Hannibal

Rating:
Summary: Waste of time and money
Review: This book is simply awful. I have read many of the reviews on here, and fail to understand how anyone can promote this book as a great read. The Florentine descriptions were somewhat informative (roll over Baedeker) but felt more plodding than necessary for the book. I read one reviewer on here warn that your "dreams and nightmares will never be the same" . . . puhlease! The fate of the victims in the novel seemed as horrific as Wiley Coyote being hit in the noggin' by an Acme safe, cartoon writing at its ???best??? The ending was perhaps the greatest disappointment. I don't expect an ending that is necessarily neat and tidy, but the outlandish denoument of this book is beyond comprehension, and certainly outside of the characterization Thomas' originally created in Clarice. He makes clear at the very end that the "hypnosis" and drugs no longer played a part in the transformation (regression) of Clarice, so she apparently was deemed to be acting, at that point, of her own free will? (Not to mention, I was always of the understanding that a person under hypnosis will not do anything which they would find repugnant while in a waking state . . . ) So, was Clarice a monster just waiting to hatch??? Thoughts to ponder? I think not; enough time was wasted on this drivel already. SAVE YOUR MONEY!

Rating:
Summary: Harris, DO NOT ever read your own books, PLEASE!
Review: Big Disappointment. Unless a Mississippi native trains extensively with a phoneticist in acting class, he has no business reading this kind of writing. Sure, your Italian is passable, nothing out of the common way; but how can you disappoint us after the brilliance of Kathy Bates's reading Silence? You are a great writer, but not a good reader. All of the suspense is lost on your provincial, run-of-the-mill, southern accent. You should have asked John Lithgow, or Ed Bagley, Jr, or Ms. Bates again.

Rating:
Summary: "You Dont Want Hannibal Lecter In Your Head"-Jack Crawford
Review: Overall, I expected more from Hannibal. Red Dragon and Silence were much better books. Lecter loses some of his creepiness in Hannibal and Harris' ending suffers from being just too incredible. It appears that Harris only creates Starling to be the victim of all men whether they be serial killers or cops. I expected more from Starlings character and was disappointed in Harris' treatment of her. There were faint glimpses of Harris' earlier achievements, but Hannibal was a step in the wrong direction.

Rating:
Summary: Complexity and ambiguity rule
Review: Creepy and complex, this is a haunting work whose sustained mood builds to a remarkable and unseen sending. Wonderful writing and marvelous plotting.

Rating:
Summary: 3/4 Description, 1/4 action
Review: I enjoyed SOTL the novel very much, as I read it in one sitting. However, Hannibal was disappointing, As it Mr. Harris spent 450 pages of the book describing Italy, and 30 telling the events in the book. Even though it had a good climax, it was mostly a boring read. Only a very very hardcore Harris fan/Lecterite should buy this book.

Rating:
Summary: RUN - DON'T WALK AWAY FROM THIS TRASH.
Review: I couldn't wait to read Harris's new book - THINKING it would be as great as Silence of the Lambs. Boy, was I mistaken. What a waste of my time. The ending is totally unbelievable - well actually the whole book was unbelievable, predictable - except the ending. What a great disappointment. If you haven't read it yet, don't waste your time. Total garbage.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: I found this very disappointing. Rather pretentious and not a good effort, in my opinion. Don't bother.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book, but the narrator makes a very bad choice
Review: Another excellent Thomas Harris book and most rewarding for fans of Lechter and Starling. The audiobook is badly marred, though, by the narrator's ill-advised decision to perform the voice of a major character with severe facial injuries in a "dialect" that renders his (many and important) lines practically unintelligible. This is doubly annoying as Mr. Harris did not write these lines in a crippled speech "dialect" in the book, probably precisely because it makes it so hard to read (with apologies to writers like William Faulkner). This looks like another example of audiobook narrators and producers deciding to "improve" upon the author's work with a contribution that ends up hurting it. When will they learn? Sorry it had to happen to you, Mr. Thomas.

Rating:
Summary: what a let down!!!!!
Review: I spent the first 100 pages on the edge of my seat, the next 200 trying to stay awake, and the last 50 laughing uncontrollably. The ending of this book gave me the impression that Harris gave up on the characters and just wanted to finish. The ending is ludicrous. Other than as a guide to pig breeding or a roadmap of Florence, the book is a waste of time.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting in a very wordy, terribe ending sort of way.
Review: The very first review sums this book up really well. I had no trouble getting into this book and was hooked after the completion of the first chapter. The small amount of emphasis on Starling was a little disappointing. When we were in Italy with Lecter, there was too much information and terms that are beyond most people's understanding. And I think we spent too much time with the Italian officer and his plans to get Lecter. The end was terrible and ridiculous. It left me sitting for hours asking, "What the heck? Who would ever think that one up?" It's a good read, but set yourself up for disappointments in Italy and the end.