Contest

Rating:
Summary: Non Stop Action
Review: As Matthew Reilly has explained, this book was intended to be a no holds barred action adventure. Its very nature is to entertain and no apologies are made for the outrageous escapes or impossibly feats of heroics. I think he has met his goal in no uncertain terms.

Dr Stephen Swain has been handed one of the most sought after and prestigious opportunities in the universe. He has been chosen to represent Earth in the Presidian, a game played against the other 6 inhabited worlds. What an honour! What an opportunity! There's only 1 catch, the game is actually a fight to the death. Seven participants enter a labyrinth but only one leaves. Oh yeah, and Earth's participants have all performed remarkably poorly in past events.

Swain is afforded an advantage albeit a small one. This Presidian will be fought on his home ground or, more specifically, inside the New York Public Library. But any advantage he may have begins and ends there. Apparently, because previous representatives from Earth who were chosen based on their warrior backgrounds have performed so badly, Swain's selection was based solely on his ability to think his way around problems. So he enters a deadly fight to the death armed with - his wits.

So the battle begins after a quick rundown of the rules and the action becomes frenetic. It's a frantic bid for survival against the odds that doesn't fail in it's number one objective - namely to provide edge of the seat thrills.

Rating:
Summary: Good airport book
Review: Contest is Mathew Reilly's first book. It originally failed to attract a publisher and Reilly published it himself. Initially it was not that successful but it put his name out in the market and he was able to find a publisher for his second book Ice Station that was a success. This edition of Contest is somewhat expanded from the first version and has some more alien characters included.

The plot is that every thousand years all intelligent members of the galaxy send a representative to fight to the death in a sort of sporting event called the Presidium. Earth as an intelligent life form has a representative but unlike the other races they do not know about it until a contestant is whisked to a remote location to battle with six other species. Generally humans have done badly in this competition no doubt as they have not had the chance to prepare for it but also because the alien races are bigger and tougher.

Previously the runners of this intergalactic event have chosen humans with a military background. However on this occasion they choose a human who hit the newspapers as a result of being confronted with and fighting off some robbers. That is not someone with a combat record but with the reputation as a fast thinker. The hero is a Dr Swain who by accident is teleported with his daughter to the contest arena which in this case is the New York Public Library which is sealed off from the outside world by a field of electricity.

The book is a reasonably typical horror flick with people walking down book lined corridors and finding that bad things happen as monsters come out from behind large stacks of books. Will Dr Swain end up dead or will he end up doing rounds of the intergalactic talk shows as earth's first major celebrity?

Reilly is a writer who in his media interviews candidly says that his books are not meant to be epic works of fiction aimed at educating the world about the meaning of life. Rather he sees books as entertainments like action movies but unlike action movies the freedom to imagine means that there are no restrictions on budget or special effects. As such most of them have been successful. The one exception is his third book which suffered the problem of being set in a defined historical period. His fiction is best when it is set in imaginary worlds. This book is surprisingly entertaining and professional as a first work. That is probably reflective of its revision and expansion from its original form. Still a great airport book.

Rating:
Summary: Fairly silly comic book stuff
Review: fairly silly comic book stuff which does not make it bad, just know what you are buying. I personally do not care this type of book as it is way too over the top (and I do like good action adventure and thrillers). This is like a comic book on steroids!

Rating:
Summary: Contest - edge of you seat reading
Review: I loved this book, main characters that really are believable and that you come to care for. Great aliens to scare the heck out of you, and a pace that makes you leave the light on for 'just one more page' until you've finished the whole thing.
All of Reilly's books have a cracking pace and high drama, but this one has a father and a daughter that have you chewing your nails on cheering on.

Rating:
Summary: Exhilarating
Review: I read 'Contest' after reading the explosive 'Temple'. Forgetting the opening author's explanation for the novel which might be seen as a potential apology should the reader not enjoy the pages within, Contest comes across as Running Man meets a Library.
The premise is simple, Dr Stephen Swain has been selected to participate in the Presidion - a thousand year ultimate Games in which the seven species in the Universe participate for the ultimate prize (though we're never told what it is). By sheer fortune for the author, the human race (though having participated twice previously through the centurion Aurelius and Sir Alfred Hayes of Palmerton in eleventh century england) is unaware of this contest (not too much of a disadvantage) but are forced to participate. So, the seven nominated warriors are teleported to Earth (the venue for the seventh Presidion) the New York State Library, to be exact, where they are sealed in with an electric field, have a bomb stapped to their wrist in case of accidental escape and are told to fight to the death.
Each contestant has a guide who is not allowed to participate, only to observe and advise. Swain's, Selexin, turns out to be extremely helpful whilst going through the 'humans are more complex that we originally thought' epiphany phase so favoured whenever authors introduce an alien into the mix. Swain's task is to be the last survivor and reach the teleport before the Karanadon beast catches him. To inspire him, the last two human contestants died first.
Several anomalities are thrown in. Namely, Swain's daughter, Holly, is transported in. The contestant Bellos cheats, by introducing his hunting 'hoods' to the battle, there are two New York policemen who are unlucky enough to be in the Library when it is sealed, Parker (who doesn't last long) and Hawkins and we get the introduction of a somewhat exaggerated US alien hunting agency who manage to get into the building only to get to add to the casualty list fairly quickly.
What follows is a claustrophobic hunt to the death around the State Library resulting in major destruction, fires, multiple near-death escapes (usually in the elevators) and a general 'human kicks alien backside'. All very screenplay. By the end, Swain has escaped the building, had a brief trip through the subway and got back in with a second to spare using his phone (very E.T). The Presidion is called off when it is realised that Bellos has cheated and we neatly wrap up with Selexin leaving via an illegal teleporter, the Karandon and various other alien contestants being vaporised in mini-nuclear explosions thus leaving our dishevelled human hero to climb out of the dusty rubble....
I must confess I found this novel marvellous. A simple premise yet fast-actioned, good enough characterisation, developed plot, it delivers everything the author promised. No more no less. It had no pretensions of grandeur but provided a constant barrage of thrilling action. You could probably pick holes in its accuracy but that's not what it's about.
If you like incredibly fast paced, plausibility-is-irrelevant, action novels, then this is for you.

Rating:
Summary: I tried, I really did...
Review: I really did try to get into this book but just couldn't. I'm sick and tired of Matthew Reilly's silly "rules" and explanations for why a situation in his books happen. In a good story, events unfold naturally. Not in Reilly's books -- there's always some torturously intricate passage explaining why heroes find themselves in the setting they're in, or why windows can't be opened or doors can't be accessed or the outside world can't be contacted... it goes on and on. I guess I'm mainly thinking of this book and AREA 7, which both feature the most contrived scenarios that even a bad Hollywood movie would be embarrased by. The only time Reilly really got it right was ICE STATION, because the set-up felt natural and realistic. He obviously tries very hard to emulate Crichton or Preston/Child, but falls short of the mark. They take care with their premise, and allow us to be drawn into it in believable fashion. Reilly needs to go back to the drawing board and take more care with his material (and maybe he should stop trying to pump books out so fast. Give me quality over quantity any time).

Rating:
Summary: No Contest
Review: I'm glad to know that this is Reilly's first book. It's only now seeing the light of day because of his newer (and better) books; Ice Station, Temple, and Area 7. I was disappointed in this book. It had all the potential to be the type of thing I like. (Joe Everyman thrown into a "rise to the occasion", "save the world" situation) This book has aliens, monsters, agents, action and more but I just found it to be a bit cliche and very much like a comic book. I'm glad that Reilly has found success because he has shaped up to be a great writer of escapist fiction. This book serves as an example of where he came from. I will read everything he writes...probably more than once.

Rating:
Summary: Thrills A Plenty -- but slower than Reilly's previous 3...
Review: I've known about 'Contest' since LONG before it's most recent release. Anyone who gets into Matthew Reilly's novels will eventually find out about his first novel that he shopped around to publishers who all said, 'No thanks' and went ahead and published it himself. His sheer preserverance paid off when he received a contract to write 'Ice Station', his first commercial success. A novel which completely re-wrote the book on how an action/adventure novel should be written. I am NOT kidding when I say there is more action in the 1st 50 pages than in a DOZEN Dirk Pitt novels COMBINED. The pacing that Reilly creates is absolutely unbelievable. Something you have NEVER experienced before by ANY other author. 'Ice Station' was just one amazingly fun novel -- incredibly unbelievable -- but tremendously FUN. He followed that up with my personal favorite Reilly novel to date, 'Temple'...which continued his pacing with new intensity. He resurrected his main character from 'Ice Station' when he brought us 'Area 7' and thrilled me yet again with chase scenes that race along at warp speed. Now I discovered that 'Contest' would be partially re-written and released globally -- at the publishers request due to Reilly's stunning popularity. I was skeptical, but hopeful that 'Contest' would live up to his previous works.

I am happy to say that the plot to 'Contest' is simply FANTASTIC. Unlike one previous reviewer who made it out that in order for your galaxy to continue to survive, you had to win the Contest, this is NOT the case. Just one Contestant is chosen from 7 worlds to compete in The Presidian -- THE Contest. Either you walk out the winner or you don't walk out at ALL. Doctor Stephen Swain is sucked into what is called 'The Labyrinth' or to us mere mortals, The New York Public Library. Stephen is an UNWILLING participant. He was chosen against his will to participate in the Contest to either win, or like 2 other human representatives in the past, fail miserably. But along the way a few snags cause a few problems: Stephen's daughter, Holly, is accidentally brought along through a teleport device -- oh, and one of the Contestants has made the horrific choice to cheat, rendering all others participating in The Presidian an all but dismal chance at survival. Along for the ride with Stephen and Holly is their Guide, Selexin, who has the unfortunate task of telling his unwilling participant about how to proceed in a Contest he doesn't want to be in, and quickly decides that as nice as Stephen Swain is, he'll most likely be one of the first to die, and if the Contestant dies, so does their Guide, which means that Selexin must die as well. Poor Selexin. Along the way we also find out that whoever is IN the Presidian, they must be fitted with a non removeable wrist-band which gives out specific information, such as how many Contestants are still alive, and also acts as executioner should you accidentally find yourself OUTSIDE of The Labyrinth. It generously gives you 15 minutes to get back INSIDE before detonating. Oh, and the ENTIRE Labyrinth is sealed with an electronic force-field not only keeping everyone competing IN but also keeping everything else OUT. Now should you be fortunate enough to survive ALL the competitors, you then must pass one additional test: Kill the Karanadon -- a vicious beast that alone has left at least one previous Presidian without a winner at all.

There is SO MUCH to 'Contest' that I could never possibly include it all here. With that said, I still felt that it wasn't as fast paced as his previous 3 books -- but that isn't to say that it wasn't moving along a like Saturn V rocket. On the contrary, this story moves. All in all, I think that 'Contest' ranks above 'Ice Station' and 'Area 7' but is just slightly behind 'Temple' in overall satisfaction (this is just my opinion -- your opinion may vary). Truly a story worth telling and even better to read. Once again, as with ALL of Reilly's previous works, BEFORE you begin, check your believability meter at page 1 and you will then embark upon a few hours of absolute true escapism at its finest. I anxiously await Matthew Reilly's next adventure and will pick it up without question having now added him to my short list of MUST READ Authors. HIGHLY Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Ecch
Review: I've tried Reilly's other books and they are a mixed lot. Ice Station is quite good fun, as is Temple. On the other hand, Area 7 was boring and seemed uninspired, as if he were going through the motions to collect his paycheck. Contest is also poor, but it suffers from a different flaw: not only was it written before Reilly was famous, it was his first effort. And it shows.

The "characters" are cliched and unbelievable, just one-dimensional cut-outs. There's nothing to drag your interest in, or make you care how the story unfolds. The setup is gimmicky: it would have been more fun (and believable) if they had been teleported to some other planet containing a purpose-built labyrinth than to resort to a force field to keep people out, and arm-bands to keep contestants in. (Though it then would have lost the "familiarity" of the New York Public Library). The "keep protagonists out of contact with the world by any means" is a common element in Reilly's work, and is taken to equally ludicrous heights in Area 7.

Plot holes abound, and the whole way through, you're just thinking "man, this is *dumb*" or "as if he would do *that*". The writing is excruciating in many places; bog-obvious, unsubtle, and even plain silly. Waaaaaay too many italics and exclamation points. And, overall, not a lot actually *happens*.

Take a pass on this forgettable book; go for Ice Station and Temple, then move on to another author. I recommend Preston & Child. Relic is a similar-themed but far superior book to Contest, and Riptide and Ice Limit just rock.

Rating:
Summary: Thrills to the last second...
Review: It was a rollercoaster ride from beginning to end. Almost as good as "Ice Station" from the same author. The thrills and action makes it hard to put the book down. It's a cross between "Survivor" and "Aliens". Read it!!!