Reviews

A bit slow and wandering at times, particularly in one chapter that is acknowledged in the foreword. Still, overall, I found it quite interesting. Not as enjoyable as his plays, but it was his first and only attempt at a novel, and it was serialized. I think contrary to many of his critics at the time that this is actually a very moralistic book. I can't be sure it is the same as when it was first published though since it went through major revisions and took out much of the explicit immorality of it, but at the end, which again I'm not sure if it was in the original form, it showed that despite Dorian having everything he could have ever wanted from life, youth, beauty, immoral pleasure without consequence, it served him no purpose in the end and left him miserable. He had everything in life except goodness, and by the time he realized that the rest didn't matter, it was too late. He couldn't kill the past without killing himself. There is definitely something to the idea that makes it a classic.

aaronwarnersbf's review against another edition

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2.0

This was one of the gayest books I've ever read tbh. Dorian and Basil's relationship was so homo it's ridiculous. I'm glad that I'm done with this.

alina_pehmueller's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

raxorrr's review against another edition

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4.0

I think 4 stars is a good rating for this book.

The story was really interesting and this should definitely be one of those books that every person should read at least once in their lives.

My favorite thing about the whole book was the writing style. It was so lyrical and majestic. It was a really easy classic to follow and the story keeps you interested and hungry for more. It didn't exactly have the same exact effect on me though. I prefer to read classics slower than... let's say young adult or thrillers.

I have mixed feelings on all of the characters but ~~(I like henry best)~~

kranzundkrone's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

sojorom's review against another edition

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dark mysterious

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

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