Rating: 
Summary: The Silence of the Editors
Review: The erratic narrative style of HANNIBAL is much more jarring than the (deliberately) preposterous ending. Harris shifts willy-nilly from the conventional third-person, omniscient narrator to a present tense that doesn't necessarily rely on complete sentences (a la James Ellroy and all too many imitators), and then this weird first-person-plural stuff. Traditionally, this is where an editor would step in and say "Thomas, the voice of this book jumps around a little too much, why don't you take it back for a couple of months and smooth it out?" Needless to say, there was no financial incentive to do so. The violence in HANNIBAL sets no records -- it's no more offensive than the splatterpunk that has been floating around elsewhere for 10 or 15 years -- but when you find yourself wondering "Is Jodie Foster going to agree to do this?" then it's pretty clear this book is as much a script treatment as a horror novel. There's a problem with the idea of Clarice Starling getting reprimanded for the opening shootout of the book, too -- Starling took down a heavily armed, known felon who ignored repeated instructions to freeze. Her actions would be considered justifiable by any law-enforcement agency in the nation.
Rating: 
Summary: Diese ist das Best Buch!
Review: HANNIBAL ist das Best! Was ist besser als einen menschenfrenchner? ein FBI madchen? und alle das? Besser als RED DRAGON! Besser als THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS! Diese ist Thomas Harris's best! Ein GUTTTTTTTTTTTTT buch!
Rating: 
Summary: If you must read it, wait for the paperback
Review: 2-1/2 stars. If you're into getting a cheap thrill from reading about the gruesome acts committed by Lecter, then this book will probably be fine for you. But if you love the character of Starling and her unusual relationship with Lecter, this book is going to let you down. Starling is little more than a plot device here: she has almost no control over her fate, and what little control she exerts is eventually taken away from her. We find out some background about Lecter's childhood, but knowing this doesn't enrich his character; on the contrary, it diminishes it. The first half of the book shows promise and is quite entertaining. In one scene, Lecter reacts to being pickpocketed with lightning speed and deadly ruthlessness, making him ever more frightening. But you can basically take the middle third of the book and throw it away. It comes from nowhere, and it goes nowhere. Up to now, Lecter has been one of the best fictional characters of the last 10-20 years in my opinion, but his actions at the end of the book (no, I won't give away the ending) are just silly. What happens to Starling's arch nemesis is also silly. Disgusting and silly. And predictable. All the loose ends are tied up much too neatly. And finally, I just don't buy the very end of the book. I can't see any way that would have happened. What a letdown when two characters act completely, well, out of character.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing dive into the mind of a genius/madman
Review: This book was all that I had hoped it would be. The fear factor and plot progression build at an alarming pace several times through the book. The third party descriptions in the narative of the good Doctors antics give an interesting diversion from the rest of the writing and give yo a feeling that you are looking down on the action. This book will disturb, it disturbed me, but the over the top writing made it all worth while.
Rating:
Summary: It took him 11 years for this?
Review: Maybe he should have given it another 11 years to work out the atrocious writing. This book is boring and poorly written, and what's up with the ending?! "RD" and "SotL" were both great, finely-drawn examples of psychological thrillers. "Hannibal" is pointless.
Rating:
Summary: Complete and utter disappointment
Review: I cannot believe this book was even written by the same author. This book was only gruesome (as opposed to the chilling and intriguing psychological drama of his former book) and gratuitous. The author attempts to make Hannibal more sympathtic by introducing a character even MORE creepy and reprehensible than Lector. The character of Clarice is a disappointment and a joke; there is NO WAY this will be made into a movie as Jodie Foster would REFUSE to reprise her role given the absolutely awful and totally laughable ending. A waste of time and money... don't bother. I am sorry I did.
Rating:
Summary: A bad read that led to a ridiculous, unbelievable ending
Review: I'm so dissappointed. I eagerly read this book only to find narry a character that I cared about, was interested in, reviled, or even pitied. Definitely a sorrowful sequel to Silence of the Lambs.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty Bad
Review: It almost seems as if Harris rushed through the book, when he had years to write it. It is very disjointed and constantly told from the same banal perspective and therefore reads like a screenplay and not like a novel. The ending is completely out of character and the events that transpire leading up to it are so odd, that they are just wrong; they do not fit into context at all.
Rating: 
Summary: Silence of the Lambs 2 - A Love Story
Review: If I had to sum up my feelings in one word, it would be "ambivalent." The ending was disturbing (I finished the book at night and had trouble sleeping) so, as a horror novel, one could argue that the book was successful. But as disturbing as I found the ending, I'm not convinced that it made sense given the characters and their arcs. Moreover, what Harris does to generate empathy for Lecter detracts, I think, from the quality of Lecter's character. The great thing about Lecter in the prior books, particularly SOTL, is that he was monstrous and there was no reason for his monstrosity ("Nothing happened to me. I happened"). Now, all of a sudden, we're privy to his childhood trauma and can almost excuse his prior acts. And his acts of mayhem in the current book tend towards self-protection. There's much to commend in this book. But the ending and the devices used to generate easy empathy for Hannibal may leave a bad taste in your mouth.
Rating:
Summary: THE book to read this summer!
Review: Hannibal is a "can't put it down" novel that twists and turns like a moray eel. Thomas Harris has written a sequel that doesn't seem like one. Scary, surprising, and superb writing make this horror book a must read. It's no fariy tale, but if you enjoyed any other books with Dr. Lecter, or just enjoy a horror story real enough to make you a little afraid of the dark, "Hannibal" is the book for you.
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