Entries tagged with blake crouch

Entry tags:

Run by Blake Crouch

5 Days Ago a rash of bizarre murders swept the country. Senseless. Brutal. Seemingly unconnected. . .

A cop walked into a nursing home and unloaded his weapons on elderly and staff alike. A mass of school shootings. Prison riots of unprecedented brutality. Mind-boggling acts of violence in every state.

4 Days Ago the murders increased ten-fold. . .

3 Days Ago the President addressed the nation and begged for calm and peace. . .

2 Days Ago the killers began to mobilize. . .

Yesterday all the power went out. . .

Tonight they're reading the names of those to be killed on the Emergency Broadcast System. You are listening over the battery-powered radio on your kitchen table, and they've just read yours. Your name is Jack Colclough. You have a wife, a daughter, and a young son. You live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. People are coming to your house to kill you and your family. You don't know why, but you don't have time to think about that any more. You only have time to R - U - N!

The book is basically one long chase scene (thus the title,) but it works well-which I found rather surprising. I thought I would get tired of the constant danger and tension but I didn’t. Instead, I was thoroughly engrossed.

Because the characters are in constant danger, I think a connection is made much faster than one would normally have been. I wanted Jack and his family to survive. And even though the situation between Jack and his wife is not optimal at the beginning of the book, they act like adults and put any difficulties aside in order to save their children. That was probably what I liked best about them. They’re not perfect, but they’ll do whatever they must to ensure that they and their children survive.

The reason behind the violence is never totally explained. It being a celestial event, there’s no way that they can. But even that works its way into the story, which seems to be how Crouch sets up most of his stories. And like most (if not all,) of his stories, it leans toward science fiction, but is more of a dystopian novel.

( Mount TBR 2025 Book Links 1-35 )

36. The Regulators by Richard Bachman (Pseudonym), Stephen King
37. Islands of Abandonment: Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape by Cal Flyn
38. The Nun's Story by Kathryn Hulme
39. The Bones Beneath My Skin by T.J. Klune
40. They Thirst by Robert McCammon
41. Blue World: And Other Stories by Robert McCammon
42. Unruly: The Ridiculous History of England's Kings and Queens by David Mitchell
43. Run by Blake Crouch

Goodreads 46

Entry tags:

Abandon: A Novel by Blake Crouch

A century-old mystery—and a desperate battle to survive—unfold in this standalone thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Dark Matter and Recursion .

On Christmas Day in 1893, every man, woman, and child in a remote mining town disappeared, belongings forsaken, meals left to freeze in vacant cabins, and not a single bone found.

Now, journalist Abigail Foster and her historian father have set out to explore the long-abandoned town and learn what happened. With them are two backcountry guides—along with a psychic and a paranormal photographer who are there to investigate rumors that the town is haunted.

But Abigail and her companions are about to learn that the town’s ghosts are the least of their worries. Twenty miles from civilization, with a blizzard bearing down, they realize they are not alone.

The ordeal that follows will test this small team past the breaking point as they battle the elements and human foes alike—and discover that the town’s secrets still have the power to kill.

Having read several of Crouch’s books, I was taken in by the books’ blurb. The “town’s secrets still have the power to kill,” line, especially. And apparently Goodreads was, too, as it lists horror as one of its genres. Maybe it is, but not the kind of horror I was expecting. And wanting.

What it is is more of a mystery story, which I’m not fond of, mostly because, like this story, they can only move forward because bad things keep happening. Just when you think the hero (or heroine,) have finally caught a break, something else is thrown in the way. Because, hey, once the mystery is solved the book has to end.

There were some interesting characters, who unfortunately the reader knows at the onset that those characters don’t make it since every person in the town disappears and are never seen again. Except, it turns out, for two who manage to not share the same fate. Though one’s fate is actually worse. The other’s is never explained.

This wasn’t a bad book; and I imagine those who read these kind of books will like it. I did…sort of. Just not enough.

Made it to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro!

Mount TBR 2023 Book Links

( Mount TBR 2023 Book Links 1-50 )

51. Lady in Waiting by Susan Meissner
52. Jackdaw (Jackdaw #1) by K.J. Charles
53. Blightborn (Heartland #2) by Chuck Wendig
54. The Harvest (Heartland #3) by Chuck Wendig
55. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
56. Black River Orchard by Chuck Wendig
57. The Change by Kirsten Miller
58. The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
59. The Witching Hour (Lives of the Mayfair Witches #1) by Anne Rice
60. Abandon by Blake Crouch

Goodreads 60

Entry tags:

The Last Town (Wayward Pines #3) by Blake Crouch

Welcome to Wayward Pines, the last town.

Secret Service agent Ethan Burke arrived in Wayward Pines, Idaho, three weeks ago. In this town, people are told who to marry, where to live, where to work. Their children are taught that David Pilcher, the town’s creator, is god. No one is allowed to leave; even asking questions can get you killed.

But Ethan has discovered the astonishing secret of what lies beyond the electrified fence that surrounds Wayward Pines and protects it from the terrifying world beyond. It is a secret that has the entire population completely under the control of a madman and his army of followers, a secret that is about to come storming through the fence to wipe out this last, fragile remnant of humanity.

