Instruct: Classify a given review into positive or negative sentiment.
Query: Give very serious thought to reading this book...

Many readers hated this book, Stephen King felt it was the best of the series, my opinion comes closer to King's. This story is less sensational than Red Dragon or Silence of the Lambs. Those are great books each but they essentially tell the same story--unique FBI agent needs Hannibal Lecter's iside info to catch a serial killer on the loose before he kills again. The purpose of this story is to let us into Hannibal's mind--literally. Harris is able to make Lecter's flawless memory, super-developed sense of smell, and his love of cooking both fascinating and chilling. The ending (changed for the movie) is much better in the book. It offends many people but, after Lecter's escape at the end of Silence, this ending takes his success to the ultimate degree.