REVIEW: The Troop by Nick Cutter

Title: The Troop
Author: Nick Cutter
Publisher: Gallery Books
Expected Date of Release: January 7th 2013
Pages:368
Source: NetGalley *Received in exchange for an honest review*

Lord of the Flies meets The Ruins in this frightening novel written in the bestselling traditions of Stephen King and Scott Smith. 

Boy Scouts live by the motto “Be Prepared.” However, nothing can prepare this group of young boys and their scoutmaster for what they encounter on a small, deserted island, as they settle down for a weekend of campfires, merit badges, and survival lessons.

Everything changes when a haggard stranger in tattered clothing appears out of nowhere and collapses on the campers’ doorstep. Before the night is through, this stranger will end up infecting one of the troop’s own with a bioengineered horror that’s straight out of their worst nightmares. Now stranded on the island with no communication to the outside world, the troop learns to battle much more than the elements, as they are pitted against something nature never intended…and eventually each other.

“Lean and crisp and over-the-top....Disquieting, disturbing,” says Scott Smith, author of The Ruins and A Simple Plan, The Troop is a visceral burn of a read that combines boldly drawn characters with a fantastically rendered narrative—a terrifying story you’ll never forget.

I have been so looking forward to reading this book. The reviews have been amazing and people classed it as a true horror that will creep you out to the bone. And I will be honest, it sure did... But it was just TOO much. I love the cover, so mysterious and creepy, especially with the lightening and birds.

Five boys go to a deserted island for a weekend with their Scoutmaster for an enjoyable and exciting time including treks and survival lessons. But they get more than they bargained for. When a man comes stumbling to their cabin in an ill state, their kindness ignores their worry and so they take him under their wing, who knew a bioengineered horror would unfold.

The characters in this book where your usual mix, you have the jock, the nerd, the bad-boy, the chubby one and the what-you-would-call... Weird one. I disliked them, they all appeared very immature and unable to make any sensible decisions, however maybe their judgments may have been twisted by the events that unfolded. Then we have to weird boy... His personality and actions were over the top and made you very uncomfortable to read about, especially the animal abuse which I found completely unnecessary and disgusting. It was just too much! 

The plot itself was very clever, I loved the idea of the bioengineered creature and what it did and how it's characteristics evolved. Additionally, I liked the way we had two sides of a story, one with interviews from the scientists and their recording when developing the creature and the second with reports from the military, police and councillars which added massively to the atmosphere of the book.

However, this book I felt was TOO over-the-top, usually I don't mind over-the-top but I found 'The Troop' quite disgusting and in some areas, such as things said, uncomfortable and unnecessary. I do love horror, however, this book I felt was just pushing the limit.

This is definitely an Adult title, no matter what people say, it is NOT a Young Adult novel!