Fiction

American Psycho

American Psycho

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-17 08:55:01
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Bret Easton Ellis
  • ISBN：0330536303
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Summary

Patrick Bateman is twenty-six and works on Wall Street; he is handsome， sophisticated， charming and intelligent。 He is also a psychopath。 Taking us to a head-on collision with America's greatest dream - and its worst nightmare - "American Psycho" is a bleak， bitter， black comedy about a world we all recognize but do not wish to confront。

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Reviews

Karen Saupe Alduenda ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 2。5Gore for gore's sake。 2。5Gore for gore's sake。 。。。more

Matthew Mendoza ，

To put it shortly， the book felt too long （pun intended）。 The characters felt so dull， and I didn't root for any of them （when I finally did， it was within the last 50 pages of the book）。 I understand Ellis' purpose was to mock the selfishness of these wallstreet yuppers， but there was just so much description with little story that the execution fell through。 For example， several chapters featured unnecessary descriptions of albums he enjoyed which didn't relate to his life at all。 The wildly d To put it shortly， the book felt too long （pun intended）。 The characters felt so dull， and I didn't root for any of them （when I finally did， it was within the last 50 pages of the book）。 I understand Ellis' purpose was to mock the selfishness of these wallstreet yuppers， but there was just so much description with little story that the execution fell through。 For example， several chapters featured unnecessary descriptions of albums he enjoyed which didn't relate to his life at all。 The wildly disturbing murders also had no purpose in the story: maybe that was his point since Bateman is one crazy bitch。 Either way， there was no solid character development， some of the satire was executed poorly， and many chapters had a lot of racist/misogynistic/homophobic remarks。Tldr: I don't say "yup" to this psychopath yupper 。。。more

Cristina Capriglione ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I read a book r u proud of me Isabella？ It was okay I like a good murder book。 My fear of men has remained the same and that’s saying something I think。 There where way too many unnecessary rich people details。 The ending sucked bc apparently u can interpret it two ways one one of the ways is he was just imagining it the whole time and it’s like okay？ What’s the point of the book then？

Donovan ，

If I have to sit through another three page discretion of Phil Collin’s discography， or another graphic sex scene， I’m going to go ape shit

