Rating: 
Summary: Creative blend of all genres.
Review: Be aware this is a book of SHORT STORIES. I did not realize this when I first began reading it because it did not say so anywhere in the book that I was aware of. Ellis sometimes rights from many perspectives and with many different story lines and in the end weaves them together, so I assumed this is what he was doing here. When I finally got to the story featuring a vampire I figured it out. Before that I kept saying, wow, he's really lost it this time. They are all pure Ellis tales that are good to read if you haven't read Ellis before. They will prepare you for what is to come in his other novels.
Rating: 
Summary: Ellis's Worst Effort Thus Far
Review: Don't get me wrong - Bret Easton Ellis is one of my favorite authors - along with Chuck Palahniuk and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. So...needless to say having read Ellis many times over, I came in with lofty expectations which sadly went unfulfilled. I read an interview with Ellis where he stated that The Informers was merely a collection of short stories he had been working on for years in between novels when he had writer's block that were basically turned in to satisfy a publishing deadline - he did not expect them to ultimately to be approved for publishing. Now I know why, Bret. Somewhat enjoyable and recommended strictly for diehard Ellis fans. If you want real Bret Easton Ellis with much more depth, intensity & cohesiveness, pick up The Rules of Attraction, American Psycho, Less Than Zero or Glamorama - all superb and quintessential Ellis reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Trashy Soap Opera
Review: It is disapointing that Ellis would write a book this bad. The Informers is just plain awful, and I am a fan of his first three books (Less Than Zero, The Rules of Attraction, American Psycho). The Informers is nothing more than a bad soap opera featuring undeveloped characters who are stereotypes of 80's L.A. Avoid.
Rating:
Summary: I was misinformed!
Review: I was quite disappointed in this novel. It was touted as a great "LA book" but I was left with only a bitter taste for Ellis' work. The characters are so self-indulged and vapid that it is hard to connect with any of them. Even the promise of an occasionally interesting scene was always a let down; cool bars, wealthy homes, even the beaches of Mexico were all numbed out by empty conversations and lack of character arc. I recommend you pass right by this book and look elsewhere for cool LA fiction.
Rating:
Summary: A Writer depicting an Emotional Wasteland
Review: I think Bret Easton Ellis is getting at something that Americans don't really want to face--that in our emotional deadness and lack of concern for others we might as well be vampires. It was a brilliant turn to include a vampire as just another denizen of this soulless, wealthy L.A., the place where a lot of people want to be, and want to be seen. His vision is at turns horrifying and hilarious, but mostly what I feel is a deep, abiding sadness for the state of humanity in these twilight years of capitalism. (My favorite of his books is actually "The Rules of Attraction" which another reviewer mentioned and has been made into a film due for release in October, 2002.) Perhaps I overstate the case a bit, but what Chekhov did for the Russian aristocracy, Ellis is kindly doing for Los Angeles Decadents. I don't remember the titles of the stories, but the one I liked the best depicted a father taking his son to Hawaii for Christmas, and failing to make a connection. Also liked that the book opened with a quote from John Fante, THE L.A. novelist.
Rating:
Summary: I really didn't like this book . . .
Review: I really think Ellis is over rated. His fixation on cruelty and pain is just disturbing. I think many readers think that just because a book disturbs them, it must be good literature. This isn't right. With 'American Psycho,' Ellis created a character and there was a message to his maddness. Although I hated liking it, I liked it none the less. But The Informers says absolutely nothing and often made me feel just plain sick. Reading a lot of Ellis's work is like watching a talented artist paint something ugly. Well, this book is just ugly.
Rating:
Summary: wasted talent
Review: That is the sad thing, because he is a talented writer, but this novel says nothing. Some of the quotes on the back of the book truly amaze me. To say that this is an "important book" or to compare him to truly great writers like Fitzgerald is simply ludicrous. He has not earned that comparison yet. He has potential, but he needs to really work hard and write something worth reading, not this sad, empty, self-pitying, and egoistic [stuff]. Hey, Bret, here's an idea....write a story.
Rating: 
Summary: Well written, exhausting to read
Review: Mr. Ellis' strength is in his realistic dialogue and characters, which is well on display here in this collection of character sketches. I say character sketches, and not short stories, because that's really what they are. A series of interconnected portraits of the different, intermingling layers of society in LA. And it is pretty impressive at that. Each of the characters in the book are going through very similar feelings, have very similar problems (spiraling depression, enstrangement from their parents, etc.). Luckily, Mr. Ellis is able to differentiate their characters and situations. As happens with books of this type, the ending seems to rush together more quickly, and feel more connected than the beginning. And frankly, as much respect as I have for Mr. Ellis' writing, it was exhausting to read story after story. The book is an interesting portrait of a city constantly on the edge of destruction, but there's only so much nihilistic fiction a guy can read before you curl up into a ball in the corner. As always, Ellis is a writer worth reading. But be prepared: it is a short book, but a long haul.
Rating:
Summary: If you're looking for novels about vampires in L.A.
Review: Try Todd Grimson's "Stainless". It's one seamless story, and has elements similar to those of a Bret Easton Ellis novel. I was sorry to see it go out of print.
Rating:
Summary: informers
Review: Not ellis' greatest work to date, but not bad. Much like Less Than Zero with a touch of American Psycho. Worth reading.
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