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skellz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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? No
4.0
akohlasch's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
oftboolt's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
congressbaby143's review against another edition
3.0
Ms Patricia Highsmith is really good at creating that almost claustrophobic obsession especially in the male characters of her novels. I almost gave this just 3 stars since it almost read like a draft of any of the Ripley series. Similar to the Ripley series, the tension and dialogue creates this homoerotic dynamic between the male characters. Ripley’s hysteria was more gripping though. In the end I gave it a higher rating of 3.5 stars precisely because of how clearly an unraveling clicked with one line: “Who is society?” Ugh her mind.
justinkhchen's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
Beautifully written, with possibly the most fascinating villain I've read in awhile, Strangers on a Train is surprisingly lax on thrills, but makes up with a deep dive into character psyche with a profound focus on guilt.
It's fair to say Strangers on a Train is all about Charles Bruno, the obsessive psychopath who gradually ropes in the protagonist (involuntarily) for his murderous plot. A functioning alcoholic, sometimes boyishly needy and others full-on manic (or is it an act?), the unpredictability of his character is effectively disturbing, and make the reader completely sympathize with the protagonist's helplessness predicament; how do you release yourself from someone who doesn't understand social cues? The much talked-about homoerotic subtext is definitely present, though one can argue if it's truly a defined sexual orientation, or the result of an obsessive love disorder (that just happens to target on a subject of male sex). As a cherry on top, the committed performance of the audiobook narrator fully brought this complex character to life.
Everything else seems pale in comparison. The protagonist Guy Haines can be annoyingly timid and self-loathing at times (just open up with someone already!), however I do appreciate him being depicted as a rising architect (and how that metaphorically juxtaposes with his crumbling mental state), which is a detail that was switched in Hitchcock's excellent film adaptation. The ending is disappointingly anticlimactic, with a lengthy 'confessional' session that derails into existential discussion on law and judgment. Even though it's thematically appropriate, the preachy tone paints too clear of a picture, and lessens the moral ambiguity presented before it.
It's stupidly impressive when you put into context Strangers on a Train being Patricia Highsmith's first novel, who then went on to write even more memorable characters that still resonate today (Tom Ripley from The Talented Mr. Ripley, and her lesbian romance novel The Price of Salt which was made into Carol in 2015). Even though I'm not as blown away by this source material as anticipated (Hitchcock really cleaned up some of the sluggish narrative elements), it is still an worthwhile experience.
Beautifully written, with possibly the most fascinating villain I've read in awhile, Strangers on a Train is surprisingly lax on thrills, but makes up with a deep dive into character psyche with a profound focus on guilt.
It's fair to say Strangers on a Train is all about Charles Bruno, the obsessive psychopath who gradually ropes in the protagonist (involuntarily) for his murderous plot. A functioning alcoholic, sometimes boyishly needy and others full-on manic (or is it an act?), the unpredictability of his character is effectively disturbing, and make the reader completely sympathize with the protagonist's helplessness predicament; how do you release yourself from someone who doesn't understand social cues? The much talked-about homoerotic subtext is definitely present, though one can argue if it's truly a defined sexual orientation, or the result of an obsessive love disorder (that just happens to target on a subject of male sex). As a cherry on top, the committed performance of the audiobook narrator fully brought this complex character to life.
Everything else seems pale in comparison. The protagonist Guy Haines can be annoyingly timid and self-loathing at times (just open up with someone already!), however I do appreciate him being depicted as a rising architect (and how that metaphorically juxtaposes with his crumbling mental state), which is a detail that was switched in Hitchcock's excellent film adaptation. The ending is disappointingly anticlimactic, with a lengthy 'confessional' session that derails into existential discussion on law and judgment. Even though it's thematically appropriate, the preachy tone paints too clear of a picture, and lessens the moral ambiguity presented before it.
It's stupidly impressive when you put into context Strangers on a Train being Patricia Highsmith's first novel, who then went on to write even more memorable characters that still resonate today (Tom Ripley from The Talented Mr. Ripley, and her lesbian romance novel The Price of Salt which was made into Carol in 2015). Even though I'm not as blown away by this source material as anticipated (Hitchcock really cleaned up some of the sluggish narrative elements), it is still an worthwhile experience.
_qwert's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kivt's review against another edition
2.0
Competent but its flaws made it distasteful to me personally. In order to like this I would have had to be a lot more interested in Guy's character and internal struggle, and more forgiving of the weird homophobia hanging around Bruno's character. As things stand, the prose got overly florid and pretty uninteresting by the end. The only bright spot was that
Spoiler
Anne obviously murdered Bruno, right?_delaney_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
mccalab's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5