*psychological thriller, was-not-expecting-that*
Reads like: Station Eleven and The Road
Pages: 340
(Review statistics are always out of 5 - for a description of each please visit the About Me page)
1. Story 4
2. Action 3.5
3. Page turner 3.5
4. Overall 4 /5
I'm always trawling (stalking) other sites, blogs or Goodreads for new recommendations but nothing is better than those little gems you pick up browsing your local book shop or second-hand book store.
Sometimes it's the cover that catches your eye or your favorite author was paid to put his two cents on the cover....whatever it may be, to YOU, its attractive.
If the book is GOOD, you end up feeling like the most-awesome-book-huntress/hunter on planet earth. This was one of those times for me for sure. I had never heard nor seen this book and it really was a cover-love at first sight for me.
Synopsis:
This story centers around Zoo. She signs up for a survivalist reality show called Into Dark that has several survival type events deep in the forest, cut off from the world. Zoo sees this as her final adventure before settling down with her husband and starting a family. She is a complicated character and we can tell she is struggling with several issues in her life already. I loved this tough-minded female protagonist.
With her determination set,Zoo and the 11 competitors in Into Dark face hunger, injury and psychological breakdowns. The mind games get more intense and grow dark and twisted. Is this what she signed up for? Is it a game that doesn't end?
Thoughts:
I don't want to give to much away, but it did start off a bit slow to be honest, but hang in there. I promise it gets better. The dialogue reads a lot like the works of Cormac McCarthy of The Road fame, but the author isn't as striking as he is, she manages to keep the reader entertained with the atmosphere of the game she is playing in. The behind the scenes information and other characters of her competitors challenge your thoughts about Reality TV and the "games" Zoo is subjected to becomes more intense and out of control.
She writes with such a strong clear narrative, loved the concept but I just didn't get where it was going and why it was taking so long to get there. UNTIL this story took an unexpected turn and smacked me in the face,
JESUS ALEXANDRA, YOU WENT THERE. Couldn't sleep last night.
Nightmares.
Have you read The Last One? Give me your thoughts below!