Crawlers

Rating:
Summary: Wet Bones was awesome
Review: Well, I'm just going to confirm what you probably have already heard: This is John Shirley attempting a "mainstream" horror/sci-fi novel. This one would fit snug between a King or Koontz novel. But, that doesn't make it totally worthless. As such, it does have it's moments.

Shirley has a plot that could have spawned an incredible novel. The nature of the antagonist should have inspired Shirley to create scenes and images worthy of or surpassing "Wet Bones". Instead he seems intent on telling a more "mainstream" story. Does this sound familiar: numerous character that we learn everything about, meeting at the end to make their final "stand"? There is even a mentally challenged character (what was the name of the dude in that King novel?).

Don't get me wrong, there are some pretty neat scenes and images. In the end, however, it didn't seem worth all that time (oh, did I mention that Shirley even makes this one as long as a King novel- at least it seemed that way).

The plot? It's a combination of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", "The Terminator" and Ray Bradbury's short story: "Zero Hour" if you reverse the roles for parent and child.

Rating:
Summary: A good, not great, read
Review: When I saw John Shirley released "Crawlers," a new horror novel, I rushed out to get a copy. I had the wonderful experience of reading "Wetbones" and "Black Butterflies" a couple of years ago, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with this book. Remember the themes of addiction in "Wetbones"? Remember the over the top gore in that book? Remember the Lovecraftian menace that haunted the pages of that immensely scary and enjoyable novel? It's sad to say, but "Crawlers" is not Lovecraftian. It doesn't deal with a personal theme like addiction. It is not scary. And it doesn't have anywhere near the levels of imaginative gore Shirley lovingly sprinkled across the pages of "Wetbones." Still, that's perfectly acceptable. Not all authors wish to stick to tried and true formulas. I don't think I would if I ever decided to write books and short stories. While "Crawlers" doesn't employ the awesome components that made up "Wetbones," it is still an entertaining novel in its own right.

Quiebra, California is a small town situated in the San Francisco Bay Area, a town with low rents and a diverse population that enjoys living near a large metropolis but without the noise and high crime rates. That's not to say there aren't problems in the town, that there aren't kids giving their parents and the local police fits by raising trouble on the weekends. Still, most of the people in town are well behaved, with the only problems occurring when the local teens race cars and party on occasion. What no one knows is that the peaceful atmosphere of Quiebra is about to change forever after a mysterious satellite crashes on the outskirts of town. A local salvage diver by the name of Nick Leverton, figuring on getting a big paycheck from the government, turns up at the site and tricks the soldiers there into letting him bring up the wreckage. With his son Cal helping him, Nick indeed finds a satellite in the water. What happens next, as he attempts to drag it up, guarantees that the town of Quiebra will never, ever, be the same again. The problems start in the Leverton household, with Nick, his wife, his daughter Adair, and his son Cal. Soon, Adair's boyfriend Waylon, a conspiracy nut with a knack for electronics, enters the picture, as does Adair's Aunt Lacey, a local college professor, a federal agent named Stanner, and about a dozen other characters both major and minor. A nightmare is coming, one that involves a lot more than a harmless satellite sitting on the bottom of a bay.

It turns out that the government, specifically an ultra-secret Pentagon research lab called The Facility, has been mucking around with a dangerous new high tech weapon system. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the federal government wants to insure that they have a leg up on any potential foes. It's a noble goal, and probably a necessary one, but new weapon systems sometimes have the irritating tendency to not do what the creators want. That's exactly what happened in this instance, as evidenced in the first chapter when the experiment got out of control at an isolated lab, requiring a rather violent response from the military to keep the whole thing from spreading into the larger population. Then someone high up got a bright idea: why not launch the whole mess into space, where the experiment can continue away from human population centers? Just get NASA to build a big enough box, reason the military brass, and the United States can still have their new weapon floating around the heavens. Predictably, what goes up must inevitably come down, and when it does the whole world faces annihilation. Why? Because this weapon system is highly intelligent, works diligently on its own with little supervision from humans, and can replicate itself in a short period of time. I won't spoil the book by chattering about specifics, but it's called nanotechnology and it's a nasty bugger that won't take no for an answer. Suffice it say that the whole town rapidly turns into a population of human machines that cause endless mayhem.

"Crawlers" works despite its derivative qualities. The book's strongest elements are the characters. Shirley spends an enormous amount of time fleshing these figures out, placing special emphasis on the teenage residents of Quiebra. It seems the author spent some time researching the lingo used by today's muddled youth, which he then put to good effect in the novel. At first, the constant uses of "like" and "tight," along with other slang terms particular to America's youth, grated on my nerves. It grows on you after awhile, as do the young characters. Even Waylon, a morose kid with blue hair and an attitude problem, assumes a likeable dimension as the story progresses. The adults receive less attention from Shirley with the exception of Stanner, the Air Force operative who undergoes a crisis of conscience about the unfolding horrors in Quiebra.

