The Fall: Book Two of the Strain Trilogy

The Fall: Book Two of the Strain Trilogy is the middle book of a vampire trilogy by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan.The third book has not yet been published.


Like everyone else who takes on the vampire genre, del Toro and Hogan have added their stamp to this archetypal monster, so much so that Bram Stoker would probably not even recognize the monsters in The Fall as vampires. I won't go into details about what make The Fall's vampires tick, but if you are hoping for pretty teen vampires in designer jeans or castle-dwelling Eastern European counts, this book will disappoint you.

The Fall opens with New York (and the world) in flames. Vampires are preying on people and spreading the curse of their blood lust at such an alarming rate that there are few humans left to tend to critical matters like, say, maintaining nuclear reactors. A team of unlikely allies under the leadership of a vampire expert must rid the world of this substantial menace while there is still time. Their biggest challenge is defeating the Master, the vampire overlord who telepathically unites all the monsters under him into a pretty feisty fighting force.

I found this book enjoyable for the most part. It was just what I was in the mood for: quick-reading, fast-paced entertainment. The narrative should hold the interest of most readers and I never found myself rooting for the vampires, which is a good sign. However, the writing is a bit wooden and the plot is completely unbelievable. Yes, I know that one must suspend disbelief when reading a monster book, but it is possible to write in this genre without resorting to scenarios that are so absurd as to be unlikely even in a highly fictionalized setting. Stephen King, for example, pulls this feat off well.

Other quibbles: the characters are a bit thin on personality and the focus is on action, not terror, so I never found myself scared. Negatives aside, I am sure I will read the third book when it comes out.

Oh, and surprise, surprise -- they are making a movie based on it.

-Paul


If you like The Fall you may also appreciate:

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. A very suspensful and well-written story about the hunt for an elusive vampire.
The Vampire Chronicles, a series by Anne Rice.
Salem's Lot by Stephen King. Very creepy!

Seaworthy: a Swordfish Captain Returns to the Sea

I just finished Linda Greenlaw's Seaworthy: a Swordfish Captain Returns to the Sea. I was surprised to see she had written a new book related to her commercial fishing career: I thought she had retired from fishing.

Seaworthy recounts Greenlaw's 52-day sword-fishing trip to the Grand Banks, her first after a ten year hiatus. Just about everything that could go wrong does go wrong, from mechanical failures, crew electrocution (he lived) to being arrested by the Canadian Coast Guard. Despite this, Greenlaw writes as if the experience were a humorous and fun adventure.

Her writing style is engaging and informative and she assesses herself with humor and honesty. I thoroughly enjoyed sharing in her adventure.

I've read her other books about adventures at life at sea and enjoyed them as well.  I haven't had a chance to read her mysteries yet, but they're on my ever growing list of books I'll get to.

If you enjoy her writing, you may be interested to know that the Discovery channel has a show about her and other swordfishing captains called "Swords - Life on the Line."  The show is modeled after the "Deadliest Catch."


-Natalie


If you enjoy Seaworthy, you might also like:

The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger
The Hungry Ocean: a Swordfish Captain's Journey by Linda Greenlaw