Kaydence ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Listen， I don't know what kinda JuJu the author was on， but to say that this book made me cringe to my very core is an understatement。 It was so disgustingly detailed I understand now why people were so horrified。 Honestly don't understand how people enjoyed it。 It was either boring， or someone was dying。 And this dude got dementia？ Bro was hallucinating the whole thing。 What a ride。 It was okay but definitely demented。 It was so real too， everything was so real。 Just no， no。Just， there’s a lot Listen， I don't know what kinda JuJu the author was on， but to say that this book made me cringe to my very core is an understatement。 It was so disgustingly detailed I understand now why people were so horrified。 Honestly don't understand how people enjoyed it。 It was either boring， or someone was dying。 And this dude got dementia？ Bro was hallucinating the whole thing。 What a ride。 It was okay but definitely demented。 It was so real too， everything was so real。 Just no， no。Just， there’s a lot to say about this novel。 I’d just like to start off by saying that anyone who enjoyed this novel scares me。 Genuinely。 ANYONE who read this and said， “Wow， this was so good。” I’m sorry， but I am staying a whole state away from you。 Needless to say， reading about the hacking up of multiple women and men with a realistic depiction of each murder is not for the faintest of heart。 tI went into this with multiple recommendations， saying it was the most graphic， horrible book anyone had ever read。 Really， everywhere I read someone recommended American Psycho as the nastiest book they had ever read。 So of course I had to get my hands on a copy。 I hadn’t watched the movie either， still haven’t， so I had very high expectations for this baby。 Yeah… They were crushed in the end。 This novel was so incredibly bad。 I’ve read tons of reviews， and I know about all the allegories and theories， but I don’t see anything but disturbing thoughts of the women he had killed when I look at it。 Most say it’s about misogyny or symbolism to capitalism， but I don’t see how any of it could be pilled under anything when it was so brutal。 The writing was good， it was a decent book， but it was so bad。 tI knew it was going to be graphic， I was even spoiled the rat scene by a friend， but I didn’t realize how graphic it would be until I was flipping page after page of how this man tore apart body after body。 Again， this is not for the faintest of hearts。 At times I had to inwardly cringe because of the detail。 But what really did it for me was when he’d bite things off。 It was horrifying， and he had done it so many times。 I’ve never read anything like it， ever。 tNot to mention I totally didn’t believe he committed the first two murders。 He was talking about killing things with people and there was one scene where he “cut” off someone's hand， but it didn’t really happen。 They simply didn’t happen。 So I thought he had made up the entire murder in his mind。 They became more frequent after， and I had no choice but to believe them。 But my guy revealed he had dementia， so I still think he made up the whole thing in his head。 That right there is where I’d believe the internal misogyny and toxic masculinity if he had made it up all in his head。 But I feel many still believed he committed all these acts， and use it as some sort of proof of theory。 tBut on another note， if he really did commit all these acts， how the hell did he not get caught？ See， he was a nerd to everyone， even to me， hell， and nobody could believe he would do such a thing， so why should I？ He would’ve been caught， but if he didn’t actually do them， there was no reason for him to be caught。 He left his apartment rotten for days， had people clean it。 There’s no way he would have gotten away with it。 For example， when he was getting his sheets washed， what if there was no stain like he had said， and that’s what the lady was yelling at him for。 Same with when that one lady was cleaning up the newspapers from the floor， and how Owen’s apartment was clean。 He hallucinated the whole thing， I’m telling you。 tThe whole thing was just an absolute shit-show。 I would recommend it， sure， But don’t expect to like it。 It’s just a whole lot of mess。 。。。more

Janinanin ，

I made it to 76% before nearly giving up。 The last ten percent of that are full of him essentially watching live lesbian porn and then torturing， mutilating， raping， and killing these women。 I skimmed through the rest of it。 This is just kinda 。。。 bad in the purest sense。 In theory this could be a fascinating read - in practice it is just horribly boring， most of the time， and just 。。。 tiresome， the other times。 I honestly cannot describe it any other way。 It is tiresome to read 5 scenes， basica I made it to 76% before nearly giving up。 The last ten percent of that are full of him essentially watching live lesbian porn and then torturing， mutilating， raping， and killing these women。 I skimmed through the rest of it。 This is just kinda 。。。 bad in the purest sense。 In theory this could be a fascinating read - in practice it is just horribly boring， most of the time， and just 。。。 tiresome， the other times。 I honestly cannot describe it any other way。 It is tiresome to read 5 scenes， basically back to back， of him torturing women - and only women of course。 The men die in a way that is utterly devoid of sexual intention （except maybe Luis， who escapes being killed by activating Bateman's homophobia）。 Further I am completely convinced that this would be affecting me nowhere near as much if I wasn't a woman， because the last 60% of this are basically just 。。。 femicides。 Brutal， sexualized torture and killing of women。 。。。more

Feli :） ，

Ellis didn't even try to make this book likable。 Kafka would love this one tho since you don't enjoy reading but rather cringe inside for 500+ pages straight Ellis didn't even try to make this book likable。 Kafka would love this one tho since you don't enjoy reading but rather cringe inside for 500+ pages straight 。。。more

