Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts
Nov. 29th, 2011 08:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
4
ACROSS THE WORLD, EARTHQUAKES SHUDDER
3
SOMETHING IS RELEASED
2
TRUST NO ONE – NOT EVEN YOURSELF
1
THE KILLING GAME HAS BEGUN …
Moments after earthquakes rock the world, people start to change in the most terrifying of ways. Friends turn on friends, girlfriends on boyfriends, brothers on sisters. A murderous rage has been unleashes. Nobody can be trusted.
For those who survive the first wave of killing, the world is a different, deadlier place. Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine must battle to stay alive against the odds. All they have is one another … but can they even be sure of that?
When the world’s rocked by a series of earthquakes, the destruction of buildings and roads is only the beginning. Separated by geography, Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine soon discover that the earthquakes have unleashed something ancient and evil. Soon their friends – even their own family – are engulfed by violent, uncontrollable rages that drive them to kill. No one is safe. No one can be trusted.
As Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine try to come to terms with the disaster, each makes their way (for their own reasons) to Vancouver and slowly the four come together. But soon it becomes apparent that the violence and murder around them isn’t some random event – there’s something controlling it. Something evil. Something with plans for the human race ....
Jeyn Roberts’s debut YA novel (the first in a series) is 28 DAYS LATER meets INVASION OF THE BODYSNATCHERS.
The narration’s split into 5 sections – one for each main character plus a mysterious NOTHING, who may be a main character or something else entirely. Roberts has a good ear for voice and keeps Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine distinct, while there’s enough mystery about the Nothing to keep you guessing who or what it is. The violence is also chilling without ever lingering on it and I liked how Roberts pulls the individual narrators together in a way that sets up the next book.
Of the narrators, Mason is probably the most interesting, torn up by guilt at the death of his mum (one of the fist victims of the quake rage) and racked by self-loathing. Aries is someone forced to take a lead and assume responsibility, Clementine just wants to find her brother (her only living relative) and Michael is someone struggling to cope with just staying alive.
My main problem with the book though is that despite the four narrators and road-movie element to the story very little happens and I didn’t really connect with any of the narrators because they aren’t on the page long enough to develop fully. I also felt that there was a lack of jeopardy where the main characters are concerned and even most of the side characters emerge unscathed, which doesn’t ring true in a world where everyone is supposedly at risk.
Notwithstanding that this book is basically premise set-up, I’m interested enough to see where Roberts takes it and look forward to reading on.
The Verdict:
Jeyn Roberts debut novel is a horror tale that’s essentially 28 DAYS LATER meets INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS. There were plenty of things to enjoy about it, particularly the way she keeps the voices of her 4 main characters distinct and the violence is frightening without being disproportionate. However, by having the 4 main characters as narrators, I never really felt as if I connected with them or their individual journeys, which is exacerbated by the ‘road movie’ structure and in addition for a world where everyone is in danger, I never believed that the main characters were in peril. There are enough interesting elements to the story however for me to want to read on but this is basically a premise set up, so I’m hoping that the next book will have more meat to it.
DARK INSIDE was released in the UK on 2nd September 2011. Thanks to Macmillan Children’s Books for the ARC of this book.
ACROSS THE WORLD, EARTHQUAKES SHUDDER
3
SOMETHING IS RELEASED
2
TRUST NO ONE – NOT EVEN YOURSELF
1
THE KILLING GAME HAS BEGUN …
Moments after earthquakes rock the world, people start to change in the most terrifying of ways. Friends turn on friends, girlfriends on boyfriends, brothers on sisters. A murderous rage has been unleashes. Nobody can be trusted.
For those who survive the first wave of killing, the world is a different, deadlier place. Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine must battle to stay alive against the odds. All they have is one another … but can they even be sure of that?
When the world’s rocked by a series of earthquakes, the destruction of buildings and roads is only the beginning. Separated by geography, Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine soon discover that the earthquakes have unleashed something ancient and evil. Soon their friends – even their own family – are engulfed by violent, uncontrollable rages that drive them to kill. No one is safe. No one can be trusted.
As Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine try to come to terms with the disaster, each makes their way (for their own reasons) to Vancouver and slowly the four come together. But soon it becomes apparent that the violence and murder around them isn’t some random event – there’s something controlling it. Something evil. Something with plans for the human race ....
Jeyn Roberts’s debut YA novel (the first in a series) is 28 DAYS LATER meets INVASION OF THE BODYSNATCHERS.
The narration’s split into 5 sections – one for each main character plus a mysterious NOTHING, who may be a main character or something else entirely. Roberts has a good ear for voice and keeps Michael, Aries, Mason and Clementine distinct, while there’s enough mystery about the Nothing to keep you guessing who or what it is. The violence is also chilling without ever lingering on it and I liked how Roberts pulls the individual narrators together in a way that sets up the next book.
Of the narrators, Mason is probably the most interesting, torn up by guilt at the death of his mum (one of the fist victims of the quake rage) and racked by self-loathing. Aries is someone forced to take a lead and assume responsibility, Clementine just wants to find her brother (her only living relative) and Michael is someone struggling to cope with just staying alive.
My main problem with the book though is that despite the four narrators and road-movie element to the story very little happens and I didn’t really connect with any of the narrators because they aren’t on the page long enough to develop fully. I also felt that there was a lack of jeopardy where the main characters are concerned and even most of the side characters emerge unscathed, which doesn’t ring true in a world where everyone is supposedly at risk.
Notwithstanding that this book is basically premise set-up, I’m interested enough to see where Roberts takes it and look forward to reading on.
The Verdict:
Jeyn Roberts debut novel is a horror tale that’s essentially 28 DAYS LATER meets INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS. There were plenty of things to enjoy about it, particularly the way she keeps the voices of her 4 main characters distinct and the violence is frightening without being disproportionate. However, by having the 4 main characters as narrators, I never really felt as if I connected with them or their individual journeys, which is exacerbated by the ‘road movie’ structure and in addition for a world where everyone is in danger, I never believed that the main characters were in peril. There are enough interesting elements to the story however for me to want to read on but this is basically a premise set up, so I’m hoping that the next book will have more meat to it.
DARK INSIDE was released in the UK on 2nd September 2011. Thanks to Macmillan Children’s Books for the ARC of this book.
