The Talented Mr Ripley - Patricia Highsmith

Talented she certainly was. She created a marvellous character and a gripping tale and if I say that I feel the film improved on the plot this should not be seen as a slight but a natural effect of the book’s considerable age. Taken in context it may be that the naivete of the police, the private detective and the victim’s friends and family are all plausible but to a modern reader like myself the ease with which Tom carried out his subterfuge was simply not credible. To think that he might be interviewed by the same inspector and accompanying officer as Tom and as Dickie, just a few months apart without arousing the slightest suspicion simply ...  Read the complete review

This book is simply unmissable and you can not put it down from the moment that you read the first page. The film and the book differ, mostly in the ending which i feel in the book is more realistic. The book offers a greater insight into the real Ripley and the emotinal baggage that he carries. The Ripley character is potrayed differently in the book and film, in the film Tom Ripley is willing and at times takes satisfacton from the killing. Whilst in the book killing is always a last resort and is something which tom finds hard to deal with and accept. The book is fast moving with the plot ever changing, the outcome can not be guessed until the last page. ...  Read the complete review

If you've seen the film, you'll love the book!!! I loved the film but expected to feel cheated by it once i'd read the book. How wrong coulkd one little man be? Highsmith must be one of the best writers of our time. I am a slow reader at the best of times but i just couldn't put this book down (much to the taunts of my now ex-friends). Her characters are likeable and the story smooth. This all adds to the twisting plot and chilling insight into the mind of someonewho murders as a matter of course rather than for necessity or enjoyment. Her writing is beautiful to read, with a sub text obvious enough to enjoy first time but which ...  Read the complete review