The King of the Plot-Twists

Title: Pines

Status: Wayward Pines #1

Author: Blake Crouch

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Sci-Fi

General Thoughts: I'm very impressed.

Rating: 4.25/5 stars.

First Lines:

"He came lying on his back with sunlight pouring on his face and the murmur of running water close by. There was a brilliant ache in his optic nerve, and a steady, painless throbbing at the base of his skull - the distant thunder of an approaching migraine."

How would you feel if you woke up, lonely, with no ID or cellphone and no recollection of your life, not knowing where you are? This is what happens to Ethan Burke, at the beginning of Pines, and things just get more and more confusing and intense from there. What is this place, Wayward Pines? And why is Ethan there?

My God, this was one of the most intense reads ever. And I think one of the only books that I didn't by any means know what was going to happen or what the twist was. I'm still not completely sure what the twist is!

First of all, it was intense. Very fast paced and super intriguing. I don't recollect reading anything boring or not action packed. It was a crazy ride from beginning to end.

The characters, well, they were incredibly weird. Because no one knows anything, and everyone is very, very suspicious. And you don't even know what you're supposed to be suspicious of. But at the same time, you kind of know who is good and who is bad. But it's like everyone is potentially good or bad.

The story itself was full of plot twists. You first think it might be something, and then it's something more deep, and then it's even more complicated than that and it just finally ends up being completely different.

I do have to say, a very strong issue I had with the story was how unrealistic it could seem at times. I mean, the MC Ethan, he's the fucking Terminator. I swear, he literally could have fallen from a plane and still would walk all the way through the story. I mean, maybe the author could have toned it down a little with all the things he did, because man was it kind of ridiculous.

Also, I think it's a very big risk to do something as extravagant for the story. Like, I'm still not completely convinced by it. But maybe the second book will get me around? I've been told it's very good, as well.

Really, this book is completely worth the risk. You won't loose your time at it, and maybe the rest of the series offers a good time as well. Recommend this to everyone, but be aware that it's kind of scary at times.