Jonathan Amos ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This is one of the most memorable， entertaining， stimulating， and enjoyable books I have read in a long time。 If you read the online reviews only， you would this book is erotica for incels and misogynists， but that is far from the truth。 As per usual with the internet， 80% completely miss the point of Ellis’s satire in exchange for willfully misunderstanding the social criticism of his novel。 Patrick Bateman， oh， where to start with you。 Ellis skillfully and masterfully brings the reader directl This is one of the most memorable， entertaining， stimulating， and enjoyable books I have read in a long time。 If you read the online reviews only， you would this book is erotica for incels and misogynists， but that is far from the truth。 As per usual with the internet， 80% completely miss the point of Ellis’s satire in exchange for willfully misunderstanding the social criticism of his novel。 Patrick Bateman， oh， where to start with you。 Ellis skillfully and masterfully brings the reader directly into the mind of his wealthy， narcissist， sociopathic narrator。 Bateman and his friends’ trivial ditherings about fashion， clothing， and dinner choices are hysterical， only surpassed by Pat’s incessant and murderous interjections。 The reader is immersed in the psychosis of Bateman’s mind， whipping rapidly from dinner， drinks， his elite gym， a manicure， and the brand of suit jacket worn by one of his many acquaintances， to suddenly being nauseated by some of the most graphic descriptions of murder and violence I have ever read。 While Patrick’s nighttime criminal activities are nauseating and gruesome， some descriptions legitimately making me need to get fresh air and take a break from reading， the novel as a whole is a stunning indictment of American wealth and inequality， the power of the rich and insufferable， and the carelessness with which we treat those deemed “expendable。” It’s a descriptive， literary text that engrosses， frustrates， and titillates the reader， and explores some of our darkest， deepest human instincts in regards to sexuality， gender， violence， class， and whiteness。 It’s humor， pacing， and farcical framing make this over a truly enjoyable and diverting read。 。。。more

Natalie ，

When I first started this， I read a lot that other people thought it was soooo boring and stuff bc all he does is explain things vividly。 But that’s exactly now a psycho thinks and I think written amazing。 Although i’m not sure how the author isn’t under investigation for the contents it’s insane。I’ll definitely be rereading next month

Katrina McCollough ，

I’ve loved the move for a long time and wow I did not expect the book to be so much。。more。 Pretty intense。 The little moments of insight we got into Bateman were so fascinating。

Daniel ，

I absolutely hated it。 It's a masterwork。 I absolutely hated it。 It's a masterwork。 。。。more

seba ，

this was so graphic i wanna throw up

Filip Syversen Fossum ，

A book I think I never will be able to read again， although it is one of the best books I've read。 A book I think I never will be able to read again， although it is one of the best books I've read。 。。。more

Madisyn ，

Great， terrible book。 When pat became manic and started talking in third person made me think… is this man really pat Bateman？ Why did some people not notice pat？ He is a handsome， wealthy man。 Or did he spiral so far that he was unrecognizable and when the author was talking in third person， pat was just disassociating and seeing himself do these things。 Hmmmm。 Very good book， satisfied my taste for gore （not for the lighthearted）。 There were lots of scenes I deemed unnecessary after I had fini Great， terrible book。 When pat became manic and started talking in third person made me think… is this man really pat Bateman？ Why did some people not notice pat？ He is a handsome， wealthy man。 Or did he spiral so far that he was unrecognizable and when the author was talking in third person， pat was just disassociating and seeing himself do these things。 Hmmmm。 Very good book， satisfied my taste for gore （not for the lighthearted）。 There were lots of scenes I deemed unnecessary after I had finished reading them but oh well。 。。。more

Chanah :） ，

One （ONE！！！） semi-interesting monologue in the last ten pages of this garbage。 The rest is joker fan fiction for lonely misogynistic men who think rape jokes are funny。 Don’t read this if you have braincells :）

Kamilcia ，

nie polecam osobom o słabej psychice， ponieważ jest dosyć bardzo opisowa。 tak samo jest 18+ nie mniej

