Rating: Summary: Worst ending for a book ever... Review: Tom, you should have kept Lecter in jail. While he was incarcerated, he was far more creepy and threatening. Once he escapes, he becomes omnipotent, and thus, far less interesting. During the course of the book, we learn that Hannibal Lecter can: read people's minds, hypnotize animals, kill anyone at anytime anywhere in the most complex way with absolutley no forethought, outwit the entire world, flasify any document no matter how complex, speak 18 languages, whip up gourmet meals made of brains, and convince Agent Starling that she's his wife. The lead-in to the last few chapters was great, and is totally ruined by the ending which seems like it was written as an afterthought. If you liked Silence of the Lambs, this book will piss you off! There's a reason why Jody Foster refused to play Clarice in the movie adaptation of Hannibal! Trust me on this one...
Rating: Summary: splendid, but... Review: Thomas Harris is a wonderful writer. Keeps you turning the pages because of the incredible characters he comes up with. They seem quite alive. However, as they seem quite alive, myself and several friends who are teachers agree that Clarice would never do what he has her doing at the end of the book. Still is an enjoyable book, but it was jarring to read what Harris had her doing with Lecter. Oh, well. Nevertheless, I will read any other books he writes. His early ones are captivating, too and I highly recommend them to you.
Rating: Summary: CREEPY AS HELL Review: I read this book over summer vacation when it was nice and hot, but the book left me with chills! It was by far the best "horror" novel I have read (If you wanna call it that). I would recommend this book to fans of Harris' eariler books, but I would not recommend this for the faint of heart, or those who are squimish. This is the most violent, graphic, and disturbing book I have ever read. I loved it. If you have a spare weekend, I would recommend getting in bed, turning down the lights, pulling up the covers and reading. Trust me, you won't be able to put it down, I couldn't. At least give it a shot, what harm could it do?
Rating: Summary: Hannibal best thriller ever NOT Review: This book is dull and boring i mean what sort of book has 103 chapters i got up to 60 something and then quit, it was so repeditive it kept on going over the same issues it probably would have been a lot better if he would have ripped out about 50 chapters. No thank you sorry
Rating: Summary: An Underrated and Challenging Gem of a Horror Novel Review: I can't say I'm surprised at the mixed reviews here. I first read Hannibal the week it came out in hardcover. I finished it in three or four days, and found it one of the ugliest, most depressing stories I have ever read. As others have suggested here, the ending was entirely unbelievable, and near ruined the entire book for me. But...With the release of the movie version this February (2001), I decided to go back and re-read all of Harris' "Lecter" books, in order: Red Dragon, The Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal. I thought maybe I'd find a progression of character and relationship that would make the end of Hannibal more palatable, if not believable. For any reader who still has copies of all three books, I encourage you to read them, back-to-back. I can't promise that the ending of Hannibal will make total sense, but I found the exercise totally enjoyable. The first two books still hold up as classics of the genre, and Hannibal emerges as a daring, more experimental extension of the Starling/Lecter relationship that emerged in the second book. One disappointing thing about reading all three in quick succession: I realized that TSOTL is really just a retelling of Red Dragon -- they both involve the FBI's hunt for a serial killer, and in both books, the Bureau turns to Dr. Lecter for help. Lecter's cat-and-mouse games with the FBI make both books shine, but Harris outdoes himself with the Starling/Lecter relationship in TSOTL, making it, at least for me, the better book. It's this relationship that Harris tackles in Hannibal, and if you found it (the relationship) to be the most interesting and frightening thing about TSOTL, you really can't miss Hannibal. On rereading it, I appreciated Harris' refusal to simply tell another FBI v. serial killer tale -- this book has psychological depth that few horror/thriller books ever come close to. It's fascinating and subtle, exciting and well-written. If the end stretches things a bit too far, so what? The ride was exhilarating and challenging, and the ending will leave you thinking about it for days, refusing to accept it. And perhaps that's the point . . .
Rating: Summary: BORING Review: This was one of the most boring books I have ever read. I wonder how much they paid Stephen King to comment on the cover about how great this book was. I hope Thomas Harris' other books aren't this bad. I enjoyed the "Silence of the Lambs" movie, but after reading this book, I won't be seeing the sequel. If the book is this bad, the movie will be horrible. Sorry, Thomas Harris, but this was about as exciting as watching paint dry.
Rating: Summary: Resolves cool, but getting there is rough Review: As an admirer of "Silence of the Lambs" and especially "Red Dragon," I looked forward to anything Harris had up his sleeve. I might've read his grocery lists. Lots of time passed. "Hannibal," therefore, disappoints. It certainly has inspired moments and, as he has done before, Harris' ability to elicit sympathy for Lecter is remarkable. The bulk of the novel, however, just doesn't transport the reader (not this one anyway) the way Harris has done before with seeming ease. "Hannibal" is terribly overwritten at points -- almost as though Harris feels the need to demonstrate that he's as intelligent and cultured as his trademark character. Well, duh! What is, at its heart, three compelling stories which meet two-thirds of the way into the book is done in by Harris' fooling around. While his destruction of the fourth wall works wonderfully the last time he does it in "Hannibal", its impact is lessened by the many times he switches narrative voices (to no gain) over the course of the novel. Lord knows it must be difficult to write under the kind of attention and pressure Harris has labored under since "Lambs," but it hardly called for the kind of showboating which sinks an otherwise promising novel. A shame, because the ending is really pretty suave -- it's just not entirely earned.
Rating: Summary: Disappointment Review: After eagerly awaiting this sequel to a fabulous book I was incredibly disappointed. The author was not true to his characters. Their behaviour was not remotely believable and after enjoying both Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs I was amazed to find this written by the same person. The plots were sloppy, the characters unreal and the pace boring. I would definitely NOT reccommend this book.
Rating: Summary: NOT HAPPY Review: After reading the excellent Silence Of the Lambs i found this a good book that should have ended 20 pages before it did. I was not happy at all with the way thomas Harris wrapped up this elegant thriller but hes a good writer and will rebound in the future i believe. Not worth reading unless your a diehard Harris fan.
Rating: Summary: Doesn't Stack Up to "Silence of the Lambs" Review: Extremely graphic and hard-hitting, this is a disjointed story, that has a choppy, uneven feel to it. Harris is a brilliant writer, and his talent is evident in most chapters. Not sure if more editing could have polished it, but it didn't stack up to "Lambs." Contains explicit depictions of some sickening situations.
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