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saltedsnail's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I struggled to decide exactly how to rate this book and finally landed on 2.5/5 being the most appropriate seeing there are just enough things I liked about this book to counterbalance out everything I didn’t like. The initial premise is exciting and intriguing enough to carry the story some ways and Shine’s writing style is one I find enjoyable enough to listen to for an extended period…
But there’s so much of this book that feels like a waste of time. Many folks complain about the pacing of the Creeper, saying it doesn’t get exciting until two thirds in, but I actually don’t mind a very slow build horror. I think the sense of boredom the first half of this book elicits has more to do with the characters being uninteresting and flat than it does the plot. Ben is a somewhat pitiful absentee dad academic-turned-shoe-salesman with obvious insecurity issues that I believe we’re supposed to empathize with… and Chloe is a very typical spunky-petite-female written by a male author. Shine tries like hell to make us believe these characters (that might as well be cardboard cut outs) have chemistry but they’re just… profoundly flat and unlikable.
That being said, I truly enjoyed the actual plot of The Creeper all the way until the twist. Hilariously, I find the actual ending of this book (the villagers mutilate each other into monsters through an extensive process of physical torture) more unbelievable than the original assumption that there is some paranormal being out there stalking and killing. Even the villagers, in this way, are horribly written; Shine simply doesn’t do enough to convince us of their motivations. I believe we’re supposed to feel vindicated by this ending that Ben was correct all along…. But seeing as Ben is so profoundly unlikable, his smug right-ness doesn’t really pay off.
So basically: great premise, incredibly rote and flat characters written with a very limited understanding of what motivates actual human beings.
But there’s so much of this book that feels like a waste of time. Many folks complain about the pacing of the Creeper, saying it doesn’t get exciting until two thirds in, but I actually don’t mind a very slow build horror. I think the sense of boredom the first half of this book elicits has more to do with the characters being uninteresting and flat than it does the plot. Ben is a somewhat pitiful absentee dad academic-turned-shoe-salesman with obvious insecurity issues that I believe we’re supposed to empathize with… and Chloe is a very typical spunky-petite-female written by a male author. Shine tries like hell to make us believe these characters (that might as well be cardboard cut outs) have chemistry but they’re just… profoundly flat and unlikable.
That being said, I truly enjoyed the actual plot of The Creeper all the way until
So basically: great premise, incredibly rote and flat characters written with a very limited understanding of what motivates actual human beings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Body horror, Gore, Physical abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
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