Danyela ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Here’s the thing， I love this book。 I can’t be forced to not love this book。 It’s the catcher and the rye meets You but funnier and sharp。 But it’s also vile。 And unnecessarily gruesome and obsessed with itself at time。 Yet it feels like a time capsule of the 80s and also has themes of restlessness that I love （plus more）。 It’s funnier than it is scary， but that last half of the book is just vile。 Yet， it’s probably one of my favorite books I’ve read all year。 My brain is confused， yet I could w Here’s the thing， I love this book。 I can’t be forced to not love this book。 It’s the catcher and the rye meets You but funnier and sharp。 But it’s also vile。 And unnecessarily gruesome and obsessed with itself at time。 Yet it feels like a time capsule of the 80s and also has themes of restlessness that I love （plus more）。 It’s funnier than it is scary， but that last half of the book is just vile。 Yet， it’s probably one of my favorite books I’ve read all year。 My brain is confused， yet I could write a dissertation about the satire in this book。I mean there is really something about Patrick being able to mass murder， admit to it， almost get caught， and still get away with it all。 Everyone is so self involved they care so little。 The conversation at the end of money buys happiness， well it drained them of their emotions。 Imagine killing someone leaving their body in their apartment and people say they had dinner with the same dead guy and the apartment is being sold？ So much absurdity in this book。 。。。more

Simrah ，

look at that subtle off white colouring

Michelle ，

Disturbing is one word for this book。 Well-written are two others。 The fact of the matter is we are not meant to like Patrick Bateman。 We aren't meant to like anyone in this book， really。 The only people we truly feel anything for are those that die， and even in some of those cases， you are left wondering why come back。 I felt that way in the film， too， with the prostitute saying she isn't going to come back with him for the last time。 Yet there she was， trying to earn some money。The book focuse Disturbing is one word for this book。 Well-written are two others。 The fact of the matter is we are not meant to like Patrick Bateman。 We aren't meant to like anyone in this book， really。 The only people we truly feel anything for are those that die， and even in some of those cases， you are left wondering why come back。 I felt that way in the film， too， with the prostitute saying she isn't going to come back with him for the last time。 Yet there she was， trying to earn some money。The book focuses on values that we have been taught to idolize。 In a way， it even does that with the people it focuses on。 So while this is a book I never have to read or listen to again， it does a great job portraying the man's headspace and making you take this ride with him。 That is what makes the book oddly brilliant。 Do you want to share your space with a psychopath？ No， but this book forces you into it with every grimy and tedious detail you can imagine。 And yet despite the fact you want out of the cab， you stay because you don't want to believe it's going to get much much worse。 。。。more

Gwen ，

I was surprised I enjoyed any of this book after all that I've read and heard about it， however， I did actually enjoy the first 67%。 Initially， I thought it was boring and was really annoyed with all the name dropping; then， I started to get the humor， and there were some laugh out loud moments for me。 I found Bateman's friends and life insufferable so it made sense to me that he was irritable and addicted to cocaine。 Some particularly funny scenes for me were: the red snapper pizza argument， th I was surprised I enjoyed any of this book after all that I've read and heard about it， however， I did actually enjoy the first 67%。 Initially， I thought it was boring and was really annoyed with all the name dropping; then， I started to get the humor， and there were some laugh out loud moments for me。 I found Bateman's friends and life insufferable so it made sense to me that he was irritable and addicted to cocaine。 Some particularly funny scenes for me were: the red snapper pizza argument， the stealing of the canned ham， the Phil Collins music analysis， and whenever he used his ongoing excuse "I have to return some videotapes。" （view spoiler）[I thought the latter was particularly funny when Carruthers thinks Bateman is trying to come onto him in the bathroom when he is actually trying to kill him。 （hide spoiler）] I thought "Bateman cracks me up。" Of course， this was all before the "Lunch with Bethany" section。So， the graphically detailed sadistic sexual torture and murder of （view spoiler）[Bethany （hide spoiler）] was the point where I stopped enjoying the book。 I suddenly wasn't laughing anymore。 Bateman's antics were no longer funny and I actually found his behavior cringey。 At that point， I just wanted to read the book as fast as I could and get it over with; however， it took me four more days to finish the book because I'd reach my limit for what I could tolerate in one day。Of note， there are four more graphically detailed sadistic sexual torture and murder scenes after the first one。 I was most upset by the first one and I think that may be due to the initial shock and also because it was the most realistic; by the last two， I was rolling my eyes because it was so ridiculous and unbelievable。 I heard the author didn't initially intend to include all the violence and I think he added this aspect to the book purely for the shock value。I was really rolling my eyes when Bateman is （view spoiler）[crying in the kitchen because he's trying to cook and eat the dead women but never learned how to cook， isn't sure he's doing it right， feels like everything he was taught was wrong， and sobs "I just want to be loved。" （hide spoiler）]Overall， while the book is well written and an interesting social commentary， it's not a book I would recommend to anyone or ever want to read again。 。。。more

