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A review by thefox22
Creed by Lindsay Currie, Trisha Leaver
3.0
*eARC kindly provided by Flux via NetGalley*
*Review can be found at The Fox's Hideaway.
My Review!
You know those horror films where you know something is going to happen but you can't stop it? You know that the characters are walking straight into danger and you can't warn them but you want to? You just have to sit there, knowing full well that the shit's going to hit the fan, but no matter how much you yell at the characters to turn around and dear God go back the way you came you idiots, you have to let it happen. That's pretty much how I felt while reading Creed. It was like a B rated horror movie, with the dumbass teenagers who do everything possible to put themselves into danger when you know that none of this would have happened if they'd listened to their instincts and used common sense in the first place.
It's not like this book was bad. In fact, it was extremely creepy, but more so in the beginning. And it's a "horror" novel, so it's not like I expected a different outcome. It wasn't supposed to be about smart teens who know which path to choose that won't destroy their lives and possibly kill them. It was an entertaining read that just reminds me why I should listen to my gut when it comes to signs of danger. And no matter how much I cringed at the stupidity and ridiculous theatrics, I couldn't stop reading it.
This book had me completely gripped in the beginning. It sunk its claws into me, with an interesting main character and two boys who probably shouldn't have been making the decisions. I was sucked in by the writing style and the way Dee was telling the story. At first, I found her to be a balanced mix of strength and vulnerability, but where that strength and courage went throughout the story, I have no idea. She was tough, in part because of her "tragic" childhood (which should make me sympathize, but honestly it was hard to connect with her). But I wanted more character development. Since this was such a fast read and more about what was happening, it left all the characters and their relationships barely developed. And that's okay, considering what type of story this was. But I did want more from them. I think that would have made the direction this story went have more of an impact on me. Because the way everything played out just made me not really care what happened to the characters.
I think that's mostly in part to how all of it played out. Like I said, this was so creepy in the beginning! I was completely tuned into the scary factor of the story and I couldn't help but be intrigued as the characters made their discoveries and found this little town in the middle of nowhere with a population of 150. But after that, once the characters started coming out of the woodwork and the evil "Elijah Hawkins" showed up, I was less than impressed. I was mostly just outraged by his ridiculous notions and what he did, not scared or even creeped out. And honestly the plot was all over the place and left me feeling disconnected from the characters and not even that concerned about them. There were a few sad parts, but they didn't really impact me.
And although I liked the book, I hated that ending so much. I'm sorry, but that was just ridiculous and felt way out in left field. It made what happened seem trivial, there was no resolution, and the main character totally lost all of her development that she'd had before the start of this book. It left me feeling underwhelmed, annoyed, and angry because I wanted the ending to be more resolved. I didn't care if it wasn't a happy one; I just wanted it to make sense. And it didn't to me.
I think Creed could have been a great horror novel/thriller, but somewhere along the way, it lost the scary factor due to ridiculous theatrics and a story-line that seemed to go nowhere.
Rating: 3 Paw Prints!
*Review can be found at The Fox's Hideaway.
My Review!
You know those horror films where you know something is going to happen but you can't stop it? You know that the characters are walking straight into danger and you can't warn them but you want to? You just have to sit there, knowing full well that the shit's going to hit the fan, but no matter how much you yell at the characters to turn around and dear God go back the way you came you idiots, you have to let it happen. That's pretty much how I felt while reading Creed. It was like a B rated horror movie, with the dumbass teenagers who do everything possible to put themselves into danger when you know that none of this would have happened if they'd listened to their instincts and used common sense in the first place.
It's not like this book was bad. In fact, it was extremely creepy, but more so in the beginning. And it's a "horror" novel, so it's not like I expected a different outcome. It wasn't supposed to be about smart teens who know which path to choose that won't destroy their lives and possibly kill them. It was an entertaining read that just reminds me why I should listen to my gut when it comes to signs of danger. And no matter how much I cringed at the stupidity and ridiculous theatrics, I couldn't stop reading it.
This book had me completely gripped in the beginning. It sunk its claws into me, with an interesting main character and two boys who probably shouldn't have been making the decisions. I was sucked in by the writing style and the way Dee was telling the story. At first, I found her to be a balanced mix of strength and vulnerability, but where that strength and courage went throughout the story, I have no idea. She was tough, in part because of her "tragic" childhood (which should make me sympathize, but honestly it was hard to connect with her). But I wanted more character development. Since this was such a fast read and more about what was happening, it left all the characters and their relationships barely developed. And that's okay, considering what type of story this was. But I did want more from them. I think that would have made the direction this story went have more of an impact on me. Because the way everything played out just made me not really care what happened to the characters.
I think that's mostly in part to how all of it played out. Like I said, this was so creepy in the beginning! I was completely tuned into the scary factor of the story and I couldn't help but be intrigued as the characters made their discoveries and found this little town in the middle of nowhere with a population of 150. But after that, once the characters started coming out of the woodwork and the evil "Elijah Hawkins" showed up, I was less than impressed. I was mostly just outraged by his ridiculous notions and what he did, not scared or even creeped out. And honestly the plot was all over the place and left me feeling disconnected from the characters and not even that concerned about them. There were a few sad parts, but they didn't really impact me.
And although I liked the book, I hated that ending so much. I'm sorry, but that was just ridiculous and felt way out in left field. It made what happened seem trivial, there was no resolution, and the main character totally lost all of her development that she'd had before the start of this book. It left me feeling underwhelmed, annoyed, and angry because I wanted the ending to be more resolved. I didn't care if it wasn't a happy one; I just wanted it to make sense. And it didn't to me.
I think Creed could have been a great horror novel/thriller, but somewhere along the way, it lost the scary factor due to ridiculous theatrics and a story-line that seemed to go nowhere.
Rating: 3 Paw Prints!