Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - Red Dragon

I've got mixed feelings about this book.

The whole crime solving aspect of the book was REALLY interesting and kept me invested in the story the whole time. As someone who loves The Naturals (which is a YA series where a group of teens are trying to help the FBI solve cold cases), that was perfect (and it also put me in a mood for a Naturals reread). The characters were also pretty well-developed in my opinion.

At the same time, though, there were many disgusting/disturbing parts of the book that I didn't like. There was quite a bit of graphic violence in particular. (See the content warnings section for a more comprehensive list.)

One other thing: I thought Dr. Lecter would play a more prominent role in the story, but he only made an appearance a handful of times (he was giving major evil mastermind vibes, so I was rather disappointed he didn't play a more prominent role).

Content Warnings

magimiel's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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kilianisreading's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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borrelvissie's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
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

Wow. What a great book, delving into the darkest places of the human psychology.
It took me quite a while to read this— it's heavy, in a way, you can tell that Harris thought everything through carefully. Knowing who the killer was since (nearly) the beginning made it better, seeing things from his twisted mind.. Then suddenly, you get thrown years into the past,

seeing Dolarhyde's childhood.

It left me conflicted.

The entire book I hated Dolarhyde, was disgusted by him, then I find out there's more to him than first meets the eye. It's sad, really, how trapped Dolarhyde was in the end. Not wanting to hurt Reba, but being forced to anyway by the Dragon. He must have felt powerless.

I did not see that last plottwist coming, at all.

I thought Graham was hallucinating at first, perhaps as a reaction to trauma. Then I realised, he's not hallucinating, Dolarhyde's really there, and he's alive.

Very pleasantly surprised by this book. Hats off to you, Mr Harris!

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