Alex Anacki ，

I feel like it reflects poorly on me to love this book as much as I do。 Misleading surface-level analysis of Ellis' best-known novel paints it as a misogynist， excessively violent piece of fiction that veers from its presumed mission of critiquing capitalism， materialism， and the excess of the 1980s。 I saw one reviewer say that she felt sexually assaulted by this book， which has dozens of pages of sexual assault and murder and associated dismemberment。 It is correct that Bateman is a dysfunction I feel like it reflects poorly on me to love this book as much as I do。 Misleading surface-level analysis of Ellis' best-known novel paints it as a misogynist， excessively violent piece of fiction that veers from its presumed mission of critiquing capitalism， materialism， and the excess of the 1980s。 I saw one reviewer say that she felt sexually assaulted by this book， which has dozens of pages of sexual assault and murder and associated dismemberment。 It is correct that Bateman is a dysfunctional substance abuser with a vile and ongoing pattern of assault or murder or verbal abuse of women， gays， the homeless， and the overweight。 That is not the book; the book is much more。 Violence — through the lens of an unstable and unreliable character — may or may not have occurred。 If it did， it was certainly not to the extent characterized by Bateman in his first-person narration。 This is a critique of capitalism， an exposé of the upper class financiers and conceited men that populate American Psycho and no doubt manifest themselves in real life。 Bateman's narration — clouded by his closely held beliefs that the women in his life are stupid "hardbodies" and gays are "faggots" and the homeless aren't worth anything — allows the reader to reflect on realities that exist outside the lens of a fiction book。 These realities （if you are a lower- or middle-class reader like me） are that the rich do not value you， many people do not hear you when you speak， and those who make the most money do not work the most。 What does Patrick Bateman do for work？ When is he ever doing something substantive in the office？ Work is a lifestyle， work is a means to making connections。But what good do those connections serve？ One of my favorite occupants of Ellis' literary toolbox here is his incorporation of misnaming into the dialogue。 Bateman is anything but Bateman to his colleagues and his acquaintances; for the longest time， he is Halberstam。 Sometimes Bateman acknowledges this， sometimes he does not。 These relationships are useless and passive。 They are inherent to their lifestyle， but they are not fruitful。 Restaurants from the Zagat guide are never good enough and the service is always inferior in some way。 Social events like a U2 concert are considered boring for everyone involved （mostly for Bateman because it impeded their dinner plans）。 While exaggerated， this behavior is not unfamiliar to any reader with a smidge of proximity to the upper class， or at least social climbers。Ellis' repetition — of "hardbody"， "J&B on the rocks"， misnaming， "the Fisher account"， italicization for emphasis， "I have to return some videotapes"， The Patty Winters Show， identifying someone by the brands they wear， little intermissions where Bateman waxes poetic on musicians of the day， trailing off at the end of a chapter， Bateman's obsession with Donald Trump （which aged well）， Bateman repeatedly telling others about his serial killer tendencies and them not taking him seriously or even listening， his Zagat book — is an embodiment of literary talent。 He succeeds in making a completely unlikable character interesting and complex and terrible。 It is a funny book！That's what makes the polarizing commentary on this book so absurd。 The murders are （to borrow from the Ted Bundy universe） "extremely wicked， shockingly evil， and vile。" And？ They are never found out。 Bateman supposedly embarks on a killing spree in broad daylight and kills literal NYPD officers without getting in trouble。 He has a very sick mind but the shockingly evil and vile nature of his supposed actions make them not feasible。 Should we critique Ellis for having the kind of brain that comes up with these things？ The violence what make his other messaging — so indicative of cultural rot and excess unimaginable decades prior — shine。 Ellis mastered the stylistic contrast between music reviews and murder scenes。 You cannot take it at face value， however frustrating that may be to those who are easily disturbed， becoming queasy at a moment's notice。 I get the feeling that this is the kind of book where， if you tell someone on a Tinder date that you love it， they see that as a red flag。 Whatever！ I am no sociopath。 This is just really good。 。。。more

