Dragon Rouge

I read the first novel in the Hannibal Lecter series long after watching the movies and the TV show. Thus, even with a clear image of who the characters are, and what the main storyline might be about, I found out the book has surprisingly lost nothing of its brilliance and literary value. Overall, it is a very interesting work, provocative both as a thriller and a psychological study of a few disturbed minds. As far as style is concerned, Mr. Harris is committed to realism in his depiction of both characters and events. Accordingly, Will Graham's gift of hyperbolic empathy is not portrayed as a trait which sets him on a higher plan from that occupied by most of his peers. Instead, he is introduced to us as a man damned by his own genius. Similarly, both Hannibal Lecter and Francis Dolarhyde are not monsters exported from some alien horror realm. On the contrary, they are men with considerable charm and a perfect social façade rendering them ten folds more dangerous. In addition to the minute attention to details and engrossing realism, Harris provides valuable insight into the troubled minds of both his title character and the main antagonist of this first novel. While Dolarhyde is clearly a victim of childhood trauma, which had turned overtime to a case of dissociative identity disorder, the little we know about Dr. Lecter proves he is a completely different kind of sociopaths. He is clever, dark-minded, and unpredictable, which encourages the reader to go on with the story in order to discover more about this intriguing monster.