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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
A collaboration by Guillermo Del Toro, best known as director of Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy movies, and Chuck Hogan makes vampires what they were always meant to be - creepy, nasty and vile. There are no Edwards, Angels or even Lestats or Louis's here. Vampirism is a disease. It is a virus in human form.
The book is fast paced and fun, with moments of genuine creepiness and gore. Some of the "innovations" here I felt were lifted from Blade 2 which Del Toro also directed, but I loved that movie and it didn't take anything away for me.
(This review refers to an advanced readers' copy. The book is due out June 2, 2009.)
The book is fast paced and fun, with moments of genuine creepiness and gore. Some of the "innovations" here I felt were lifted from Blade 2 which Del Toro also directed, but I loved that movie and it didn't take anything away for me.
(This review refers to an advanced readers' copy. The book is due out June 2, 2009.)
Absoluter Hollywood Style. Nicht nach meinem Geschmack. Die Reihe wird nicht weiter gelesen.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wow. Bold, italicized, underlined, all caps, 32 point font, WOW.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
I'm not much for horror, but this book read a little to much like an abbreviated television script. Considering its origin as exactly that... I appreciated the vampire-as-plague idea. All of that was very clever. I just found the writing to be a bit too spartan.
4 stars. Fantasy elements - monsters, fighting, war - are not my thing, so I did get bored halfway through the book, and skipped one or two fight scenes in preference for the explanatory scenes. I'm rating this book objectively, assuming that I liked the genre. It was a easy, fast, exciting read, with a well-thought out storyline and good worldbuilding. The build up from the start of the book steadily paced, and the author tells the story from different character perspectives throughout, giving the reader a view of the situation from all angles. Even though it was technically fantasy, the morphing of human to monster after infection is very realistic and thoroughly enjoyable - from a non-medical point of view, anyway. The descent into apocalyptic chaos is nicely written.
There are two more sequels in the The Strain trilogy. It looks like there will be further development into the war between the different monster clans (?), with humans as mere pawns caught in the middle of battle. War bores me, unfortunately; I might pick up the second book, but I'm not expecting to finish it.
There are two more sequels in the The Strain trilogy. It looks like there will be further development into the war between the different monster clans (?), with humans as mere pawns caught in the middle of battle. War bores me, unfortunately; I might pick up the second book, but I'm not expecting to finish it.
Not original by a long stretch, but very enjoyable and I like the characters.