Roxanne ，

Couldn’t finish it， stopped about halfway through。 I didn’t particularly enjoy it， but ultimately the animal cruelty and sadism was too much for me。

Victoria Tutwiler ，

This is an intense book。 One I will most likely not go back for a reread because honestly if I never hear "j and b" or "hard body" ever again in my life， I'll live happily。 With that said， I can differentiate between liking something and acknowledging that the author did right by his audience by providing good work。 This is certainly one of those acknowledging the author for his work type of books。 It's graphic， which I was expecting but graphic in a not normal way; however， the over the top gra This is an intense book。 One I will most likely not go back for a reread because honestly if I never hear "j and b" or "hard body" ever again in my life， I'll live happily。 With that said， I can differentiate between liking something and acknowledging that the author did right by his audience by providing good work。 This is certainly one of those acknowledging the author for his work type of books。 It's graphic， which I was expecting but graphic in a not normal way; however， the over the top graphics help lend to the "did he or didn't he" conversation about if he did or didn't commit the murders or if it was all in his head。 Ellis did a fantastic job of weaving those two together seamlessly。 。。。more

Dan ，

Well written and presents a very clear insight into the mind of Patrick Bateman and his nuances but。。。 I could not finish it。 One of the rare moments where I'll say i preferred the film to the book！ I do not wish to take anything away from the author though， they did a fantastic job， it just isn't for me。 Well written and presents a very clear insight into the mind of Patrick Bateman and his nuances but。。。 I could not finish it。 One of the rare moments where I'll say i preferred the film to the book！ I do not wish to take anything away from the author though， they did a fantastic job， it just isn't for me。 。。。more

Jimmy Antacabana Del Carpio ，

Me costó llegar a encariñarme con su forma de escribir del autor， pero al final me gustó。Sin embargo， el libro no llega a nada， aunque describe muy bien que un psicópata tampoco busca nada em especial。Odio a Bateman por que hace daño de muchas formas， y el libro describe de forma correcta sin abusar del Morbo todos sus asesinatos。Bateman， nunca escarmienta， y eso me deja triste， porque así es en en la vida real también

Caitlin Wilson ，

okay。 so this was ‘ruin your day’ level fucked up。

Jorge Garzón Jiménez ，

Definitivamente no es un libro para todos los públicos， especialmente por las escenas y descripciones explícitas de muchas de las atrocidades que comete Bateman。 Es interesante desde el punto de vista de la psique de una persona trastornada y obsesiva， algo que se ve reflejado incluso en la forma de escribir del autor， lo cuál es muy acertado。Sin embargo se hace pesado por momentos y， al menos a mí no me ha dejado una gran sensación。

Sarah Smith ，

Horrific

Maria ，

What the actual hell I just finished reading？！Now I need therapy！！！

Andrea Hurtado ，

Esto fue demasiado。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=American Psycho

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=American Psycho&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,American Psycho&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0