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Beast

Beast

List Price: $16.00
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: OK
Review: I like the author and have read several of his other books. He writes clearly and plainly, and the books are effortless to read, and enjoyable. His research is excellent and his locations are unique and exotic. His characters draw empathy and he keeps the plot simple, yet enthralling. It's a good read.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A Blatant Copy of Jaws
Review: I liked reading the Beast well enough but really found it hard to get past the fact that he has now written three books of essentially the same nature (Creature, Jaws, Beast) The similarites between the Beast and Jaws are remarkable and i think Benchly should break new groud and attempt to write a book that doesn't involve a mutated of overly aggressive creature of the see.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A GREAT SCARE
Review: I love, love, love this book. To me, this is much scarier than any horror novel because this type of squid does exist and theoretically, I guess you could be attacked by one. Hey... I was not that fond of the ocean BEFORE I read this... there is no way I am going in now. I highly recommend this to anyone who is happy to stay on land and wants a thrilling book to read. You won't want to put it down and you will hate to see it end.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Best Beast
Review: I was never much of a reader, but this book would not let go of me. I read this book in 3 nights. I just couldn't seem to put it down. Page after page, terror, horror, suspense. AAWWWW!! I was on the edge of by seat. I just couldn't stop turning the pages. I saw the TV movie of this book and it didn't do it justice. A must have for all you suspense\horror junkies. A definate read again book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Lacks Bite? BEAST is lean, entertaining reading experience!
Review: If anyone is going to write a worthwhile rip-off of Peter Benchley's classic thriller JAWS, it might as well be Peter Benchley, and I promise you, he has.

A novel about a giant squid chowing down on the Burmuda ocean-going population isn't exactly high literature, but by that token, neither was JAWS. If you have read and appreciated JAWS, then you should also love BEAST, unless you are a stickler for originality. But the fact is this, while nothing will ever touch JAWS, BEAST (at least in its book version) is the best thing-in-water thriller since 1975, and I write as of 2003. (The TV miniseries itself is every bit as good as JAWS 2, for that matter)

This book covers all the basic cliches (attack on boats, scuba divers, beachgoers, non-human victims, the close-call that no one realizes how close it was, and final boat confrontation), some of which were totally origial as 1993. But Benchley does them as well as any author ever has. His style is taut and unique, always full of tension.

Benchley doesn't skimp the human department either. And as far as this kind of fiction goes, his human relatoins are near-perfect. The mood of BEAST, like JAWS, is tense and moody; characters tend to be on the down-and-out side of life, unhappy with things and people, but still easy to identify and sympathize with. The sour, grim moods add tension and urgency to the plot-progressing moments between attack sequences, which probably aren't that impressive nowadays, but hardly boring.

This is a return to familiar terrirtory for Benchley, and it's better than the pulpy, 70's and 80's ocean thrillers he was writing, which are even more gritty and sour, but without the characters and excitement. BEAST'S tense writing style and characters also make for some pretty amusing dialogue.

I respect everyone's opinion, but I recommend that you ignore the negative reviews and pick this up (there's no reason for this to be out of print). JAWS, BEAST, and THE GIRL OF THE SEA OF CORTEZ are THE Benchley novels to get. Even if you have originality problems, if you liked JAWS, you should dig BEAST. I'd be honestly surprsied if you didn't.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Another great ocean thriller from Benchley!
Review: In the tradition of "Jaws", Peter Benchley writes another deep-sea thriller in "Beast". The balmy isle of Bermuda becomes the feeding ground for a horrific creature that makes the Great White seem tame. Benchley has a passion for detail in his writings, letting the reader become a part of the story. His knack for character development reveals itself in the story's hero, Whip Darling, who seems more human than perhaps your next door neighbor. Possibly the author's most valuable trait, though, is his knowledge of life on, and under, the sea. The trivial factoids make the book seem almost non-fiction and therefore, much more terrible. If you're in the mood for a spine-tingling thriller with a touch of reality, Peter Benchley is for you, and "Beast" is one of his best!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Beast of a book
Review: Just as good as Jaws. The same thing only very different. Peter realy does fill you in so well about Bermuda, you can almost smell it. The pace of the book is driven by the hunter's lust to kill, the scientist's desire for knowledge and the reluctant hero who is forced to comply. If you saw the movie you must read the book. Although you could see it all on film the book lets you feel it. A real ripsnorter.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: I liked it, I loved it, This book has all of it
Review: OK, this time it's not a shark, but it's just as mean and ulgy as JAWS. Beast is a not stop trill rush. If you never felt like you have been in the novel with the action, you will for this novel. A terror now has appeared deep down in the ocean. Your palms with be soaked by the end of the action packed, detailed story. In this novel, don't guess who's going to be killed (eaten) because you must likely be wrong.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Promised a lot, but lacked more than it promised.
Review: Okay, I like deep sea adventures novels, such as Sphere, MEG, and Goliath and I picked this book, hoping for a somewhat scary novel about a giant squid. I was sadly disapointed at how boring this book is. Even during the most exciting parts of this book, it is dull. I'm just glad I didn't buy this book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Excellent Summer Read!
Review: Peter Benchley is the king of "beach novels", and BEAST is no exception. Yes all of Benchley's books have been compared to JAWS, and how he just keeps writing the same thing over, and over. Well if the formula works. Why change it? BEAST is compelling, and filled with rich, strong characters that move the story along quickly. Whip Darling the novel's hero is an excellent "everyman" hero, and the Beast is just plain scary! Benchley's vivid descriptions of scenes in the book has always been his strongest point in my opinion. Through Benchley's writing the reader can really get a sense of what is happening in key scenes, and some of these scenes are terrifying, indeed. After JAWS, and BEAST. I am surprised that i even go in the water anymore! From the opening scene to the final, and surprising climax BEAST satisfys, and entertains.


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