Hannibal

Rating:
Summary: Delicious ending makes up for too many movie like sequences.
Review: Although the style of prose is far too movielike for my taste, and certain sequences are very predictable, the ending is a good one, probably as far from hollywood as you can get considering that it will be made into a blockbuster movie.

Rating:
Summary: Read Red Dragon and SOTL and forget this exists
Review: I bought this book with the delusion that it would be as good as the other two in the series. I was greatly disappointed by it and spent two days trying to forget that I had read it. I couldn't believe what the author had done to the memoriable characters that he had created. Starling came across as just another helpless female and lacked the finesse and intellect that made her stand out in Silence of the Lambs. Lecter lacked his edge and there were too few times when you got to see the dry humor that the character exhibited in the other books. I hated that the author chose to give Lecter a nagging psycological past. I thought he was perfect the way he was...no chessey explainations for why he was a savage monster. I found the ending to be the biggest let down. I thought it really lacked imagination and was to easy of a jump for the author to make. Overall, this book was badly written and poorly executed and if this hadn't been the sequel to SOTL it wouldn't have made it to the bestsellers list. If you are looking for a good read look elsewhere, if you are looking to line the pockets of a sell out author and publishing house by all means buy the book. If you feel that you must really must read this book...check it out at the library. Save your money for a book that really is a good read.

Rating:
Summary: Thomas Harris' hilarious parody of himself
Review: This is a dark, hilarious, florid, dead-on parody of Harris' own earlier works. News flash to anyone who thinks otherwise: The joke's on you!

Rating:
Summary: LAMBS,DRAGONS,HANNIBAL, AND GOD!
Review: I ordered four books for my vacation. First, there was the good, The Silence of the Lambs. A very good book and must read. Then, there was the bad, Hannibal. Good plot, not so good ending, and the ending in my opinion should be one of the best parts if not the best part of the book. And there was great, The Red Dragon. I loved that novel, much better than the others. I also would recommend a novel called, THE FIST OF GOD, by A.T. Nicholas. It's a great supernatural thriller.

Rating:
Summary: OK but not worthy of the attention it has been given.
Review: This was a disappointment. Although Hannibel Lecter is such a complex character, I didn't need to have Italian poetry included as part of the text. I thought this was pretentious. Also, the detailing of the vintages and foods was almost pornographic in its detail,as was the brutal descriptions of the dispatching of the victims. Also, Clarice's character did not seem fully developed. There were too many references back to The Silence of the Lambs. I think this would have been much better if it stood on its own. Unfortunately, I now feel exploited for having read it.

Rating:
Summary: A complete letdown
Review: Thomas Harris' "Hannibal" is not one of the worst books I have ever read - but it's close. I thought "The Red Dragon" and "The Silence of the Lambs" were well written and entertaining, but "Hannibal" was a joke. Mr. Harris used so much gore that instead of being disturbing, it was funny. And the ending was ludicrous! If Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins have signed to do the movie, they must not have read the book yet.

Rating:
Summary: What happened??
Review: A wonderful book to read until the end. I enjoyed the characters and imagery, until the end. Don't read this expecting Silence of the Lambs or The Red Dragon, Hannibal falls flat and left this reader disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining but unbelievable..
Review: I knew this book wasn't very good when I found myself laughing out loud at the "scary" parts. I will admit that I had never read a Harris books before, however, I am sure that this was not one of his best. I read quickly through the long and uneccessary descritions, hoping that eventually I would reach "the good part." Unfortunately, this never happened. I give this book two stars for it's entertainment value. It is easy to read and even has some laughs in it (even if the author did not intend it that way.) As for this becoming a movie..well, lets just say that I would go to the cheap show.

Rating:
Summary: Clammy and hammy
Review: Overwrought, pretentious, boring, pointless. I hope Mr. Harris gets tired of writing again and stays away for another decade. Please!

Rating:
Summary: Good read, but not as satisfying as prior Lecter novels.
Review: Thomas Harris' Hannibal provides glimpses of insight into both the psyches of Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling, but in the end, disappoints its reader. Although Harris sketches out pieces of Lecter's past, providing readers with perhaps Lecter's motivation for madness, mayhem and murder, those pieces simply do not ring true. Lecter was much better, more realistic and scary as an unexplained monster. No one has ever satisfactorily explained the motivation that drove infamous killers such as Bundy, Gacy and Daimler. It is for that very reason people remain mystified and fascinated with serial killers, including a fictional serial killer. Harris' attempts at explanation for Lecter's behavior ring more like pop-psychology. Likewise, Starling's reaching toward self-understanding and growth are in the beginning intriguing, particularly as the author seems to begin to intertwine her desires for material objects, self-improvement and a better life with Lecter's existing admiration and lust for the best in life. However the author abruptly snaps that particular story line just at its most interesting point, never to re-visit it. Starling's reversal of position at the end is never wholly satifying, leaving this reader wondering why Harris abandoned his own character. The book is abound with characters that are never drawn completely, abandoned just as they become interesting; cases in point, the characters of Barney and Margot. The true monster in this book is Mason Verger. A character so whole, so nasty and well-drawn, he makes Lecter seem like a pale ghost in his own story.