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A review by merch316
The Troop by Nick Cutter
4.0
THE TROOP, like THE FISHERMAN, was thrust into my orbit via Booktube reviewers so I thought I’d try it out. The result: This was legitimately good.
Borrowing heavily from LORD OF THE FLIES, Nick Cutter creates his own spin on the boys from the island. Piggy is here, but he’s Newt. Ralph is here, but he’s Max. Jack is here but he’s Kent. And Roger is here - boy is he - but he’s Shelley. Ephraim, however, is something of an anomaly - he’s definitely not Simon; he’s like an amalgamation of Ralph and Jack. I say all this to set the stage that it’s pretty much a 1:1 with LOTF character-wise.
From there, the book becomes its own body horror novel. The boys are dealing with a parasite outbreak. Interspersed are current-events type passages that update the reader on goings on outside the island.
There’s a lot of really gross parasitic images, particularly one chimpanzee flashback that’s hard to get out of your brain.
Some stuff doesn’t work. The relentless similes are sometimes beautiful, sometimes labored. There’s quite a few continuity problems too - a boy whose hair is easily sloughed off with a gentle pat is then dragged by his hair later in the chapter - but these don’t detract from the overall creepiness and horror.
The characters are well done. As an Eagle Scout myself, the love of Scouting and the friendships it can create is tangible on these pages. Well done Nick Cutter.
Borrowing heavily from LORD OF THE FLIES, Nick Cutter creates his own spin on the boys from the island. Piggy is here, but he’s Newt. Ralph is here, but he’s Max. Jack is here but he’s Kent. And Roger is here - boy is he - but he’s Shelley. Ephraim, however, is something of an anomaly - he’s definitely not Simon; he’s like an amalgamation of Ralph and Jack. I say all this to set the stage that it’s pretty much a 1:1 with LOTF character-wise.
From there, the book becomes its own body horror novel. The boys are dealing with a parasite outbreak. Interspersed are current-events type passages that update the reader on goings on outside the island.
There’s a lot of really gross parasitic images, particularly one chimpanzee flashback that’s hard to get out of your brain.
Some stuff doesn’t work. The relentless similes are sometimes beautiful, sometimes labored. There’s quite a few continuity problems too - a boy whose hair is easily sloughed off with a gentle pat is then dragged by his hair later in the chapter - but these don’t detract from the overall creepiness and horror.
The characters are well done. As an Eagle Scout myself, the love of Scouting and the friendships it can create is tangible on these pages. Well done Nick Cutter.