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gak_does_books 's review for:
The Lost World
by Michael Crichton
adventurous
dark
tense
Six years after the disaster at Jurassic Park, rumours swirl that something has survived. A new expedition heads to Isla Sorna, where the dinosaurs weren’t just created—they were left to run wild. What follows is a fast-paced, high-stakes return to chaos, evolution, and survival.
This was actually my second attempt at reading The Lost World. The first time I tried back in the '90s, the last 25% of the book turned out to be a reprint of the beginning (which was a bit of a cruel twist of fate, really). But I’m glad I finally came back to it because I thoroughly enjoyed this one — though maybe not quite as much as the original.
Crichton’s writing once again delivers a punchy mix of science and action, with plenty of philosophical undertones about extinction, interference, and the nature of intelligence. Malcolm returns as the reluctant voice of reason (and chaos), and the new cast adds enough freshness without straying too far from what made the first book work. The setting on Isla Sorna brings in that sense of danger and wildness all over again, and I liked how the book didn’t try to simply recreate Jurassic Park beat for beat — it built on it.
There’s a darker tone at times, especially with the moral ambiguity of some characters and the growing sense that humans never really learn from their mistakes. It’s definitely more science-heavy than the film version (and less flashy), but the ideas are richer for it.
A thrilling, smartly written sequel that expands the world and themes of the first novel while delivering plenty of dino-induced chaos. Well worth the revisit.
This was actually my second attempt at reading The Lost World. The first time I tried back in the '90s, the last 25% of the book turned out to be a reprint of the beginning (which was a bit of a cruel twist of fate, really). But I’m glad I finally came back to it because I thoroughly enjoyed this one — though maybe not quite as much as the original.
Crichton’s writing once again delivers a punchy mix of science and action, with plenty of philosophical undertones about extinction, interference, and the nature of intelligence. Malcolm returns as the reluctant voice of reason (and chaos), and the new cast adds enough freshness without straying too far from what made the first book work. The setting on Isla Sorna brings in that sense of danger and wildness all over again, and I liked how the book didn’t try to simply recreate Jurassic Park beat for beat — it built on it.
There’s a darker tone at times, especially with the moral ambiguity of some characters and the growing sense that humans never really learn from their mistakes. It’s definitely more science-heavy than the film version (and less flashy), but the ideas are richer for it.
A thrilling, smartly written sequel that expands the world and themes of the first novel while delivering plenty of dino-induced chaos. Well worth the revisit.