Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells

10 reviews

grinchem's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I won't deny that the story has its flaws, but overall I still found it interesting and entertaining.

The protagonist is almost comically incurious. Of all the wild things he witnesses, he's generally just focused on himself and doesn't think any further. It plays into the horror, that he may have seen things coming if he had just put a little more thought into the implications of what he had seen.

I felt like the story didn't give enough weight or attention to this brand new developing culture. It was seen through that old colonial British lens of "lesser" and therefore not deserving of attention. But it was consistent with the characters that they view it that way, and considering the book was in part inspired by the new (at the time) theory of evolution, I think it speaks to how people at that time saw an inherent horror in the idea of something not-yet-human. I think the horror for a modern reader is a little different, but the story still holds the power to make you quietly whisper "what the fuck"

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Torture, Body horror, Animal cruelty, Murder, and Animal death

Minor: Racism

nubecato's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Murder, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Body horror and Alcoholism

Minor: Torture

thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Slavery, and Violence

Moderate: Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Forced institutionalization, and Kidnapping

Minor: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Religious bigotry, and Ableism

bookish_bry's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This was an interesting short read. It has a plot that keeps you engaged, but at the same time that plot isn't really the point of the story. This book is really just one big metaphor reflecting on humanity and what being human means. It's about what separates us from animals and what doesn't. I think the end where

Spoiler

  Prendick starts to see the animal traits in real humans

really drives this home. 

There's a lot of interesting things this book calls into question. I find myself thinking of the humanity of Doctor Moreau and  Montgomery verses the

Spoiler

beast people and wonder which actually express more humanity. I think on that island everyone slipped back to their natural beastly ways at least a bit even the humans and especially Moreau with his horrible cruelty. Montgomery as well seemed to show this with the way he just laid down and accepted Moreau's actions, seeming to slip a bit into obedience. You could even compare the way he bent to Moreau to the way his companion M'Ling bent to him.

Overall, I'd probably give the story about a 3 star rating, but if you view it as an extended metaphor, I'd give it a more than 4 star rating.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Racism, Gun violence, Murder, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Suicide attempt and Fire/Fire injury

kalea_02's review against another edition

adventurous dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Torture, Murder, and Animal death

Minor: Body horror, Alcohol, and Blood

jbabbm's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

This book was better than I expected, and it's an easy to read classic. Wells decided to use the Island and its Beast Folk as a literary device to tackle various moral topics. I truly consider this a must read.

Also, this is classified as a children's book apparently but I honestly wouldn't read it to children below the age of 10 at least. It's not scary or gory, but I do think that it deals with complicated subjects that may prove too heavy/upsetting for a kid.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, and Gun violence

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

robynsimpson's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Death, Torture, Murder, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, and Gun violence

crufts's review

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

In The Island of Dr Moreau, HG Wells asks us: where is the line drawn between human and beast? And what would happen if that narrow line began to fray?

The tale is told by Londoner Edward Prendick, a man from London who has the misfortune to be shipwrecked, eventually coming ashore the titular island. Here he finds the amoral Dr Moreau, a once-renowned London surgeon who was chased out of town after his bizarre and cruel animal experiments were publicized. Sure enough, the island is crawling with the strange half-human, half-beast results of his experiments...

At a slim 133 pages, the book can't help but run at a good pace. Similarly, the locations and characters used are condensed to a minimal few, maintaining a strong sense of unity and cohesion. The story also ends on a strong note that ties together everything the protagonist has seen over the course of the book.

While vivid horror themes like these are not my favourite, The Island of Dr Moreau is nonetheless a strong example of the genre.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Medical content, Murder, Stalking, and Violence

Moderate: Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture

Minor: Racism

rachelditty's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Spoiler

RIP Dog-man

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Murder, and Violence

jowmy4's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Cannibalism, Cursing, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship