Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Murder'
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
130 reviews
bookishevy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was introduced to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by a Bugs Bunny short called Hyde and Hare 🤣
I'm sure you've heard of Jekyll and Hyde syndrome when someone's personality changes into another that is volatile. In the short, the meek Dr. Jekyll keeps turning into Mr. Hyde, a green monster that terrorizes Bugs. In the classic Gothic novella, the change isn't as drastic, but it's enough to fool people into believing the respected Dr. Henry Jekyll and criminal Edward Hyde are two different men.
This story is better than I expected. Even though I knew going in that Jekyll and Hyde are the same person, it's still creepy fun following Jekyll's friend Utterson, a lawyer investigating the strange happenings between Jekyll and Hyde.
I like how Stevenson unfolds this mystery. Hyde is an enigma described as a deformity. People are afraid of him because he is witnessed committing violent acts. Utterson doesn't trust him and wants him out of his friend's life, but can someone as rational as Utterson be able to accept the truth?
Hyde is Jekyll's dark side that allows him to be cruel without repercussions, but the "good" doctor is in a predicament when it becomes clear that Hyde wants to be the dominant personality.
Duality is the main theme, but two other themes are prominent: mental illness and substance use. Imagine having another personality that's so unstable that it completely changes how you present yourself. I'd self-medicate, too 🥴
One of the main differences between the personalities is the voice. Toward the end, as they struggle for supremacy, Richard Armitage oscillates between Jekyll's lilt and Hyde's severe tone with such ease 🤌🏾
This great story was made exceptional by Armitage's performance.
I'd listen to that man narrate a phone book 😩
I'm sure you've heard of Jekyll and Hyde syndrome when someone's personality changes into another that is volatile. In the short, the meek Dr. Jekyll keeps turning into Mr. Hyde, a green monster that terrorizes Bugs. In the classic Gothic novella, the change isn't as drastic, but it's enough to fool people into believing the respected Dr. Henry Jekyll and criminal Edward Hyde are two different men.
This story is better than I expected. Even though I knew going in that Jekyll and Hyde are the same person, it's still creepy fun following Jekyll's friend Utterson, a lawyer investigating the strange happenings between Jekyll and Hyde.
I like how Stevenson unfolds this mystery. Hyde is an enigma described as a deformity. People are afraid of him because he is witnessed committing violent acts. Utterson doesn't trust him and wants him out of his friend's life, but can someone as rational as Utterson be able to accept the truth?
Hyde is Jekyll's dark side that allows him to be cruel without repercussions, but the "good" doctor is in a predicament when it becomes clear that Hyde wants to be the dominant personality.
Duality is the main theme, but two other themes are prominent: mental illness and substance use. Imagine having another personality that's so unstable that it completely changes how you present yourself. I'd self-medicate, too 🥴
One of the main differences between the personalities is the voice. Toward the end, as they struggle for supremacy, Richard Armitage oscillates between Jekyll's lilt and Hyde's severe tone with such ease 🤌🏾
This great story was made exceptional by Armitage's performance.
I'd listen to that man narrate a phone book 😩
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Violence, and Murder
thereadingcat15's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Murder
georgewhite92's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Unfortunately, i found it pretty slow going and, because the twist is so well known, the story isnt that engaging either.
I dont think its a bad book but I feel like this it is of its time. I can imagine that, when it was orginally written, it would have been a real page turner but it just didnt keep me that interested.
Its hard to relate to the characters when they are all rich, white men with self-aggrandising notions.
I dont think its a bad book but I feel like this it is of its time. I can imagine that, when it was orginally written, it would have been a real page turner but it just didnt keep me that interested.
Its hard to relate to the characters when they are all rich, white men with self-aggrandising notions.
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Suicide, Violence, Murder, and Classism
Because it is a rather old book, the way it tackles potentially triggering content is very light compared to how a modern story might mention it.philosopher_kj's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement
wextra's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.5
Perhaps the most famous work of Robert Louis Steveson, fighting with Treasure Island for that title, the novella differs greatly from its adaptations by being primarily a mystery and only really confronting the duality of man and the internal moral struggle at its end. While that last bit is a huge part of the appeal of the story, the mystery itself that drives Utterson throughout the story is extremely good and makes the novella superior to all its adaptations, seeing as how the ruined twist has made a direct adaptation uninteresting. It's a very quick and gripping read and absolutely worth your time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Murder
luxxltyd's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
yolanda_h's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
Minor: Suicide and Murder
martyrbat's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Child death, Drug use, and Toxic friendship
joshkiba13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
". . . all human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil."
