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A review by katiescho741
Hannibal by Thomas Harris
3.0
3.5 Stars.
Such a weird book! Unlike the first two in the series, Hannibal is the main character here, and the main plot driver, rather than being in the background to some other horrific killer. It's way too long, and became a slog at time, but there was something about it that kept me reading and that I enjoyed.
In my grim little way, 13/14yo me was obsessed with the film of this. The book is quite different, and they clearly did some re-working of various plot points to make it filmable, but it's still got that Gothic griminess to it.
So much in this book is OTT - the antagonists are all pantomime villains in their own ways, whether it's physical or psychological, the settings are Gothic, some of the set pieces are just ridiculous! But, my grim little mind loved that stuff! The backstreets of Florence, Lecter licking a steering wheel, Krendler, genetically modified pigs, a Phantom of the Opera-style creep, even an electric eel that gets more page time than you'd expect, and plenty of gore. I just found myself enjoying it all.
Not entirely sure how I felt about the ending. It took me by surprise as, like I said, they changed it for the film. A very strange way to end things, but I wasn't completely mad about it.
If you like your horror/thrillers hammy and over the top, go for it with this one.
Such a weird book! Unlike the first two in the series, Hannibal is the main character here, and the main plot driver, rather than being in the background to some other horrific killer. It's way too long, and became a slog at time, but there was something about it that kept me reading and that I enjoyed.
In my grim little way, 13/14yo me was obsessed with the film of this. The book is quite different, and they clearly did some re-working of various plot points to make it filmable, but it's still got that Gothic griminess to it.
So much in this book is OTT - the antagonists are all pantomime villains in their own ways, whether it's physical or psychological, the settings are Gothic, some of the set pieces are just ridiculous! But, my grim little mind loved that stuff! The backstreets of Florence, Lecter licking a steering wheel, Krendler, genetically modified pigs, a Phantom of the Opera-style creep, even an electric eel that gets more page time than you'd expect, and plenty of gore. I just found myself enjoying it all.
Not entirely sure how I felt about the ending. It took me by surprise as, like I said, they changed it for the film. A very strange way to end things, but I wasn't completely mad about it.
If you like your horror/thrillers hammy and over the top, go for it with this one.