A central problem with "Crawlers," aside from a lack of over the top gore I expected from this author, was the conclusion. Readers of horror novels, or at least this reader, sort of anticipate an ending charged with frenetic activity. In short, we look for something over the top to wrap up a long story. Regrettably, Shirley cops out with an ending that is pat and over too quickly. The denouement of "Crawlers" doesn't approach the banality of a Bentley Little finale, but it does leave a lot to be desired. If I had to recommend a John Shirley book at this point, I would probably point a reader to "Wetbones" rather than "Crawlers." The novel isn't an original work, but it is an entertaining one nonetheless. Give it a shot.

Rating:
Summary: A good, not great, read
Review: When I saw John Shirley released "Crawlers," a new horror novel, I rushed out to get a copy. I had the wonderful experience of reading "Wetbones" and "Black Butterflies" a couple of years ago, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with this book. Remember the themes of addiction in "Wetbones"? Remember the over the top gore in that book? Remember the Lovecraftian menace that haunted the pages of that immensely scary and enjoyable novel? It's sad to say, but "Crawlers" is not Lovecraftian. It doesn't deal with a personal theme like addiction. It is not scary. And it doesn't have anywhere near the levels of imaginative gore Shirley lovingly sprinkled across the pages of "Wetbones." Still, that's perfectly acceptable. Not all authors wish to stick to tried and true formulas. I don't think I would if I ever decided to write books and short stories. While "Crawlers" doesn't employ the awesome components that made up "Wetbones," it is still an entertaining novel in its own right.

Quiebra, California is a small town situated in the San Francisco Bay Area, a town with low rents and a diverse population that enjoys living near a large metropolis but without the noise and high crime rates. That's not to say there aren't problems in the town, that there aren't kids giving their parents and the local police fits by raising trouble on the weekends. Still, most of the people in town are well behaved, with the only problems occurring when the local teens race cars and party on occasion. What no one knows is that the peaceful atmosphere of Quiebra is about to change forever after a mysterious satellite crashes on the outskirts of town. A local salvage diver by the name of Nick Leverton, figuring on getting a big paycheck from the government, turns up at the site and tricks the soldiers there into letting him bring up the wreckage. With his son Cal helping him, Nick indeed finds a satellite in the water. What happens next, as he attempts to drag it up, guarantees that the town of Quiebra will never, ever, be the same again. The problems start in the Leverton household, with Nick, his wife, his daughter Adair, and his son Cal. Soon, Adair's boyfriend Waylon, a conspiracy nut with a knack for electronics, enters the picture, as does Adair's Aunt Lacey, a local college professor, a federal agent named Stanner, and about a dozen other characters both major and minor. A nightmare is coming, one that involves a lot more than a harmless satellite sitting on the bottom of a bay.

It turns out that the government, specifically an ultra-secret Pentagon research lab called The Facility, has been mucking around with a dangerous new high tech weapon system. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the federal government wants to insure that they have a leg up on any potential foes. It's a noble goal, and probably a necessary one, but new weapon systems sometimes have the irritating tendency to not do what the creators want. That's exactly what happened in this instance, as evidenced in the first chapter when the experiment got out of control at an isolated lab, requiring a rather violent response from the military to keep the whole thing from spreading into the larger population. Then someone high up got a bright idea: why not launch the whole mess into space, where the experiment can continue away from human population centers? Just get NASA to build a big enough box, reason the military brass, and the United States can still have their new weapon floating around the heavens. Predictably, what goes up must inevitably come down, and when it does the whole world faces annihilation. Why? Because this weapon system is highly intelligent, works diligently on its own with little supervision from humans, and can replicate itself in a short period of time. I won't spoil the book by chattering about specifics, but it's called nanotechnology and it's a nasty bugger that won't take no for an answer. Suffice it say that the whole town rapidly turns into a population of human machines that cause endless mayhem.

"Crawlers" works despite its derivative qualities. The book's strongest elements are the characters. Shirley spends an enormous amount of time fleshing these figures out, placing special emphasis on the teenage residents of Quiebra. It seems the author spent some time researching the lingo used by today's muddled youth, which he then put to good effect in the novel. At first, the constant uses of "like" and "tight," along with other slang terms particular to America's youth, grated on my nerves. It grows on you after awhile, as do the young characters. Even Waylon, a morose kid with blue hair and an attitude problem, assumes a likeable dimension as the story progresses. The adults receive less attention from Shirley with the exception of Stanner, the Air Force operative who undergoes a crisis of conscience about the unfolding horrors in Quiebra.

A central problem with "Crawlers," aside from a lack of over the top gore I expected from this author, was the conclusion. Readers of horror novels, or at least this reader, sort of anticipate an ending charged with frenetic activity. In short, we look for something over the top to wrap up a long story. Regrettably, Shirley cops out with an ending that is pat and over too quickly. The denouement of "Crawlers" doesn't approach the banality of a Bentley Little finale, but it does leave a lot to be desired. If I had to recommend a John Shirley book at this point, I would probably point a reader to "Wetbones" rather than "Crawlers." The novel isn't an original work, but it is an entertaining one nonetheless. Give it a shot.