Monster

So taking a break from Dekker, here is Monster by Frank Peretti. If I remember correctly, this is the newest novel by Peretti, but it is 2-3 years old now. I read this when it first came out, and I have to be honest... I do not remember a lot of the plot off the top of my head.

From what I do remember, this was a fairly good book. And I do remember liking it. But it was not one of those novels that just blew me away and had me wondering and guessing constantly out of suspense. Now this book is about some people who get lost in the woods and are attacked by this "monster." And the point of the books is trying to track this mysterious being down. But that is a complicated process.

Although, this is not one of my all time favorite books, I did like one aspect Peretti and the publishers threw into it. After each chapter there is a map of the forest that the characters are searching through. Now I enjoy creating my own scene in my mind when I am reading, but I found it hard to picture this forest and remember where all the main plot events occurred. So the maps that were provided helped me keep in mind where each "clue" was found and other important information. It kept things in perspective for me. That is pretty much the highlight of the book.

Now do not get me wrong, I think this is a great book, but there is a lot of guessing. You will constantly be trying to figure out what is going on. But I do not see this as a "good" thing. I think that a lot of the guessing is out of confusion and not suspense. So if you like good mysterious novels, you may really enjoy this book. And if you are a fan of Peretti, I feel that you would enjoy this book as well. It all comes down to what your tastes are, and of course mine are probably different than yours. So this is not necessarily a negative review. I would probably give it 3 out of 5 stars.

Matt