Reviews with content warning for Torture - American Psycho

Reviews tagging 'Torture'

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

545 reviews

efarnsies's review against another edition

What killed this book for me was that as it went on, the content became increasingly graphic and violent, and the non-violent scenes became too repetitive and slow-paced.

I will note that I believe this to be an intentional choice on the author's part: the contrast of the protagonist's mundane, superficial social life with his murderous, sexual deviancy, which he uses as an outlet for his frustrations.

In the end though, I found my interest slipping away as I skipped over more and more graphic rapes/murders and then snoozed through yet another dinner scene, the story far past the threshold of "making a point." It's a well-written book, but overall too slow and violent for me.

Content Warnings

kinleyyy__'s review against another edition

3.25

dark tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

lyzzisreading's review against another edition

4.75

challenging dark tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Normally I only write witty one-line reviews, but I am making an exception for what is (very surprisingly) my new favorite book.

I will start by saying the first 200+ pages are painfully slow. I had seen the movie first so knew a bit of what to expect from the plot and social commentary, and I think that really helped me keep it off my DNF list (along with the fact that I am an aggravatingly stubborn completionist). It does not get a full five stars from me because the first half of the book is so incredibly BORING. Until I finished it I was convinced it was the first book I could say was worse than the movie.

BUT, getting to the end, and gleaning a bit more into Patrick Bateman’s psychology through, for example, his conversation with Jean made me understand why the first half HAD to be so boring. The reader has to be immersed in the banality of the consumerist culture Bateman, our American psycho, represents.

So by the time I got to the killing sprees at the latter half, once I could settle my stomach through the excruciating gore and misogyny, I realized how much I’d been looking forward to something rousing me from the Halcion and Xanax fueled sedation of Bateman’s reality. Murder plot to murder plot awakened something in me that I hated and could not get enough of. Something I had to question, look away from with one eye squinting open, only to be lulled back inevitably into the futility of Bateman’s rants on Armani, Dorsia, and 80’s synth-rock. And truly, there was no exit - neither satisfying nor unsatisfying.

Whatever this book is, I think it’s done a brilliant job of forcing questions on the world we live in, like any good social commentary sets out to do.

So anyway, my one-liner would have been: Wow, totally get why he killed all those people.

Content Warnings

nye_11's review against another edition

4.5

challenging dark 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: Complicated

Content Warnings

moiragibson's review against another edition

3.5

challenging dark reflective sad tense 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

It's a challenging book...

sometimes the challenge is reading through a detailed description of every single piece each character in the scene is wearing... sometimes the challenge is reading through a brutal description of a character's torture and murder

... Is it a well-written book? Yes, I'd say so. Is it enjoyable to read? ...For me, that answer is "no" enough times throughout the story to take away from it. I don't regret reading it, but wow can it be brutal. The dialogue is often quite entertaining - at times it feels like you're reading a pointless argument between high school boys when these are supposed to be grown business-men, but it's funny and definitely highlights how shallow the characters are.

Content Warnings

kayleighkalagher's review against another edition

It was so heinous and honestly wasn’t very demonizing of his actions as it should’ve been. Super dense and just so unenjoyable lol.

Content Warnings

occultmorning's review against another edition

2.75

dark 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: Yes

This book is gruesome yet utterly boring. I took about 30 day to week long breaks while reading this because I would get so bored with the flowery writing that I couldn't possibly read anymore. The plot and the intention of this book is great, but it is somehow one of the most depraved yet dullest book I have read.

Content Warnings

roadrats's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This is a difficult book, to say the least. Disturbing through and through, masterfully written, though... concerning... at times. I can definitely see why this book is not for everyone, beyond the graphic content, there are parts that are quite slow and repetitive but which are integral to the novel. This book really puts you into this deranged headspace and I'm still in shock and awe at how this was so beautifully and thoroughly woven together. I feel very deeply unwell after this one

Content Warnings

01110110's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark funny sad tense slow-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

Being inside Bateman’s head is decidedly exhausting and banal, there’s no escaping the inner monologue the way you kind of can in the movie. This escalated in a way I wasn’t expecting and I read most of the back half with my head in my hands.

Content Warnings

shimmer_and_shine's review against another edition

2.0

I picked up this book after seeing yet another reference to the movie adaptation, since I'm more squeamish about violence in visual form over text, and was shocked to find out that this might be more graphic in that sense. I still felt a sense of distance from the various horrors in text form, and despite there being some quite disturbing scenes, it started getting old near the end of the book so the psychological effect was lessened. Overall, this felt like a book that would work a little better if several things about it were pared down, such as the extreme superficiality portrayed with excess descriptions. I didn't really enjoy reading this book, but unlike some instances where I still find a work intriguing despite that this story was not holding my interest that strongly.

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