Even more than than the first two, this book is definitely science fiction. There are some horrible moments, but the book seems to focus more on the people of town, their history, and how they’re dealing with the knowledge they’ve just been given.

Perhaps because I had given up on the series being horror, I was able to enjoy this story more than the first two. Quite a bit more, in fact. And there was a wrapping up of the story lines that I found very readable. Their decision about their future was a bit of a surprise, which was nice. So much better than being sure of what’s going to happen.

I loved the addendum, but I think I would have loved it even more if I knew that there was another book on the way.

Mount TBR 2023 Book Links

Links are to more information regarding each book or author, not to the review.

1. Alexander's Tomb: The Two-Thousand Year Obsession to Find the Lost Conquerer by Nicholas J. Saunders
2. Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune
3. Under the Empyrean Sky (Heartland Trilogy #1) by Chuck Wendig
4. Remnant Population by Elizabeth Moon
5. After Appomattox: Military Occupation and the Ends of War by Gregory P. Downs
6. The Wolf's Hour (Michael Gallatin #1) by Robert R. McCammon
7. Bag of Bones by Stephen King
8. Substitute by Susi Holliday
9. Fairy Tale by Stephen King
10. Huxley: From Devil's Disciple To Evolution's High Priest
11. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
12. The History of Bees (Climate Quartet #1) by Maja Lunde, Diane Oatley (Translator)
13. The Beauty by Aliya Whiteley
14. The Hunter from the Woods (Michael Gallatin #2) by Robert McCammon
15. The Far Arena by Richard Ben Sapir
16. The Humans by Matt Haig
17. Craven Manor by Darcy Coates
18. The Alpha Female Wolf: The Fierce Legacy of Yellowstone's 06 by Rick McIntyre
19. The Last Town (Wayward Pines #3) by Blake Crouch

Goodreads 19

Entry tags:

Wayward (Wayward Pines #2) by Blake Crouch

Welcome to Wayward Pines, population 461. Nestled amidst picture-perfect mountains, the idyllic town is a modern-day Eden...except for the electrified fence and razor wire, snipers scoping everything 24/7, and the relentless surveillance tracking each word and gesture.
None of the residents know how they got here. They are told where to work, how to live, and who to marry. Some believe they are dead. Others think they’re trapped in an unfathomable experiment. Everyone secretly dreams of leaving, but those who dare face a terrifying surprise.

Ethan Burke has seen the world beyond. He’s sheriff, and one of the few who knows the truth—Wayward Pines isn’t just a town. And what lies on the other side of the fence is a nightmare beyond anyone’s imagining.

I definitely liked this book more than I did its predecessor. There’s more character development, but without taking anything from the fast moving plot. There’s also more of the other characters’ backgrounds. Who they were, where they came from. There’s more depth to them.

And we finally learn the truth behind Wayward Pines. Is its creator thinking about what’s best for the residents, or is there something sinister going on? It’s pretty easy to figure the answer to that question, but it’s still a wild ride.

Mount TBR 2022 Book Links

Links are to more information regarding each book or author, not to the review.

( TBR Book Links 1-40 )

41. The X Factor by Andre Norton
42. The Last Wild Horses (Climate Quartet #3) by Maja Lunde, Diane Oatley (Translator)
43. The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
44. Double Threat by F. Paul Wilson
45. Wayward (Wayward Pines #2) by Blake Crouch

Wayward

Popular - Wayward (Wayward Pines 2) by Blake Crouch

Entry tags:

Pines (Wayward Pines #1) by Blake Crouch

Secret service agent Ethan Burke arrives in Wayward Pines, Idaho, with a clear mission: locate and recover two federal agents who went missing in the bucolic town one month earlier. But within minutes of his arrival, Ethan is involved in a violent accident. He comes to in a hospital, with no ID, no cell phone, and no briefcase. The medical staff seems friendly enough, but something feels off. As the days pass, Ethan's investigation into the disappearance of his colleagues turns up more questions than answers. Why can't he get any phone calls through to his wife and son in the outside world? Why doesn't anyone believe he is who he says he is? And what is the purpose of the electrified fences surrounding the town? Are they meant to keep the residents in? Or something else out? Each step closer to the truth takes Ethan further from the world he thought he knew, from the man he thought he was, until he must face a horrifying fact? He may never get out of Wayward Pines alive.

I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy the book, because I did. Quite a bit. But I guess I’m getting a bit tired when a book is advertised as horror, and then turns out to be only horrifying. Like Alien. Horrifying, but really science fiction. I love science fiction, too, but I’d love to find some more really spooky, things-that-go-bump-in-the-night sort of horror.

As I said, I did enjoy the book. There’s a lot to like. The slow build up, as Ethan Burke tries to figure out where he really is, and how he really got there. Burke is taken on a roller coaster of suspense, never knowing what is real, or who to trust.

The main problem I found with the book is the dialogue. There could have been more, there should have been more, mostly to explain some of the action that is glossed over. And, other than Burke, the characters aren’t as fleshed out as they could be.

So, while I liked the book, I didn’t love it. That said, I do plan on reading the sequel. I loved both Recursion and Dark Matter; I’m going to keep my fingers crossed that the sequel reads more along their lines.