Review: The Book 1 finale... more encounters and more info leading to Book 2
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 4, 2012
"The Island - Final Chapters" is the finale of Book 1 in the horror/thriller series, 'Fallen Earth' by author Michael Stark. This Kindle e-book was a 327 Kb download (approx. 87 printed pages) and was $0.99 at the time of writing this review.Please Note: the author sent me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.Spoilers (general theme)It was called 'The Fever' and it struck hard and fast, going from a few isolated cases to a world wide pandemic in a matter of weeks. There was no cure as the entity causing the infection mutated faster than vaccines could be developed.William Hill, our hero, decides to take his boat to an island off the North Carolina coast with the hope of surviving as long as he could and maybe, just maybe still be alive if the disease ever burnt itself out. There he meets several other stranded people of different personalities and in various states of mental anguish.But the island they're on turns out to be as deadly as the mainland they were trying to escape... but for entirely different reasons.End SpoilersSome thoughts on "The Island-Final Chapters"...The Pros:1.) I liked the short segments... usually readable within about an hour2.) a great story that is told with a superb sense of pace and timing.3.) some very tense, exciting moments.4.) more information is revealed about source of the deadly presence on the island.5.) it appears that the boy, Daniel, has a major role to play in the future.The Cons:1.) believability... as always, an issue with me.  e.g. <spoiler> Again our hero (William Hill) goes out alone (at night) in search of a large flying creature that he has wounded.Would you really do something like this... I think not.In essence he ends up putting himself, and by extension, his remaining survivors at the station at extreme risk. These particular actions (and in previous episodes as well)  border very close to a gunslinger persona in many regards. Just unrealistic given the scenario detailed in the story.2.) some background information revealed there was a battle in heaven long ago i.e. good vs. evil. I just hope the author doesn't have in mind a religious war brewing in this series' future. I just find God and fantasy tend to be a poor mix.3.) and this is not really a Con, but I'd hoped for another confrontation with Ryan Parks (after the stand-off at the beach in Part 4) but there was only passing mention of him in this installment.Conclusion:A finale that sets up the next book, "The Rock".Overall an exciting and intriguing tale filled with some of the most scary and creepy scenes I've read in ages. This 5th book was maybe less intense than some of the previous installments, but nonetheless, a worthy addition to the series.This book 4 Stars.The series to date... 4 3/4 Stars.Ray Nicholsonraynicholsonsreviews@hotmail.com