Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - The Silence of the Lambs

Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris

18 reviews

nodogsonthemoon's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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akira_outofthegravity's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

A great book! I felt it gave way more depth to all the characters than the film did- Clarice in particular.

Clarice is so much more three-dimensional, making for a much more interesting read than I imagined. Furthermore I loved her friendship with Ardelia, and I would love a tv show about this book to really pace it properly, and to include all the small details the movie missed. But I love both, and both have their flaws and strengths.

As a closing note, I also don’t find it particularly transphobic. It’s not ideal language, no, but I think to simply call it “transphobic” is reductive and flat. But that’s just my opinion, and people are more than welcome to disagree.

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madinhoa's review

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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midniqhtr42's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.0

4/5 (8/10)

Very light spoilers ahead. Couldn’t find a CW for foul language (other than cursing) but there’s a bit of that.

Like the previous installment, I was hooked from page one. This book actually includes cannibalism, as opposed to the first one, and makes Hannibal Lecter a central figure rather than a peripheral one.

While many of the book’s elements have aged well, the attempted discussion of “transsexualism” has not. Harris seems to be aware that trans people, and queer people in general, are not dangerous or “bad”, but the general tone seems to be one of sympathy rather than understanding.

I’m inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he was nothing but well-intentioned and misinformed, but Harris’ understanding of what it is to be trans seems to begin and end with what amounts to transmedicalism (the idea that trans people have a medical problem that can only be alleviated with surgery and HRT).

To a modern eye, his perspective seems underdeveloped compared to the extensive research he must have done for even minor details in his work.

Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the book, especially the protagonist Clarisse Starling and her interactions with Hannibal Lecter and Jack Crawford.

Starling is a fully realized character, as most of Harris’ are, and her foray into the boys’ club that is law enforcement was uncomfortable and yet engaging to read about. Harris has that ability to imagine the world through another’s eyes, and uses it well. There was a passage at the end of the novel where Starling is analyzing the bedroom of a female murder victim that reminded me a lot of that Margaret Atwood quite about voyeurism.

I’d also love to see Thomas Harris write a serial killer whose trauma doesn’t stem from mommy issues, but considering the real-life precedent for it I can’t say I was surprised to see it included.

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major_tom's review

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Would I advice someone to read it? Yes. Would I reread it? Unlikely.

It’s an interesting detective story, with a very strong main character and insightful descriptions of police structure. In this case, I think the fact that I watched the movie spoiled some of experience reading it, because the movie is so good.
But the plot is interesting, Lector is intriguing, and the mystery keeps you on your toes. The flow is nice, though at the end I felt that things were rushed a little bit, dumping so much factual information. But we don’t learn why the crime happens or any motivation behind it, it’s kept quite vague (at least, it seemed to me).

I think it’s definitely worth reading the book if you liked the movie, but if you’re looking for police-dense murder mystery, there are more exciting books out there.

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