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thepolybrary's review against another edition
3.0
~* Part of my TBR for the 2016 Halloween Read-A-Thon! Full review found on The Bent Bookworm*~
[b:The Werewolf of Paris|539519|The Werewolf of Paris|Guy Endore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1175633863s/539519.jpg|526906] was first published in 1933. The writing style is definitely of the age, but it also shows marks of the beginnings of modern day novel writing. Apparently they liked their smut in the 1930s too, they just tended to be more embarrassed about it.
harmonysmash's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault and Child abuse
snowbenton's review against another edition
3.0
Weird, creepy, kind of gross (okay, a lot gross). I liked that it was told as a story found by a man in another man's writings that were then followed up on and deciphered by the man who found them.
Spoiler
I also liked that you weren't totally sure that Bertrand was actually turning into a werewolf or was just crazy but then they found the dog's body in his coffin at the very end.trulybooked's review against another edition
4.0
A surprising book. The devil is in the details and once I started reading, I was expecting a novel that was very prim. I've no one to blame but myself for the surprise that was in store. What I thought would be a simple tale of a werewolf killing his way through Paris ended up being a fascinating look into society and human nature. The first few chapters were a little slow for me, but if you can get past those, it's worth it.
ericgaryanderson's review against another edition
3.0
This is a 1933 werewolf novel by a guy (named Guy) who was also a Hollywood screenwriter. It's not bad, though it gets meander-y in places. (Endore never met a backstory or tangent that he didn't want to explore thoroughly.) But the horror stuff is pretty solid.
carmine_b's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lanternsjourney's review against another edition
3.0
I am glad I started my werewolf journey with this book. Goodreads states that this book strives to do for werewolves what Dracula did for vampires, however, this book is much different. It is part historical fiction and part horror story and the horror is much more violent than in Dracula. I love the descriptions and the fact that we get to see all that led up to a baby being born with lycanthropy.
The story is written third hand as a story within a story, similar to Frankenstein. At times I thought this made the story overly complicated. Also, sometimes the pronoun "he" was used too often and it was hard to distinguish the points of view between Barral and Bertrand. There is even a point in the book where the author apologizes for confusing chronology as a fault of the writer Ayamar, whom he is interpreting the story from. The benefit to this writing style was that it kept the audience more removed from the werewolf so that interpretation as to whether the affliction was physical or mental in nature was left open to consideration.
I appreciated the historical fiction (Franco- Prussian war) part of the story because it gave great context to explain how a werewolf went unnoticed. One werewolf is inconsequential to all the people who are blood thirsty and killing each other on the streets. For me though, I felt these parts dragged a little because they were so detailed.
Overall, I recommend this book if you want to read the classics and are interested in monsters or historical fiction.
The story is written third hand as a story within a story, similar to Frankenstein. At times I thought this made the story overly complicated. Also, sometimes the pronoun "he" was used too often and it was hard to distinguish the points of view between Barral and Bertrand. There is even a point in the book where the author apologizes for confusing chronology as a fault of the writer Ayamar, whom he is interpreting the story from. The benefit to this writing style was that it kept the audience more removed from the werewolf so that interpretation as to whether the affliction was physical or mental in nature was left open to consideration.
I appreciated the historical fiction (Franco- Prussian war) part of the story because it gave great context to explain how a werewolf went unnoticed. One werewolf is inconsequential to all the people who are blood thirsty and killing each other on the streets. For me though, I felt these parts dragged a little because they were so detailed.
Overall, I recommend this book if you want to read the classics and are interested in monsters or historical fiction.
rungemaille's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
gaiusgermanicus's review against another edition
3.0
This is a difficult book to rate. It wasn't very enjoyable to read, but it was compelling.
Honestly, I feel worse after reading it. It's very bleak.
But I did find it interesting enough to finish and I did get invested in the fate of the characters.
Besides that I want to mention that the depiction of the violent civil war ravaging Paris at the end was the most horrifying thing in the whole book.
Honestly, I feel worse after reading it. It's very bleak.
But I did find it interesting enough to finish and I did get invested in the fate of the characters.
Besides that I want to mention that the depiction of the violent civil war ravaging Paris at the end was the most horrifying thing in the whole book.