Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind

110 reviews

guccishoestrings's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad 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

2.75

I am not going to do my usual review style for this book because it is very..... unique. This story is about the character Jean-Baptiste Grenouille but it also tells the story of those who come into contact with him throughout his life.

The story begins the day he is born, his mother left him to die and wet nurses are scared to take him in because he emits no smell (meaning he is possessed by the devil). This also leads him to be a social outcast throughout his entire childhood and teenage life while also surviving a deadly illness that scares him making an even bigger outcast. He finds comfort in the scent of small to the point of needing it to be perfect to be able to live in peace. This leads to him eventually becoming an apprentice to a perfume maker and this leads him on the trail of creating the greatest smell to ever be smelt in the world.

This is a story about the obsession and pursuit of perfection at all costs and when achieving said perfection the outcome not being what is expected (if you have read Frankenstein, you know the theme I'm talking about). This leads to everything he had done being meaningless and thus is life being meaningless and at the end allows himself to die because he has no need/drive to live anymore.

This book was interesting but, it was written in the way of literary books in the 80s were written (book was published in 1985). This could lead to the book being boring in sections and really exciting in others. The story itself is great but, like I said, it could get really boring at times which is why it gets such a low score. I would recommend to anybody who likes books written in an old fashion style that like books like Frankenstein.   

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual content and Animal death

Minor: Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Pedophilia, and Incest

butchybats's review against another edition

dark 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

4.5

Great book!! Loved the descriptions and imagery. Some parts felt a little slow but it was definitely a page turner and quick read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Murder

Moderate: Sexual content, Stalking, Alcohol, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder

Minor: Animal cruelty, Torture, and Animal death

sp00kyx's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

*Read in German.

My fiancée showed the movie to me and I really liked it, so I decided to read the book. I loved the way Patrick Süskind describes smell. Every single scent he described was so vivid in my mind. I also loved the way he wrapped up the storylines and guided the reader through the different stages of Grenouilles life. It felt a little dragged on at times and it took me a really long time to read, but it was easy to read and the text flowed and I was interested the entire way through. The book was funny at times and thought provoking. The ending was crazy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Murder, Violence, Torture, Gore, Physical abuse, and Death

Minor: Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Physical abuse

digthewarmth's review against another edition

challenging dark funny 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

3.5

It was very bizarre, but fascinating and a Really creative story idea. I recommend everyone read the opening for the interesting take on the senses. The second half got really weird. Maybe this would be fantastic as a short story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Violence

mariannelarousse's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Cannibalism, Violence, and Animal death

thefriendlydragon's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

The writing style is nice, though there is very little dialogue and that usually bothers me.
CWs: the n word and g word are used in the text!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Torture, Physical abuse, Murder, Abandonment, Death, Child abuse, Child death, Misogyny, Mental illness, Stalking, Sexual content, Sexism, Racism, Cursing, Violence, Excrement, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Classism, Racial slurs, Cannibalism, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, and Gore

gabbynasty's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Child death, Cannibalism, Physical abuse, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Gore, Incest, Murder, and Sexual violence

ladynocturnal's review against another edition

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? Yes

3.25

 This is a character study of a twisted man. The violence is mostly understated, there is not a lot of gore or blood in this book. The focus on scent and perfume gave some much needed originality. My only compliant is that the author makes some gross comments about the female victims in this novel. I do not need to know how the breasts of a dead teenager look. The middle section gets a little boring. The beautiful writing makes it worth a read.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Pedophilia

Minor: Incest, Sexism, and Torture

motelsix's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Cannibalism, and Violence

stephanieanneauthor's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.0

This book is wild! Sure, the story had it's dark moments, but it's also ridiculous (in a good way). I genuinely was not expecting some of the things that happened - especially in those final chapters. I also love the fact that it focuses so much on scent. It's an underused sense in literature, but so good as conjuring up emotions. Just do listen to the audiobook on public transit like I did - I was VERY aware of the scents on the bus that day.

But I think my favourite part is that it reads like a text from the 18th century. I've read a lot of Victorian literature for both school and for fun, so I'm very familiar with the writing style of the time. I had to double check that this book was actually written in the 1980s - you could've fooled me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, Sexual content, Violence, and Cannibalism

Moderate: Abandonment, Xenophobia, Torture, and Suicide

Minor: Incest and War