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cassidycrane's review against another edition
3.0
So weird. Honestly, I wouldn't recommend it outside of a classroom setting, as the class discussions helped keep me anchored into what the hell was actually going on.
bigtomlaff's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Read this for a Gothic horror module at university, expecting a sort of early 20th-century ghost story kind of book, which I suppose it is, but instead found a completely different book for possibly the wrong reasons. The book is not scary, as a lot of these older horrors are, it's almost funny, but it is entertaining. It's quick paced and kind of feels like a modern shitty, low-budget, trashy horror film and that's a compliment to it. To add to this, the villain is a hermaphrodite, which is interesting to me, in the way of the way that writes used to explore ideas of gender is interesting. This book is famous for outselling Dracula as they were released in the same year, and I can see why, I'd rather read this page-turner than that load of drag!
outi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
tennilles's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
jiafeiservant22's review against another edition
3.0
Δε το πιστεύω ότι στη εποχή του είχε ξεπεράσει τον Δράκουλα σε πωλήσεις. Για εμένα φλοπαρε αλλά αξίζει 1- για το πρώτο μέρος και 2 - γιατί το διάβαζα στην Ισπανία και αυτό είναι χοτ.
jnnfrglln's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
honeyblood's review against another edition
4.0
So I know that 4 stars is kind of my default rating for things that I liked, but bless this mess. This racist, trying-to-pass-for-heterosexual, problematic mess.
The Beetle is a horror novel that, at the time of its publication, outsold Bram Stoker's [b:Dracula|17245|Dracula|Bram Stoker|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1387151694s/17245.jpg|3165724] in 1897. It follows multiple perspectives in a reverse-invasion narrative wherein a giant beetle who can transform into a gender ambiguous human being of oriental origin pursues a London politician for previous wrong-doings.
I loved how engaging and readable this novel was: it was fast-paced and it was actually pretty scary. But let's be honest, it was still an imperialist mess.
The Beetle is a horror novel that, at the time of its publication, outsold Bram Stoker's [b:Dracula|17245|Dracula|Bram Stoker|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1387151694s/17245.jpg|3165724] in 1897. It follows multiple perspectives in a reverse-invasion narrative wherein a giant beetle who can transform into a gender ambiguous human being of oriental origin pursues a London politician for previous wrong-doings.
I loved how engaging and readable this novel was: it was fast-paced and it was actually pretty scary. But let's be honest, it was still an imperialist mess.
sean67's review against another edition
2.0
I'm sure some people found this thrilling, I on the other hand did not.
I never really got into this at all.
I never really got into this at all.
drowninginhistory's review against another edition
5.0
A genuine joy to read that kept me on the edge of my seat. There was quite a bit here in terms of racist and sexist language, which I sort of expect from a classic of this period but I found extremely blatant here. If you are particularly sensitive to that, I think it’s good to be aware before diving in. The characters were well drawn and genuinely funny! Such a wonderful, spooky read for this time of year.