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A review by rosepetals1984
Deathwatch by Robb White
3.0
Deathwatch is a book that I read in middle school - particularly the 7th grade (I must have read 300-400+ books during my middle school years - I kid you not), and this particular book caught my attention because it was the first cat and mouse adventure/survival story that I ever read. Ben, the protagonist, is a young adult looking for money to go to college. This leads him to pursue a trip into the desert under the direction of Madec, a greedy businessman. Madec shoots and kills a man in the desert, then tries to cover up the crime. Ben stands his ground and insists on reporting it, which causes Madec to turn on the young man. From then on, it's a 48 hour ordeal where Ben has to use his wits and brawn to run from Madec - without clothes, food, or water.
I actually liked Robb White's prose in this in spurts - it's far better than most contemporary books could note, but suffice to say that reading it now (and having read other books in this same genre) it does leave much to be desired, and there are parts of the book that drag on for longer than it should have. Madec's actions are sadistic and make you feel sympathetic to Ben, though Ben's characterization could have had much more to it looking back on the collective frame of the book. I genuinely liked the way the story ended, and it does tie up events in a way that brings the showdown to a close, and it makes you think about the complex morality and nature of people in due reflection. Overall, I really liked this book, and consider it one of the books that influenced my like of this particular genre, though I do also recognize its respective flaws.
Overall score: 3/5
I actually liked Robb White's prose in this in spurts - it's far better than most contemporary books could note, but suffice to say that reading it now (and having read other books in this same genre) it does leave much to be desired, and there are parts of the book that drag on for longer than it should have. Madec's actions are sadistic and make you feel sympathetic to Ben, though Ben's characterization could have had much more to it looking back on the collective frame of the book. I genuinely liked the way the story ended, and it does tie up events in a way that brings the showdown to a close, and it makes you think about the complex morality and nature of people in due reflection. Overall, I really liked this book, and consider it one of the books that influenced my like of this particular genre, though I do also recognize its respective flaws.
Overall score: 3/5