Thomas Harris, the author that created Dr. Hannibal Lecter; or, to use the more menacing name, ‘Hannibal The Cannibal’. Red Dragon is the first in the series of four books featuring Lecter. This author has a gift of creating strong characters in his books. Most of you must know Lecter, but he isn’t the only character that leaves a mark on the reader. The main character of this novel, Will Graham, is another of Harris’s creations that fit the above description.
Red Dragon is a crime-thriller novel following the investigation of a serial killer nicknamed “The Tooth Fairy” who has murdered two families, each during a full moon. Special Agent Jack Crawford decides to bring in retired agent (and his protégé’) Will Graham to help solve the case. Graham is the one who captured Lecter but almost got killed in the process and retired soon after. Graham is shown to have a skill in figuring out obscure details and connections in crime scenes. He later realizes that he will require Lecter’s help to build a profile of the killer. Lecter enjoys taunting more than helping and even provieds the killer with Will’s home address with a suggestion to “kill them all”.While the FBI carries out further investigation, the killer (who prefers to be called the “Red Dragon”) is preparing for the murder of another family and has also killed a reporter who helped the police by publishing an unpleasant report about him. The killer is a man named Dolarhyde who sees the Red Dragon as another part of him and it is shown that the Dragon is gaining more control over him. The details about the killer and his life are given in the early part of the book so it’s not a spoiler. I’m not going into any more details except for this one: there is really unexpected twist at the end. It’s a great book and you’ll enjoy reading it.
Unlike the rest of the books in the series Lecter only makes a very small appearance in this one. This is a sort of introduction to Lecter before we get to know more about the “brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer”. I’ve decided to watch the 2002 remake of the original movie “Manhunter”, based on the book. Anthony Hopkins plays the role of the Lecter in the 2002 version and I don’t think that it is possible to picture anyone else in that role.That’s it about this book and will post the review of next part in a few days.
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