1.34k reviews for:

Psycho

Robert Bloch

3.99 AVERAGE

the_rita's review against another edition

4.0

dark mysterious 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

mcdannyb's review against another edition

4.25

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

emcd's review against another edition

4.0

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I feel like the pop culture representation of this novel actually doesn’t give too much away, funnily enough - obviously the big reveal is well known, but the journey there is well worth experiencing firsthand. 

It’s interesting the Gein case is mentioned in the book - it makes you wonder how much The Silence of the Lambs owes to Psycho, too. This is a really interesting little study into anxieties about gender deviant individuals, but also, on a smaller scale, an unease with the past, its values, and rejection of forward movement wrt. the decoration of the Bates house. With crossdressing seen as extremely liberal, but being “stuck in the past”/rejection of change being considered decidedly conservative, psycho occupies a weird little spot between the two with its condemnation of both.

MUCH to think about!

blockyy_'s review against another edition

4.0

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

erinn_wilkins's review against another edition

3.5

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Suicide

tealightfultomes's review against another edition

3.5

dark tense 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: Yes

gordonk's review against another edition

5.0

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I always try to read the book before I see the movie but in some cases the Movie is just so big that you can't escape it. The Shining is one example of this as is Psycho. There are very few differences between the Movie and the book and I enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to. Norman Bates is one character that is very well known in Movies and Television but that's no reason to give the book a miss, one of the best books I have ever read. my only regret is that I didn't read it sooner!

ibm's review against another edition

3.75

dark mysterious 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

dori_e's review against another edition

dark

whatissophiareading's review against another edition

2.75

dark mysterious medium-paced