Masterpiece !!!!!!!!!

How can a cannibalistic sociopath become such a mesmeric character? The answer is quite simple.

Thomas Harris is a master storyteller.

If you applauded Hannibal's tracking down of his one-time tormentor, Dr Chiltern then this episode of his life is for you.

You will cheer him on page after page.

The plot of this novel was alluded to in 'Hannibal', but that does not detract from this latest episode. Indeed, Harris has a consumate skill in placing questions in each of the Lecter stories which always leave you wanting more. Thankfully he has left room for at least another two 'Hannibals'. The only pity is that he makes us wait so long for each instalment.

This is visceral entertainment of the highest quality and superbly read by the author himself.

22 people found this helpful

Left me wanting more

Hannibal Rising catalogue's the development of the nascent sociopath we meet in the author's later books. Harris deftly explores the nature vs. nurture debate in the evolution of such a personality type, hinting at a 'certain coldness' in Hannibal's father and a comment that the Lecters' were 'not quite as other men', but also describing in chilling detail, the traumatic events that were the catalyst that set the young Hannibal upon his murderous path. From the first meeting with Hannibal's family in Lithuania, through the traumatic events of his childhood, and his development into an urbane aesthete and intellectual giant one finds themselves routing for Hannibal all the way. As a consequence, the finale proves highly satisfying. My only negative comments are that the book felt slightly truncated, and has left me yearning for the taste of.......more Hannibal Literature! Great narration by the author himself

9 people found this helpful

OK but not a patch on earlier Lecter tales

I am a great fan of earlier Hannibal Lecter tales, particularly 'Silence of the Lambs' and this is the main reason why I bought this book. I have to say that I was a tad disappointed. The book is OK, indeed quite interesting in its background detail, but it has neither the pace nor tension of its predecessors.

I have to say that I thought it a mistake to have the author narrate the book. His is not a bad effort, but he simply does not have the skill to fill in the characters or vary the pace and tension - it is too black and white where colour is called for, and too montone. And his strong Southern American accent simpy cannot cope with the largely European characters he is trying to draw. I recall some years ago listening to 'Silence of the Lambs' being narrated by Frank Muller - now that was truly edge of the seat stuff. This is not in the same league.

I could not recommend this book strongly except, perhaps, to previous Lecter fans.

7 people found this helpful

Authors are not actors

Thomas Harris is a fantastically talented author, but one for whom the act of writing is apparently a serious trial. So it's a great shame he read his own work as if it were a police report. It comes across as a very long series of flat statements. To non-American ears his otherwise pleasant southern accent is at odds with a lot of the European voices and languages in the book; hearing him pronounce Deux Chevaux as 'doosha-voh' takes you out of the story a bit.
The story itself is eventually a revenge tale, after rather a lot of replays of wartime horror and a far-fetched and pretentious relationship with a Japanese aunt. We get to see what it was that sent young Hannibal over the edge, and wonder whether he was heading in that direction anyway. It ends up as a satisfying story and a whole lot better than the implausible baroque nastiness of 'Hannibal' from 1999. There's some moral queasiness here too - Harris gets us rooting for Hannibal, clearly the hero, but a sadistic little monster. Still, it can't quite touch the superb first pair: Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs.
One final criticism of the production - from time to time, when the Japanese aunt is involved, someone has faded in a bit of flute and lute music. Why? Do we need French accordion music when the French detective appears, or Lithuanian folk songs for the Lithuanian characters? Again, it's distracting and takes you out of the story. Frank Muller would be the pick of the narrators for this series but as far as I can tell he's only done TSOTL for Audible.

5 people found this helpful

Never allow an author to narrate his own book!

The story is good, reasonably interesting although not really engaging.
But it was a huge mistake to have the book narrated by the author. I say it time and again, only professional voice actor should narrate the audiobook, otherwise it becomes amateurish performance detracting from the quality of the story.

4 people found this helpful

Loved every minute

I can't praise this novel highly enough. Several times I jumped back a few chapters just to hear them again! It is very well written, the plot goes forward at a good rate and the characterisation is excellent. I see inspiration here both from Memoirs of a Geisha (with the language, not just the fact that there is a Japanese lady) and Perfume by Patrick Suskind. I especially like that Lecter and Grenoille both have a 'memory palace' and both novels are quite darkly comic as well as being unspeakably sad.

At first I was disappointed with the narration. It should be much longer than 7 hours because Mr Harris narrates too quickly. However after a few chapters it stopped bothering me and I enjoyed his natural accent as well as the other accents he attempted.

What I like most about this is that it doesn't reduce a mysterious, almost superhuman 'bad guy' to a normal guy with a bad past. It does explain why he first kills - and it's a motivation that we can probably all sympathise with - but it does not explain why he carries on killing after the novel's events. It is at the end of Hannibal Rising that he becomes a monster, and once a monster he is no longer subject to normal human desires and motivations.

Well worth a listen.

2 people found this helpful

The story begins......

Great to hear Thomas Harris reading this, he does a great job. The story introduces you to Hannibal as a boy through to a young man at John Hopkins Hospital. World War two arrives at Lecter Castle and suddenly Hannibal's life changes forever.
A very well written account of WW2 and France afterwards, you learn what drives the young boy to become the man we know in future stories. For any Thomas Harris fan this is a must.

Amazing

It is truly refreshing to hear a book read by the actual author. A splendid performance that only got better.

Hannibal the cannibal

Brilliant story goes in to Hannibal’s back story and provides a much needed start to the events of his life

Conflicted

1. If you could sum up ‘Hannibal Rising’ by Thomas Harris in 3 words, what would they be? - Lacking, inadequate and sketchy.

2. How credible/believable did you find the narrator to be? - Although Thomas Harris’s narration has been harshly criticised by some listeners, I found it rather enjoyable (but then again I’m quite partial to the Southern American accent).

3. Any additional comments? - The concept behind Hannibal’s psychopathology was credible. However, in my humble opinion the writing style wasn’t very descriptive and I found this incredibly frustrating at times. The only way I can describe it is that many scenarios felt somewhat ‘blacked out/perforated’. I also found Lady Murasaki’s clear infatuation with her ward deeply disturbing.