Reviews

Closer by Dennis Cooper

ezrasupremacy's review against another edition

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4.0

book 6/18 for my horror reading challenge (kinda gave up on that and decided to just read dennis cooper but pretend i’m more resilient than that)

anyway, i’ve been trying to find the right words to describe this book since i finished it, but i can’t seem to get it right.

this is the 3rd of cooper’s books that i gave a try, and the second i managed to finish. it is right up my alley as far as themes go, but decisively removed from what i normally read by the difference in writing style.

at first i struggled to get into it exactly because this style of writing is so different to what i normally love to read, but as i kept going, i fell in love with its simplicity. when i tried to speak about this book out loud in hopes that it would help me find the right words for this review, but all i could come up with is that the writing is plain and the plot felt pointless, but i don’t know how to make those words sound as positive as i mean them.

i ended up getting entirely sucked into the story and the characters’ minds, especially david is a character i will likely keep thinking about for a while. i know george is the central character of the story, but i definitely felt more drawn to david’s delusion than i did to george’s apparent apathy.

either way, i cannot wait to continue reading cooper’s works now that i’ve tasted blood.

444ndromeda's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense 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

4.0

tendermarimo's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective fast-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

3.75

maddykris's review against another edition

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

3.5

egle_va's review against another edition

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

4.75


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bernard_black's review against another edition

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challenging dark
  • Loveable characters? No

3.75


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altan's review against another edition

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Plotless books could be a hit and miss sometimes and this one is surely a miss. And I don’t feel like putting myself through that so I’ll just put the book down

krangrape's review against another edition

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dark tense

cwniebuhr's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

len_schaller's review against another edition

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

4.0

If you like the desperation of A Little Life, but want it not told by a straight woman, this might be for you. Only read if elephant skin seems thin to you.