Patricia Highsmith"s Talented Mr. Ripley is a masterpiece. No other word is needed to describe the novel. It captures the reader attention from the first pages, and never lets go until the very end. Actually there are also other four sequels that followed the original, Ripley Under Ground, Ripley's Game, The Boy Who Followed Ripley, and Ripley Under Water. Of these four sequels I have only read The Boy Who Followed Ripley, and in the end was pleasantly surprised. For a book with such a bad reputation it turned out to be quite a good read. My only complaint is the unfulfilling ending that leaves the reader questioning the reason, which drove them to read the book in the first place. Also Ripley Under Water has a great plot, and I can't wait to read it.

There is a very important lesson that Hollywood writers, producers, and directors need to understand. Movie adaptations will never be as good as the original novels. Very few films ever suppressed the books. Every Tom Ripley film adaptation proved to be less worthy. I mean I haven't seen Purple Noon, but others were not very good. The script undergoes major re-writing, and the very famous “new ending by Hollywood writers” is introduced. At least do everyone a favor and leave the original ending in place.