The Grey

Tricky one this. Not an easy book to review and, for that matter, my first book review anyway. I bought this book several years after seeing the film and in the knowledge that it was a novella created from a short story on which the screen play for the film was written. The cover of the book describes it as the novel which was adapted for the film. It isn’t big enough to be a “proper” novel though. Not directly linked to the review but indicating my honest opinion. The book doesn’t really know what it is. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot I like, and in many respects it beats the film for me. The sentences can be quite convoluted (the whole stream of consciousness thing) but they are mostly short and decipherable and the story becomes very immersive. The author doesn’t waste time painting backgrounds but gets straight in. It is impactful and gets you thinking. There’s only 150 or so pages but it feels longer in a good way. But for my money though, I don’t think the story actually gets to a satisfactory destination. The John Ottoway in the book is fascinating and flawed. His thoughts resonate. You can empathise with him. But ultimately what happens? Is it a bleak survival thriller? Are the wolves real or a representation of death? Is it the last thoughts of a damaged and dying man? It is an interpretation of how hard life can be before it’s all over? Does Ottoway kill the pack leader or not? We’ve all sat through the final credits trying to figure it out! In many ways it’s genius, but like so much genius it felt as flawed as the central character. I really, really wanted to like this book but at the end I felt I’d missed something. Maybe that’s just me! If you are an avid reader of more unusual mind twisting literature then read it. Heck, read it anyway, because its a book that deserves to be read even if you ultimately can’t get it. But I can’t give it the five stars I wanted to. Three stars. Just felt too cheated at the end.

Maybe it was the mood I was in but I found this book utterly depressing ( well it was all about death? ) or, perhaps, it was because of the message that this book is going to give people about wolves?I think this book will do as much for wolf conservation as Jaws did for sharks. Partly because it resurrects pre 20th century fears and myths of the wolf as a dangerous predator - dont get me wrong they can be but not in the way portrayed by the film and book - with a large intelligent, malevolent alpha male seemingly stalking and hunting down a group of stranded humans just because they are "on their turf".The wolves picking off the weakest of the humans, as if they where injured Caribou but not for food?Id also hoped that the book would have a little more in it about survival in a cold climate - given that the main character was a hunter and survival expert - but there is little detail about this.The descriptions of the environment are quite good - you get the sense of cold,remote with little hope of rescue. I was actually reminded of times Id spent in remote, cold wildernesses-I recognised the numbness in hands and feet very well!As and adventure book - if you ignore all the issues - maybe its not too bad but I think it was intended to be more real than that by the author.....and thats where it falls.

The book is similar to the film, which I had seen and yet is also considerably different. The writing is a little jumbled but perhaps this is in tune with the first person telling of the tale. I enjoyed the film and enjoyed the book to the same degree, although I did find that I could put it down. Or maybe, I HAD to put it down? Just to have a break from it's bleakness. Perhaps then, I should not complain that I thought that the latter part of the story seemed to be a little too compressed and hurried.Would I recommend this book? Yes.

The prose is hectic and imperfect and so chillingly realistic that you can't help but feel this book instead of reading it. A flawed and lost antagonist draws you entirely into his mind and the links drawn between the wolves and the demons we all must fight internally are beautifully made. It is poignant and haunting.

favourite of all Liam Neesons movies. I loved the story and usually the book is better than the film but in this case I like both equally. I encourage you to buy the book too. Would have liked to see what happens after the credits roll and he faces the alpha but on the other hand not everything has to be shown for a movie to be good.

thought I would give it a shot and see what it was like. really liked it. good solid read and some of the description in it is fantastic.

Loved this book, so much better than the film. I saw the film first and then discovered it was a book so bought it.It's everyone's nightmare, a plane crash, worse still in the middle of nowhere. They have to battle through snow, the bitter cold and most of all wolves.Found it a really good read.

What a brilliant read , couldn't put it down .It has u thinking your there fighting the elements.You won't put it down once you start reading