Tag: Book

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: The Troop by Nick Cutter

Posted on by elishasbookreview
the-troop

*No Major Spoilers*

*This Novel Is NOT for the Squeamish*

Once a year, Scoutmaster Tim Riggs leads a troop of boys into the Canadian wilderness for a three-day camping trip—a tradition as comforting and reliable as a good ghost story and a roaring bonfire. But when an unexpected intruder—shockingly thin, disturbingly pale, and voraciously hungry—stumbles upon their campsite, Tim and the boys are exposed to something far more frightening than any tale of terror. The human carrier of a bioengineered nightmare. An inexplicable horror that spreads faster than fear. A harrowing struggle for survival that will pit the troop against the elements, the infected…and one another.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I found this novel on a book list (if it’s not the library it’s email newsletters). I thought the author sounded familiar, and I found out he also wrote The Deep which I reviewed previously. I had written a not-so-good review, so with that in mind, I decided to give Mr. Cutter another chance.

I’m going to state upfront if you are squeamish or have Entomophobia (the fear of bugs); another phobia this novel addresses is Vermiphobia (The fear of parasitic worms) I would be hesitant to read this novel. I do not have these phobias and at times I found myself grossed out at how detailed the boys’ struggles escalate throughout this novel.

“How could you hide from a murderer who lives under your skin?”

Nick Cutter; The Troop

The Troop reminded me of a ramped up rendition of Lord of the Flies by William Golding. Lord of the Flies follows a group of young boys that were shipwrecked on a deserted island. The parallels are there, but it’s pulled off nicely.

I found this to be more enjoyable than Mr. Cutter’s previous book The Deep. The characters were likable and relatable. I found the ending to not be too far out in the leftfield. Sometimes horror writers *cough* Stephen King *cough* tend to take things too far with the crazy and bizarre for my liking. This ending was surprising and ended on a somewhat positive note.

Overall, I thought The Troop was a good and creepy read. If you are into untraditional horror, or what something different to read then this novel is for you!

Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: The Last Straw (Pigeon-Blood Red Book 2) by Ed Duncan

Posted on by elishasbookreview

unnamed

*No Major Spoilers*

When a teenage girl witnesses a carjacking went bad, she is marked for death by a crime boss with no apparent motive. A black lawyer and a white enforcer with an unlikely history forge an uneasy alliance to protect the girl from a hitman with an agenda of his own.

After they find out that the crime boss is the father of the black teenage carjacker, Paul Elliott – lawyer and close friend of the witness’s family – begins counseling them.

As the long-simmering feud between Rico and John D’Angelo reaches boiling point, bodies start to pile up in rapid succession… and old scores will be settled.

I meant to have this review up last month, however, life happened and I fell behind. I am thrilled and honored to be sharing this novel with my readers today. The Last Straw is a thrilling action-packed novel that is beautifully written in a way where I didn’t feel the need to read the previous novel in the series.

This novel touches on topics such as good vs evil, modern racism, and even how things aren’t as black and white as we like to believe.

“Paul, I’m certain you could have handled that situation without the gun and without fighting. You would have thought of something. You know how I hate seeing you carry a gun. But I’ll suprise you by saying I guess I’m glad you had it just this once to use as a bluff if you really had to, because I’m sure you never would have shot anyone, even if you’re not.”

Paul turned that over in his mind for a moment. “Maybe you know me better than I know myself. I don’t think I could have shot them either. No, I couldn’t. When we were inside [the movie theatre], I was thinking that when I was growing up, I had friends who could have been either one of those two. Hell, I could have been one of them. My father used to say no matter how far you travel, you can never change where you came from. I was so damned angry back there for a while, I almost forgot where I came from.” –The Last Straw

I enjoyed the mystery of how everything and everyone was connected. Seemingly random characters having a part in the grand scheme of the novel held my attention, I felt like it was put together really well. There weren’t too many characters to keep up with and I enjoyed learning about Paul Elliot’s history with Rico and D’Angelo.

My favorite character is Rico. He is a product of his environment, but he does the best he can for those he cares about (whether he acknowledges it or not). He is a hitman who isn’t afraid to tell his boss ‘no’ when a job interferes with his morals.

I liked the fact this novel isn’t afraid to touch on modern racism. Beverly, the mother of the suspected carjacker, confronts both the racism from her past as well as present day. I’m not going to spoil how Beverly is connected to the overall story, but I did enjoy learning her backstory as well.

If you’re looking for an action-packed thrilling mystery, then I would highly recommend The Last Straw. The story will have you sitting on the edge of your seat, and reaching for the tissues at times. This novel is a thriller with a heart.

Buy “The Last Straw” by Ed Duncan HERE!

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: As Long As We Both Shall Live by JoAnn Chaney

Posted on by elishasbookreview
{653814AA-A361-4DCB-AC7D-7F9792BA4180}Img100

*No Spoilers*

“My wife! I think she’s dead!” Matt frantically tells park rangers that he and his wife, Marie, were hiking when she fell off a cliff into the raging river below. They start a search, but they aren’t hopeful: no one could have survived that fall. It was a tragic accident.

But Matt’s first wife also died in suspicious circumstances. And when the police pull a body out of the river, they have a lot more questions for Matt.

Detectives Loren and Spengler want to know if Matt is a grieving, twice-unlucky husband or a cold-blooded murderer. They dig into the couple’s lives to see what they can unearth. And they find that love’s got teeth, it’s got claws, and once it hitches you to a person, it’s tough to rip yourself free.

So what happens when you’re done making it work?

I am a fan of crime and mystery novels as well as true crime documentaries. When the spouse gets murdered, it’s usually their “dearly beloved” who committed the crime. So this novel caught my interest from the start.

This is told from a vulgar, and negative perspective of how a marriage can be. I was shocked by how vile some of the language is. So if you are sensitive to that kind of thing, you might want to give this one a pass.

Despite the language, I found this novel to be thrilling and hooked me from the first chapter. What happens when the wife comes home early from work and finds her husband in bed with the secretary? Anything can happen.

I felt this novel was put together well. It took logical leaps and bounds, “things aren’t what you think they are”. I found the plot twists weren’t too illogical or bewildering.

The ending was neatly wrapped up, and there weren’t any loose plot threads. I enjoy a novel that’s well written and wrapped up nice and neat.

I would recommend this novel to lovers of crime, mystery, and hard-boiled detective novels. I enjoyed this audiobook and think that you will enjoy it as well!