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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
rating this book is complicated because, you see, i get what bret easton ellis was trying to do, i get how boring and unreliable he wanted patrick bateman to be and he succeeded! he was fucking fantastic at this – but it still not made me enjoy the book.
this could’ve only be a first-person narrative, it’s what makes it unique from all those thrillers about serial killers – and this book *isn’t* a thriller. the first part of the book is full of nonsense, gym, friends, work, gym, armani coat this, armani shirt that, and after 250 pages you are bored to death and i feel like he wanted this, because when the killing start, subtle at first and more graphic after, you are almost relieved that he starts killing dogs and women because at least something is happening! he needed us to really feel patrick bateman’s feeling, and the worst thing is, after the eleventh kill, even that makes it boring. the killing are graphic and gor-ish but he narrates them with such a calm and quietness that you start feeling nothing after a while – i don’t know if that’s only me, but i think BEE wanted this too.
the last fifty pages are the most interesting, it’s when we start getting a grisp inside bateman’s mind and he kind of opens up about the fact that he just doesn’t feel anything – and that’s what you feel too, after four hundred pages of nothing.
so, yes, i love the concept of this book, i could talk about this book for hours, probably, and i love BEE’s writing (i’ll definitely look into his other books), but i think you’ll understand that even when you can acknowledge the goodness of a book, you can still say you didn’t like it. so i can understand both the people that give this one star, and those who give it five stars – and i feel like that’s an awesome accomplishment, being loved and hated at the same time without ever being ordinary
this could’ve only be a first-person narrative, it’s what makes it unique from all those thrillers about serial killers – and this book *isn’t* a thriller. the first part of the book is full of nonsense, gym, friends, work, gym, armani coat this, armani shirt that, and after 250 pages you are bored to death and i feel like he wanted this, because when the killing start, subtle at first and more graphic after, you are almost relieved that he starts killing dogs and women because at least something is happening! he needed us to really feel patrick bateman’s feeling, and the worst thing is, after the eleventh kill, even that makes it boring. the killing are graphic and gor-ish but he narrates them with such a calm and quietness that you start feeling nothing after a while – i don’t know if that’s only me, but i think BEE wanted this too.
the last fifty pages are the most interesting, it’s when we start getting a grisp inside bateman’s mind and he kind of opens up about the fact that he just doesn’t feel anything – and that’s what you feel too, after four hundred pages of nothing.
so, yes, i love the concept of this book, i could talk about this book for hours, probably, and i love BEE’s writing (i’ll definitely look into his other books), but i think you’ll understand that even when you can acknowledge the goodness of a book, you can still say you didn’t like it. so i can understand both the people that give this one star, and those who give it five stars – and i feel like that’s an awesome accomplishment, being loved and hated at the same time without ever being ordinary
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Sexual harassment, Classism
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use
challenging
dark
tense
medium-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
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
medium-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
challenging
dark
informative
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
dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
fast-paced
everytime a chapter was titled 'girls' i sighed.
personally, i thought the narrative viewpoint and window into bateman's psyche was written spectacularly. the imagery and superficiality of 80s hedonists was captured perfectly in this book, but i could understand how its intensity and bateman's abhorrent personality would deter readers. couldn't say i enjoyed reading it but it was so engrossing and interesting i couldn't put it down..
personally, i thought the narrative viewpoint and window into bateman's psyche was written spectacularly. the imagery and superficiality of 80s hedonists was captured perfectly in this book, but i could understand how its intensity and bateman's abhorrent personality would deter readers. couldn't say i enjoyed reading it but it was so engrossing and interesting i couldn't put it down..
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
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