quippe | Entries tagged with guillermo del toro

The Blurb On The Back:

Vampires have arrived in New York City – and humans are no longer at the top of the food chain ...

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

I thought that THE STRAIN was too clichéd and predictable but THE FALL is even worse. Frankly, the way in which each ‘twist’ is telegraphed makes for dull reading and while there are some sparks (notably the development of Abraham’s back story) the result was boring. It will take something very special to make me want to read the concluding book to this trilogy.

THE STRAIN was released in the UK on 16th September. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC.

The Blurb On The Back:

In one week, Manhattan could be gone.

In four weeks, the country.

In eight weeks ... the world.

At New York’s JFK Airport an arriving Boeing 777 taxis along a runway and suddenly stops dead. All the blinds have been drawn, all communications channels have mysteriously gone quiet. Dr Ephraim Goodweather – head of a rapid-response team investigating biological threats – boards the darkened plane ... and what he finds makes his blood run cold.

Meanwhile, in a pawnshop in Spanish Harlem, aged Holocaust survivor Abraham Setrakian knows that the war he has been dreading his entire life is finally here.

Before the next sundown Eph and Setrakian must undertake the ultimate fight for survival. A terrifying contagion has come to the unsuspecting city – hungry, merciless, lethal ... vampiric?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

There isn’t anything particularly new here with regard to vampirism, but it is good to see them cast as villains for a change. The characters are little more than stereotypes and there’s a lot of repetition with regard to portrayal of symptoms and transformation, but the action is fast moving and the book ends with an interesting scenario that makes me want to read the sequel. It’s not classic horror, but it’s entertaining enough for a few hours.