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davybaby's review against another edition
3.0
SPOILER ALERT! Jekyll and Hyde are the same person! I just ruined it for you. You're welcome.
Stevenson writes a rollicking good adventure, as in [b:Kidnapped|325128|Kidnapped (David Balfour, #1)|Robert Louis Stevenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328869457s/325128.jpg|963266] and [b:Treasure Island|295|Treasure Island|Robert Louis Stevenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312023209s/295.jpg|3077988]. In this novella, he also writes a fascinating psychological horror story. It was by no means action-packed, but his exploration of Jekyll and his horrible alter ego was well-done and intriguing. It was nearly allegorical in its study of morality. Jekyll is an essentially flawless good person, and he finds outlet of his hidden evil desires through Hyde. These evil urges become difficult to control, and eventually the question of who is the man and who is the alter ego becomes tricky.
I noticed that in both Jekyll & Hyde and Kidnapped, a lawyer is a main character who is a true friend and benevolent. Could this unusual view of the world have anything to do with Stevenson's training as a lawyer? Certainly not. Just a clear-eyed observant nature.
The book was well worth a read, and certainly very influential.
Stevenson writes a rollicking good adventure, as in [b:Kidnapped|325128|Kidnapped (David Balfour, #1)|Robert Louis Stevenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328869457s/325128.jpg|963266] and [b:Treasure Island|295|Treasure Island|Robert Louis Stevenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312023209s/295.jpg|3077988]. In this novella, he also writes a fascinating psychological horror story. It was by no means action-packed, but his exploration of Jekyll and his horrible alter ego was well-done and intriguing. It was nearly allegorical in its study of morality. Jekyll is an essentially flawless good person, and he finds outlet of his hidden evil desires through Hyde. These evil urges become difficult to control, and eventually the question of who is the man and who is the alter ego becomes tricky.
I noticed that in both Jekyll & Hyde and Kidnapped, a lawyer is a main character who is a true friend and benevolent. Could this unusual view of the world have anything to do with Stevenson's training as a lawyer? Certainly not. Just a clear-eyed observant nature.
The book was well worth a read, and certainly very influential.
faircloughliv's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
be11aloca's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-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
2.0
hillarym's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
thisisgabe's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.25
fishreadsbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.5
mandooh's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
3.0
cattytrona's review against another edition
4.0
Really impressed by what a coherent and interesting collection this is. I didn’t have high hopes given at how obviously this is just making the most of the Jekyll and Hyde name and Stevenson being copyright free to make a quick book/buck, but I really enjoyed the selection of stories. They fitted together really well, even Weir of Hermiston, which is the obvious outlier given it’s not in anyway supernatural, but still has that interest in criminality and justice. And maybe that’s due to Stevenson’s interest in those themes, and the strength of the collection is because the guy can write, but it works.
I picked this up because I wanted to reread the titular story, but I actually really enjoyed getting to read more of Stevenson’s short fiction. Jekyll and Hyde is good fun — it’s got a lot of similarities with Dracula, now I’m returning to it, with the different voices (Stevenson’s so good at this, at tone of narration/narrator) and the slowly unfolding mystery. The story absolutely suffers because of its cultural weight: it would be a joy to read this and not know what’s up with Jekyll and Hyde. But unfortunately, we live in the world.
The Bodysnatchers is an interesting little tale — and I enjoyed it and Weir of Hermiston all the more for being an Edinburgh resident. There’s something very modern about the way it inserts its characters into a real (true?) crime. Of course, Burke and Hare are more character than anything else, really, but still.
The Bottle Imp is actually a great fable, and my first time getting to read anything reflecting Stevenson’s time in Polynesia (well, except Treasure Island, but that’s still about British people). I feel like his travels is not a thing people tend to know about him, nor is it highlighted in the writings people talk about, so it was a nice surprise to find it here.
Markheim was probably my least favourite of the bunch, but felt like a very classic Victorian spooky story - very fireside appropriate for this time of year. Plus it thematically fitted in really nicely.
As mentioned, Weir of Hermiston is the outlier, and the fact it’s incomplete is pretty frustrating — especially given the book is essentially selling itself as a short story collection. It came as a bit of a shock, and I ended up putting in a bunch of Wikipedia time just to work out what was up with this random half-novel. Having said that, I really liked it. I’ve been kind of rotten at regularly reading anything much before 1930 this year, and it was a nice reminder of how much I actually rate nineteenth century novels, in all their density. And Stevenson is a pretty adept renderer of Scots, too. It’s still a little weird that it’s in here, taking up so much (the most) of the book, but I’ve read it now, and it’s done me no harm. Good collection; good writer.
I picked this up because I wanted to reread the titular story, but I actually really enjoyed getting to read more of Stevenson’s short fiction. Jekyll and Hyde is good fun — it’s got a lot of similarities with Dracula, now I’m returning to it, with the different voices (Stevenson’s so good at this, at tone of narration/narrator) and the slowly unfolding mystery. The story absolutely suffers because of its cultural weight: it would be a joy to read this and not know what’s up with Jekyll and Hyde. But unfortunately, we live in the world.
The Bodysnatchers is an interesting little tale — and I enjoyed it and Weir of Hermiston all the more for being an Edinburgh resident. There’s something very modern about the way it inserts its characters into a real (true?) crime. Of course, Burke and Hare are more character than anything else, really, but still.
The Bottle Imp is actually a great fable, and my first time getting to read anything reflecting Stevenson’s time in Polynesia (well, except Treasure Island, but that’s still about British people). I feel like his travels is not a thing people tend to know about him, nor is it highlighted in the writings people talk about, so it was a nice surprise to find it here.
Markheim was probably my least favourite of the bunch, but felt like a very classic Victorian spooky story - very fireside appropriate for this time of year. Plus it thematically fitted in really nicely.
As mentioned, Weir of Hermiston is the outlier, and the fact it’s incomplete is pretty frustrating — especially given the book is essentially selling itself as a short story collection. It came as a bit of a shock, and I ended up putting in a bunch of Wikipedia time just to work out what was up with this random half-novel. Having said that, I really liked it. I’ve been kind of rotten at regularly reading anything much before 1930 this year, and it was a nice reminder of how much I actually rate nineteenth century novels, in all their density. And Stevenson is a pretty adept renderer of Scots, too. It’s still a little weird that it’s in here, taking up so much (the most) of the book, but I’ve read it now, and it’s done me no harm. Good collection; good writer.
adrianzm's review against another edition
2.0
Of all the stories in the book, there were very few I liked; Jekyll and Hyde, Merry Men and Markheim being those few. There isn't really anything remarkable about the stories, some are strange, and some are just detailing the lives of people. I can't fully understand why so much of it bored me, whether it was the language or the subject matter, probably a mix of both.