Review: The Monster Within...
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 8, 2013
I typically shy away from gory books and reading the reviews, I was unsure about this one; however, I did not find this book to be an over-the-top gore fest. There was just enough gore to illustrate the viciousness of the "Other" that resides within one of the book's main characters. So if you are the type of reader that does not do well with, or enjoy, very gory books, I would still recommend giving this book a try as it was not so gory that it interfered with the storyline, nor does the storyline revolve around the gore. In the words of Goldilocks, "it was just right."One of my major pet peeves is reading a novel full of grammatical and spelling errors. If there are enough errors, I will NOT finish reading it, I don't care how good the story is. In this case, there are some misspelled words scattered throughout the novel; however, there are not enough to jar the reader out of the story. As for grammar, there are a few errors, but they too are not severe or nearly frequent enough to warrant setting the book aside and dismissing it with disgust.The story itself is rather unique and character development is very well done. I appreciate how the author 'tells' the story from the perspective of various characters. While this writing technique can be book suicide if the author isn't skilled in shifting the point of view back and forth between characters, Max Wilde(Roger Smith) manages to make it work and does so expertly. By viewing the story through the eyes of each major character, a certain depth and deeper understanding of each character's emotions and actions is achieved, more so than if narrated from a single point of view. By the end of the novel, I felt intimately connected to the characters, as if they could walk out of the book and right into my living room for a cup of tea and a chat.Not once while reading this novel did I feel bored or find myself skimming through pages. I was deeply invested in the storyline and anxious to see it through to the end. The plot is unpredictable which adds to the suspense and intrigue. The ending is tidy, with no loose ends or unanswered questions. The main plot and accompanying subplots all come together by the end, leaving the reader satisfied.One of the main reasons I enjoyed this book so much is because it strongly hints at the monster within all of us. When we feel threatened or the lives of ourselves or our loved ones are threatened, does that monster rise up within us all? While the 'monster' in this novel is very real, the author subtly suggests and gently pushes forward the idea of the evil that resides within us, and poses the internal question of what we are capable of should we reach our breaking point. This novel also brings up the issue of vigilante justice. When 'vile blood' is spilled as opposed to the blood of an innocent, do we feel equally appalled at both, or do we, somewhere in our psyche, believe that the murder of 'vile' people is a form of justice and therefore not as appalling? These are some of the issues that the reader confronts throughout the novel.I recommend this book to other readers looking for an enjoyable and chilling read, even those that aren't comfortable with gore but want to read a good horror story. It is my opinion that this book is not nearly as gory as it's portrayed to be.