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The Intruders

Author: Michael Marshall
Publisher: Harper
Category: Book

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Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

10 reviews
Sales Rank: 18235

Media: Paperback
Pages: 496
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 6.9 x 4.4 x 1.3

ISBN: 0007210035
EAN: 9780007210039
ASIN: 0007210035

Publication Date: February 4, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Very Good Condition Paperback. May contain minor creasing/scuffing to cover and mild tanning to pages. But otherwise will be of exceptional quality. FAST DISPATCH.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 10

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just ok April 5, 2008
this is the fisrt Marshall book I've read so I've nothing to compare it to and must admit that I was drawn to the brief on the back and the 'amazing reviews' that were offered. However, anyone who reads should know these can rarely be trusted, as was the case with this book.

The story follows an ex cop turned author whose wife goes missing and, at the same time, so too does a 10 year old girl in apparently unrelated circumstances. The plot is reminiscent of a stephen king novel and is more supernatural than thriller. The books is ultimately a bit of a rollercoaster in that it started fairly well then tailed off, before picking back up. The problem for me was not neccessarily believability (you just have to switch your brain off really) but rather one of interest.

You really dont find out whats going on till the end of the book and by around mid-way the reader is still in the dark and, for me anyway, I rapidly lost interest in wanting to find out what was going and, perhaps also, even caring what happend. plausibility is stretched to the absolute limit and the author doesnt quite carry it off. For example, story aside, how the little 10 year girl behaved and particulalry how adults behaved who met her could not be believed. also the very end of the book was a further disappointment because it was completely out of character for the lead, especially given what he had learned by then.

I've no doubts it was thrown in as the final twist but it was unneccessary, unbelievable and perhaps stretched the credibilty of the novel too far

4 out of 5 stars

Something different March 29, 2008
I found this to be an unusual book but enjoyable nevertheless. As the other reviews say, it's not your average kind of thriller, it's more supernatural so some people might not like it if they don't believe in that kind of thing. It's certainly intriguing, full of twists and turns, and I couldn't wait to find out how everything connected at the end.

3 out of 5 stars

Now I thought this was pretty good...... March 25, 2008
Interesting the range of reviews on this book....

Like other reviewers I'd have to say that MM does write some weird books but if you're prepared to suspend your beliefs for a few hours then he's a master story teller. If you haven't read him before then don't start here, start with The Straw Men and the subsequent books in that series.

However if you have read those then you might enjoy this.

It's the story of Jack Whalen whose wife goes missing and the parallel story of a little girl called Madion who also disappears into thin air. Attempting to unravel the mystery of his missing wife Jack encounters a series of strange people and coincidences and some disturbing information about Amy.

Meanwhile Madison finds herself being drawn to places and people as if she is posessed and her character becomes ever more sinister.

I won't spoil the plot but the stories begin to weave together to an explosive climax. It's all incredibly surreal but if you like a slightly less 'run of the mill' aspect to your mystery thrillers then this doesn't disappoint.

Am waiting with baited breath for the next book, previewed at the end of this one

4 out of 5 stars

A sign of a return to form....but please bring back the Smith March 14, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Admittedly this book is not for everyone but I had to counter the above review as I've just finished the book and one star is not a fair representation of this book.
Michael Marshall does not do mainstream thrillers. Anyone who has read the works he produced under the name Michael Marshall Smith will verify that fact. His imagination is twisted to say the least. His books are dark, imaginative, and speak about love, relationships, addiction, loss, greif, jealousy, guilt and most of all paranoia, psychology and the inner workings of the mind. You have to be willing to get into this an put up with a slightly wilder take on a thriller if your going to enjoy this book. If you like thrillers formulaic, realistic and by the book then this book is not for you.
Now I fully admit this book may not be up to his best works, in my opinion Only Forward and Spares, but it is a good read and it is nice to have him back on form after the last two books in the strew men series which were very disappointing.
To be honest since losing the "Smith" his offerings haven't been as good. His previous works, with the Smith post fix, were pigeonholed as Sci-fi but to be honest they were a hell of a lot more than that, they were books about the human condition, touching, funny, dark and mysterious. they were unique. His recent books have been aimed more at the mainstream thriller market and have suffered from this they are kind of stuck between two stalls. Probably not fulfilling the MMS fans expectations whilst not quite hitting the nail on the head with the traditional thriller fans either.
The straw men was good, I enjoyed it a lot, but the others in the series had a touch of his weird side but frankly some of the stuff in them was just plain stupid and didn't work in the context of the world he was painting. When his writing isn't necessary fixed down into this world and he isn't trying to justify and explain what he's writing about, as he seems prone to do now, and just writes his books are awesome.
If you haven't read MM before then this probably isn't the place to start, go to the beginning be prepared to read something like you've never read before and the only way is forward.
Anyway back to this book.......really gripped me, it was like reading something written by an old friend who hasn't been himself lately but is feeeling a little better, looking forward to the next one but please no more prehistoric, neanderthal man rubbish Michael! I saw shades of it here and it worried me a little....

1 out of 5 stars

terrible book March 5, 2008
3 out of 11 found this review helpful

What a slow read, I picked it as the reviews said "jaw dropping.." hairpin turn on every page.." "gripping.." how wrong are all these?? I kept reading the book just hoping that the next page would surmount to something, I was wrong!! how disappointing