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Blog Archive
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2024
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July
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- Review: The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey
- Interview: Adam Weller chats with Mike Shackle Abo...
- Review: The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King by
- Book review: Murder on Hunter’s Eve (The Lamplight...
- Echo of Worlds by M. R. Carey (Reviewed by Shazzie)
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- FBC's Critically Underrated Reads
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- SPFBO X Interview: Ciara Hartford, the Author of T...
- Review: The Price of Redemption by Shawn Carpenter
- Graphic novel review: Curse Words by Charles Soule...
- Review: The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P Djèlà Clark
- Run by Blake Crouch (reviewed by Adam Weller & Mih...
- EXCLUSIVE COVER REVEAL: DANCE OF SHADOWS by Gourav...
- SPFBO X: The Second Culling & Semi-Finalist Update...
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- Review: The Sky on Fire by Jenn Lyons
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July
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Official Blake
Crouch Website
Pre-order Run HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Recursion
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Pines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Eerie
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Run
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Serial Killers Uncut
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Wayward
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Interview with Blake Crouch (2011)
Read Fantasy Book Critic's Wayward Pines trilogy Interview with Blake Crouch
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Blake Crouch was born in Statesville, North
Carolina and graduated in 2000 with degrees in English and Creative Writing
from the University of North Carolina. He has written four previous novels and
a host of short stories. Two of his stories have been optioned for film
adaptation. Blake currently lives in Durango, Colorado with his wife.
Pre-order Run HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Recursion
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Pines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Eerie
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Run
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Serial Killers Uncut
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Wayward
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Interview with Blake Crouch (2011)
Read Fantasy Book Critic's Wayward Pines trilogy Interview with Blake Crouch
This tense thriller leans more into horror than any other of Blake Crouch's books I've read. The book is chapterless, which adds an extra layer of intensity because there's never a good time to pause. The family is under constant pressure and the lack of natural breaks in the narrative made me feel like I was running along with them, unable to look away.
One aspect of the story I loved is although there are some shiver-inducing scenes of extreme violence and brutality, it's juxtaposed with the love of a family that will do anything for each other. Desperate situations will bring forth elements of perspective and wisdom that you never knew existed. Seeing this family evolve in such a desolate situation had me emotionally invested in the characters' fates.
Environmental hazards played a major role in this story of survival, but I feel like Crouch spent far too much time describing in detail what every field, mountain, and forest looked like. It was immersive, but I feel some character development was sacrificed to keep up with its relentless pacing.
Overall, Run is a gripping thriller with quite a few heart-pounding moments. There was a lot left unexplained, which is fine to a certain extent, but some scenarios were resolved with a bit of hand-waving and oh-so-perfect timing. Some of these resolutions were detrimental to the immersion of the story, but it didn't take long to pull me right back in again.
Run was originally published in 2011, but now is the first time it is available for purchase within the U.S. It's perfect for devouring on the beach or by the pool in one sitting.
OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS (MIHIR): Not only was I fascinated by RUN’s blurb, but previously I had read Serial Uncut which was a collaborative effort between Blake Crouch and Joe Konrath. I very much liked the book’s mix of horror and thriller genres and I was wondering how the book would measure up against such a tantalizing blurb.
Because the book focuses deeply on the Colclough family, specifically the story of a father striving to do right by his progeny, RUN is immediately comparable to The Road by Cormac McCarthy. However, there’s a crucial difference: the world featured in The Road is a post-apocalyptic one, whereas in RUN, the world teeters on the verge of collapse. RUN is also less dark than the Pulitzer Prize winner, although it has its moments of sheer horror.
Blake Crouch’s prose admirably fuels this high-strung tale as he showcases a slightly dysfunctional family: Jack, the father struggling to save his family; Dee, the estranged wife who has to choose between her feelings for her paramour and her family; and Naomi and Cole, the children who are shockingly thrust into a world where they have no control and no way to adapt... Mr. Crouch efficiently showcases the struggle faced by both parents as they try to explain the situation to themselves and their kids, with emotional family moments brilliantly juxtaposed by harrowing action scenes that will have readers turning the pages to see what happens next.
There are very few drawbacks with the book. A few readers might get frustrated at the absence of a concrete explanation for what is happening, but like in real life, many things occur which have only theories instead of rational explanations. Lastly, the climax is a bit fantastical and detaches a bit of credibility from the tale. Fortunately, the ending is not too over-the-top to ruin the overall effect.
CONCLUSION: Blake Crouch’s RUN is a simple, & magical tale about survival, the bonds of family, and the endurance of the human spirit. RUN exceeded my expectations and is a book I enjoyed re-reading. In short, the author is rapidly moving up my reading list and seems hell-bent on proving David Morrell’s words true: “Blake Crouch is the most exciting new thriller writer I've read in years.”
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