Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde's only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his sould for eternal youth and beauty. This book makes you reflect on literally everything that has happened in your life. At the start, you're a blank slate, and at the end you've completely changed your outlook on life. It was so very interesting to read, and for a classic it wasn't absurdly long. The only reason it's a four is because I think it was way too focused on very minor things some of the time. I did really enjoy it and would recommend it to everyone.

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jill_m17's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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trintrin's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic.

This quote perfectly sums up the exquisitely tragic story that is Dorian Gray's.

The first classic that I have ever voluntarily fully read and oh boy did I love it. The descriptions just seemed so poetic and the writing is so fluid. It almost felt magical and whimsical reading some of those passages despite this book not having any magic at all. My only complaint is no normal person is gonna be spewing formal poetry for two whole pages in a normal conversation lol. I thought this writing style would be hard to read but it flowed really well for the most part. The only section I was actually bored by was in chapter 11 when we get pages long descriptions of Dorian's various new hobbies and interests. I found it too much like an info dump-y Wikipedia copy paste or something. That alone made me put the book down for nearly a week before continuing whoops.

The characters are amazing imo. Dorian started out pretty boring but I started loving him more and more as his character progressed. Lord Henry is... interesting, to say the least. I admire him for the confidence he has in his views and I'm also also scared of finding someone like him irl. Poor Basil got caught up in this mess I feel bad for him. Sybil Vane and her family were more or less there only to further the plot but I didn't particularly mind that. But my biggest question is, how do these people socialise so much? I feel exhausted reading about all the operas and dinners and clubs they go to like everyday. My introverted self could never.

I didn't know what I was thinking the ending would be but it wasn't what I expected. I knew this was going to be tragic but the abruptness of it all it still sort of took me by surprise.

Overall, an amazing book definitely worth the read.

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sarahdoggen's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The only reason this book doesn’t get five stars is because it took me about 4 months to finish it. But it amazing and beautiful and wild(e)ly interesting. I love it.

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