Review: steady pace but worth the effort
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 20, 2014
I enjoyed the hell out of this novel. It's extremely well written, and while the pacing is steady and requires patience, the effort is worth it. These are horrors alluded to, carefully orchestrated, until the slam-bang conclusion, where the beasts come onstage. McBride is a great, fuss-free storyteller and certainly knows who to hold your attention. Characterisation is solid throughout and there's some lovely descriptive writing -- the Peruvian forests really come to life. Is the book a bit long? I'd say probably; in fairness, Algernon Blackwood did this kind of thing at novella length. But that's only a minor dissatisfaction. For all round entertainment, it's hard to beat.