Book Review: Hell Island, by Matthew Reilly

Looking at the book Hell Island makes me wonder two things immediately.

First… is Matthew Reilly trying to show that he can bring as much thrill into a shorter novel as he does with his bigger ones? And second… what the hell am I in for?

The title itself puts some expectation into my mind. And the blurb just pushes it up.

An island that doesn’t appear on any maps and one where the government conducts classified experiments; when that is taken, the US sends in crack forces to see what’s happening and to retake control of the island. But that’s easier said than done. They are up against “genetically enhanced supersoldiers”. One by one, this enemy force takes out the crack forces. Till only Shane Schofield and his team of Marines are left to battle. They’ve entered hell. But can they go back?

I feel this book is worth every word. It keeps me engaged from start to finish and turning pages eagerly to know what’s going to happen. The characters are interesting, and even the doubters in Scarecrow’s team are well thought of. In this novel’s case, it’s just survival of the fittest and the team that thinks on its feet. The villains are a surprise, but well justified. And why the book was written, that cause is also a nice one.

What I didn’t like in the book was the illustrations, which felt out of place. It’s one thing to illustrate the lay of the land or such, but to illustrate the characters felt unnecessary.

It falls in place nicely with the rest of the Scarecrow series, and one that I enjoyed reading.

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The Bookworm Rates This: 4/5

Book Details
Title: Hell Island	Series: Shane Schofield #4
Author(s): Matthew Reilly	Genre: Thriller
ISBN/ASIN: 9781439191330	Publisher: Simon and Schuster
No. of Pages: 160	Price: Rs. 175

I own a copy of the book. The views expressed here are my own, frank and uninfluenced.

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(© 1^st May 2015)