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lapietradm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wednesdayzombie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bookish_withsky's review against another edition
4.0
The writing was a little off and difficult for me to read as I found myself getting a bit bored due to it. However, I feel it was a very, very good book and the writing itself was not bad, simply not for me. I think it perfectly explains why Hannible is the way that he is. There is no one who could have gone through what he did and then come out normal. I pretty good read and a pretty enjoyable and interesting one overall.
stephen_arvidson's review against another edition
3.0
While not as satisfying as Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs, or (to a lesser extent) Hannibal, Thomas Harris manages to cook up a decadent appetizer to an already loaded three-course meal. It's hard not to see Hannibal Rising as a last-ditch effort to revive an ailing franchise by further developing one of the most complex characters of modern fiction. By offering a traumatic origin story as explanation for how a human being could become Dr. Lecter, Harris walks a dangerous tightrope in making his magnificent creation a less-fascinating avatar of evil.
What this novel gives readers is a sumptuous look at Hannibal's youth, the plot of which is not much more than a thrilling story of grisly vengeance. A young Lithuanian aristocrat loses his parents and darling sister, Mischa, in the final desperate days of World War II. Hannibal is forced to watch as little Mischa is devoured by callous Nazi-sympathizing ruffians whom Hannibal later tracks down and gruesomely dispatches in the natural course of the novel. By the end of Hannibal Rising, the reader is left with a better understanding of the epicurean psychiatrist, even if the book doesn't exactly conclude with the satisfaction one would wish from an examination of Lecter's tenebrous beginnings. The action is swift and often fleeting, and the chapters brief (often only four pages), and the sentences are, for the most part, simplistic and lacking the eloquence found in Harris's preceding works. The dialogue is occasionally stilted and the character of Lady Murasaki, who sensually introduces the impressionable teenage Hannibal to a rarified world of Japanese art and poetry, exists only to be beautiful.
Thankfully, Hannibal Lecter remains a preeminent literary icon, a dominant fictional boogeyman, and that's primarily due to Anthony Hopkins's unforgettable screen incarnation. Hannibal Rising reads like the novelization of a screenplay; not surprisingly Thomas Harris wrote the screenplay in the course of writing this novel. That isn't to say the book is a complete loss, for even after so many years since writing Red Dragon and Silence, Harris still possesses a keen aptitude for depicting the animal nature that lurks beneath mankind's veneer of civilization.
What this novel gives readers is a sumptuous look at Hannibal's youth, the plot of which is not much more than a thrilling story of grisly vengeance. A young Lithuanian aristocrat loses his parents and darling sister, Mischa, in the final desperate days of World War II. Hannibal is forced to watch as little Mischa is devoured by callous Nazi-sympathizing ruffians whom Hannibal later tracks down and gruesomely dispatches in the natural course of the novel. By the end of Hannibal Rising, the reader is left with a better understanding of the epicurean psychiatrist, even if the book doesn't exactly conclude with the satisfaction one would wish from an examination of Lecter's tenebrous beginnings. The action is swift and often fleeting, and the chapters brief (often only four pages), and the sentences are, for the most part, simplistic and lacking the eloquence found in Harris's preceding works. The dialogue is occasionally stilted and the character of Lady Murasaki, who sensually introduces the impressionable teenage Hannibal to a rarified world of Japanese art and poetry, exists only to be beautiful.
Thankfully, Hannibal Lecter remains a preeminent literary icon, a dominant fictional boogeyman, and that's primarily due to Anthony Hopkins's unforgettable screen incarnation. Hannibal Rising reads like the novelization of a screenplay; not surprisingly Thomas Harris wrote the screenplay in the course of writing this novel. That isn't to say the book is a complete loss, for even after so many years since writing Red Dragon and Silence, Harris still possesses a keen aptitude for depicting the animal nature that lurks beneath mankind's veneer of civilization.
darkpika12's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
5.0
I love the relationship between her and him. and it interesting to see his past to how he is now.
chiara_dose's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, and Murder
Moderate: Cannibalism, Cursing, Medical content, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, and Death of parent
rainbowstorm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow, the Hannibal franchise could have never prepared me for the books. I’m head over heels in love with these books, I loved the movies and the show and the books make me feel so much closer to the characters. Reading Hannibal’s childhood added something so much more to the other books, I can’t get enough. I only have silence of the lambs left to read and I’m so excited.
hxcpanda's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual violence
saschabookishowl's review against another edition
5.0
*read for the 2016 reading challenge: a book and its prequel*