Reviews

A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

bohlo_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

csillikzsofi's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

minden egyes pkd könyvvel egyre jobban leépül az agyam

benthewriter's review against another edition

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DNF at 33%. The plot, such as it is, drags. I don't really enjoy hanging out with these characters. Very sexist and also racist. Hasn't aged well.

leona's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.0

grantkramer's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

zacharyleopold's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

5.0

suckermtn's review against another edition

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challenging 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

3.0

avesmaria's review against another edition

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4.0

This is one of Dick's later novels, written in the late '70s. The novel takes place in a dystopian world set in the (then-future) mid-'90s, and is about a group of young drug users/abusers and undercover narcotics agents, with a dash of futuristic technology and drugs thrown in. Like other novels/stories by Dick I've read, I really enjoyed the elegant writing, allusions to the Bible/philosophy/etc, great characters, and a compelling story. I won't really say much else here to avoid giving away the plot, except that this is now on my list of "classic" sci-fi novellas to recommend to people.

funkym4n's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

rainjrop's review against another edition

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4.0

Strange, compelling, and sad. I really appreciated the note from the author at the end to help contextualize the novel. Since the book doesn't provide translations for the scattered German verses, I looked them up and thoroughly enjoyed them. Philip K. Dick writes fascinating novels and I look forward to reading more of his work.