Wednesday 18 February 2015

A Short Review: The Great Zoo of China, Matthew Reilly


Rating- 3.5/5

I have always heard a lot about Matthew Reilly, but I'd never before read one of his books. I was never going to pass on an opportunity to read a book like this though.
In the most TL;DR form I could possibly say, The Great Zoo of China is Jurassic Park with dragons. That is all you really need to know about this book.
But to elaborate slightly:
In terms of action: riveting. The book is running at a constantly high pace - there is always something happening. Usually multiple things. There really aren't many natural points to put the book down and take a break. The chapters are short and snappy, adding to this.
This certainly helped the book, as it also allows some of the flaws to be brushed over. The biggest flaw I can highlight is the use of deus ex machina. At too many points in the story are the heroes about to meet their demise when something rescues them from out of the blue - be it human allies, human enemies, or unwitting dragons just looking for something to chew on. This happens multiple times, and it does start to get grating towards the end.

Still, I certainly recommend this read to anyone who sat through and enjoyed Jurassic Park (books or film - the first one!), and dragons.

All in all, a good read.

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