What a dark little piece of literature! I'm about to start a class where our subject material will be The Picture of Dorian Gray, which I've heard is a companion novel to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I therefore took it upon myself to read the latter in one sitting as a way to prepare myself for my study of the former in class.
I thought I knew the gist of this story going into it having seen The Pagemaster and Arthur, but I was pleased to find that there was so much more to the novel than just a scientist with a creepy alter ego. The story not only covers mankind's darker side, but also shows us how our friends and dear ones become alienated from us as we delve into the darkness. Utterson and Lanyon dearly missed their friend, andupon learning the truth, Lanyon even took ill and shortly thereafter died .
I enjoyed Utterson as a character, and I thought it was cool to see the story through the eyes of a friend and bystander rather than through Jekyll's perspective. It's kind of like how the story of Dune revolves around Paul Atreides, but is greatly told from the perspectives of the Lady Jessica and others under Paul's influence. I just wish that at the very end of the story we could have seenUtterson's reaction to Henry's letter !
Robert Louis Stevenson described the setting of 19th century London so visually (though it took time to get accustomed to some older-styled prose). I could see the brown fog and the crowded (or deserted) streets. He used a lot of creative description, such as referring to the large streets as arteries, or describing moon being tilted as if the wind had knocked it over, or how he described Jekyll's tincture going from red to purple to green with effervescence. I think the most visual part of the story was when Utterson and Enfield encounter Dr. Jekyll in his window:
"But [Jekyll's] words were hardly uttered, before the smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by an expression of such abject terror and despair, as froze the very blood of the two gentlemen below. They saw it but for a glimpse for the window was instantly thrust down; but that glimpse had been sufficient, and they turned and left the court without a word . . . They were both pale; and there was an answering horror in their eyes."
I loved how the story began in the middle of the events; Enfield describes his dark encounter with Mr. Hyde to Utterson, who then takes it upon himself to investigate. The mystery unfolded slowly and satisfyingly. I found that even though I knew from pop culture that Jekyll and Hyde were one in the same, the story was still gripping and dark.
That's the other thing, too. It's thought-compelling that Mr. Hyde was not a product of some magical potion, but actually a manifestation of Jekyll's previously repressed darker side. Hyde is smaller in stature because Jekyll's evil was not fully developed as was the kind facade he'd put on himself.
A great read, and one that springs a lot of compelling questions about friendship and human nature.
What a dark little piece of literature! I'm about to start a class where our subject material will be The Picture of Dorian Gray, which I've heard is a companion novel to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I therefore took it upon myself to read the latter in one sitting as a way to prepare myself for my study of the former in class.
I thought I knew the gist of this story going into it having seen The Pagemaster and Arthur, but I was pleased to find that there was so much more to the novel than just a scientist with a creepy alter ego. The story not only covers mankind's darker side, but also shows us how our friends and dear ones become alienated from us as we delve into the darkness. Utterson and Lanyon dearly missed their friend, and
I enjoyed Utterson as a character, and I thought it was cool to see the story through the eyes of a friend and bystander rather than through Jekyll's perspective. It's kind of like how the story of Dune revolves around Paul Atreides, but is greatly told from the perspectives of the Lady Jessica and others under Paul's influence. I just wish that at the very end of the story we could have seen
Robert Louis Stevenson described the setting of 19th century London so visually (though it took time to get accustomed to some older-styled prose). I could see the brown fog and the crowded (or deserted) streets. He used a lot of creative description, such as referring to the large streets as arteries, or describing moon being tilted as if the wind had knocked it over, or how he described Jekyll's tincture going from red to purple to green with effervescence. I think the most visual part of the story was when Utterson and Enfield encounter Dr. Jekyll in his window:
"But [Jekyll's] words were hardly uttered, before the smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by an expression of such abject terror and despair, as froze the very blood of the two gentlemen below. They saw it but for a glimpse for the window was instantly thrust down; but that glimpse had been sufficient, and they turned and left the court without a word . . . They were both pale; and there was an answering horror in their eyes."
I loved how the story began in the middle of the events; Enfield describes his dark encounter with Mr. Hyde to Utterson, who then takes it upon himself to investigate. The mystery unfolded slowly and satisfyingly. I found that even though I knew from pop culture that Jekyll and Hyde were one in the same, the story was still gripping and dark.
That's the other thing, too. It's thought-compelling that Mr. Hyde was not a product of some magical potion, but actually a manifestation of Jekyll's previously repressed darker side. Hyde is smaller in stature because Jekyll's evil was not fully developed as was the kind facade he'd put on himself.
A great read, and one that springs a lot of compelling questions about friendship and human nature.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Suicide
laurakehl's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder