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james_desantis 's review for:
The Troop
by Nick Cutter
Hey between all the comics I gotta get some novels in there...right? Troop is about a group of boy-scouts going on their daily adventure into the forest. They're still earning their badges and doing their...boy-scout thing? I dunno much about all that. Either way a mysterious guy shows up on the island their on and he's not doing too good. Soon we see him shoot out some goo all over the boy-scout leader and all hell breaks loose.
This story is a mix of mutliple genres. It's a coming of age story, horror, and downright grossness. There's things that happen, and in plenty of detailed, that even made me cringe a bit. This is coming from someone who reads a ton of horror and watches it. Just hearing certain things about animals getting murdered and such isn't easy to picture. So this is not for the faint of heart.
What I liked: The characters interactions with each other is very enjoyable. They feel like kids throughout the entire thing which is something not easy to portray. I also love the little interviews and courtroom moments. It takes place after the events on the island but damn is it entertaining and gets you invested again when the previous chapter might slow down enough to lose it. I really enjoyed the backgrounds of each kid. They were fleshed out and when someone gets hurt or dies you can feel something.
What I didn't like: The idea of this creature is cool but never felt it was very scary. They tried a little bit at the end to give us a "horror" monster but failed to live up to the moment before it. I also couldn't grasp to one main character. I get they give a cast, but you still need a focus point to attach to. I liked the kids but didn't pick one to care the most for, which made it hard to care enough to be sad when something truly horrible happened. The pacing had its ups and downs. It felt slow at times, exciting at others.
Overall the Troop was a fun read. I didn't love it though. I thought I might have when it began but due to the pacing and not getting attached I lost the will to fully fall in love with the story shown here. However, it's still worth reading and I'd advise any horror fan to give it a chance! A 3.5 out of 5.
This story is a mix of mutliple genres. It's a coming of age story, horror, and downright grossness. There's things that happen, and in plenty of detailed, that even made me cringe a bit. This is coming from someone who reads a ton of horror and watches it. Just hearing certain things about animals getting murdered and such isn't easy to picture. So this is not for the faint of heart.
What I liked: The characters interactions with each other is very enjoyable. They feel like kids throughout the entire thing which is something not easy to portray. I also love the little interviews and courtroom moments. It takes place after the events on the island but damn is it entertaining and gets you invested again when the previous chapter might slow down enough to lose it. I really enjoyed the backgrounds of each kid. They were fleshed out and when someone gets hurt or dies you can feel something.
What I didn't like: The idea of this creature is cool but never felt it was very scary. They tried a little bit at the end to give us a "horror" monster but failed to live up to the moment before it. I also couldn't grasp to one main character. I get they give a cast, but you still need a focus point to attach to. I liked the kids but didn't pick one to care the most for, which made it hard to care enough to be sad when something truly horrible happened. The pacing had its ups and downs. It felt slow at times, exciting at others.
Overall the Troop was a fun read. I didn't love it though. I thought I might have when it began but due to the pacing and not getting attached I lost the will to fully fall in love with the story shown here. However, it's still worth reading and I'd advise any horror fan to give it a chance! A 3.5 out of 5.