, you'll get a good laugh.
Rating:  Summary: A literary thriller Review: Perhaps what I enjoy most about Harris' books is his elegant use of language. His choice of words paints a lush, beautifully realized landscape. And it is this use of language that makes Hannibal Lecter such an appalling monster. He doesn't fit any of our presuppositions of what an evil person should be: he's educated, polite, cultured and refined. The reader is constanlty challenged because in the face of overwhelming evil, a small corner of the mind is always hoping he will escape justice. Ultimately, "Hannibal" is a look at the dark side of human nature. While no sane person would ever commit the acts Hannibal does, his motives aren't mysterious. It's not impossible to imagine a person you know succumbing to the predator buried in their genetic make-up. This is not an easy book to read. Aside from the gore, parts of it are profoundly disturbing. But it is a smart, haunting thriller, and anyone who approaches it with an open mind will surely enjoy it.
Rating:  Summary: Eight Years in the Making Review: It took Harris eight years for this riveting page-turner. Might I say it was well worth the wait. At times I couldn't put this book down for the intrigue. At times I couldn't turn my bedroom light off for the chill.
Rating:  Summary: Depressingly Awful Review: Mr. Harris still manages to paint wonderful word pictures and his attention to detail amazes and fascinates, but once the climax of this book's plot is reached, the fall is precipitous and treacherous. Mr. Harris betrays the readers' faith in his characters and destroys any semblance of a coherent narrative in the final chapters of this book. It would be a great psychedelic parody, if Mr. Harris didn't seem so sincere in his attempt to fit his circular story into this square ending. Stay away from this if you're fans of the first two Hannibal-related tomes!
Rating:  Summary: A Downward Spiral? Review: I was so disappointed with this book, I almost regret reading it. Now, let me step back for a moment. I am a huge Thomas Harris fan. I devoured "The Red Dragon," ran willy-nilly through "Silence of the Lambs," and waited with baited breath for "Hannibal." Unfortunately, "Hannibal" was a bitter disappointment. The ending was wholly unbelievable and implausible, not to mention borderline gory and grotesque. It seems to me that Harris rushed through "Hannibal" in order to satisfy the demands of readers and fans only to produce an inferior novel which left the devoted among us sour. I would hate to think that Harris's talent has been tapped. Hopefully, this is not the beginning of a downward spiral and that Harris has other "good things" in store for us.
Rating:  Summary: What Is the Difference Between the Hunter and the Hunted? Review: Pretty much every view regarding this book has been presented; what more is there to say? I have a take on the book I haven't seen in the reviews I have had the opportunity to read. While reading Hannibal, a quote by Nietzshe came to mind (I've seen this quote used several times in books about criminal profiling, the career Clarice once aspired to): "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And when you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." To me, the driving force in the book was to show Clarice's slow transformation as everything around her, all she has worked for, was crushed. She spent hours in "Hannibal's house" trying to get inside the mind of the Doctor. If while hunting Hannibal she could think like a killer, what really separates her from the killer himself? I enjoyed this book very much, it was an exciting thrill ride that also prompted me to do some thinking. Plus the infamous ending stayed in my mind for weeks; after I finished the novel my mind raced around, and I could not get to sleep. What more could an author ask for than to have that effect? If you haven't already read Hannibal, give it a try... you just might like it. I can't wait for the movie! -Linsey, linsey.bluejade@eudoramail.com
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