The Enemy Review (The Visitors Saga 2)

You know when sometimes you read a book or watch a movie and certain plot points or ideas are reminiscent of those from other books and films? Well get ready for a lot of déjà vu as we take a look at The Enemy, the second book in The Visitors Saga. 

If you’ve not read my review of the first installation I will some it up as this - aliens kidnap everyone except a few teenagers and they are trying to escape monsters and get to Washington. 

The second one takes off where the first left off with would-be-hero Charlie Freeman being strapped to a medical bed and told he’s gone insane. He’s also told that he has in fact just hallucinated the aliens and the events of the previous few days outlined in the original novel. This concept is strung out for a bit then dashed - making the first part of the story completely pointless. 

Anyway, Charlie is rescued by his friends and they set about getting to Washington (again). The story does pick up a lot at this point with a lot of action and genuinely edge-of-the-sate moments as the humans try to escape the flesh-hungry Grimms. Also thrown into the mix is the revelation that the Grimms can absorb human DNA and essentially becom

e like people. Once Charlie and his friends reach Washington however, the story unravels again.

Like the original novel, The Enemy is not a bad book. It has some great moments, a pretty cover and occasionally an original idea of its own, but it’s let down by poor editing, cardboard cut-out characters, a pantomime villain and too many borrowed ideas from other sci-fi legends. 

It gets 5/10.

The Invaders (The Visitors Saga) Book Review

I picked up this book because it was recommended on my Amazon listings (also being free was a deal clincher). Although the book has a straight, if somewhat bland title akin to a bad black and white 1960s British alien movie, the story most certainly is not. I know a lot of people have panned the story but I think it’s a lot better than it is given credit for. 

The story begins with a UFO appearing in the skies over The White House. A couple of days it disappears, and seemingly, so has almost the entire population of the world. Charlie and his cousin Alex - who are involved in a car crash during the time of the mass disappearance - must learn to survive, and come to terms with a very empty world. The teenagers quickly learn though that there are monsters out there trying to kill them called the Grimms. 

The Invaders takes quite a long time to get warmed up but when it finally does with the appearance of the Grimms, it becomes very fast-paced. The writing really shines in certain chapters, especially when Charlie and Alex are trying to escape a dark, deserted hospital infested with the monsters. 

However, there are a lot of typos in the story and sadly it does drag down what otherwise is a fairly decent story. I also was not keen on the characters. They all talked the same way and at times acted unrealistically given the weight of the situations they found themselves in. I hope in the sequel they develop a little more personality. 

The Invaders gets 5/10.