The Terror
by Dan Simmons
Published by Little, Brown and Company
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Reviewed by Ernest Dempsey
Captain Francis Rawdon Moira Crozier's awesome exploration ship, The Terror, is stuck in the paralyzing ice of the Arctic--and the travelers are in a far more threatening danger than hunger or cold: a mysterious, fierce entity. As the ravenous predator takes The Terror's crew one by one to their death, the survivors are left wondering about their remaining days of life.
Set in the mid 19th century, The Terror is a hair-raising tale of arctic adventure and fearsome encounters with the unseen. Dan Simmons, already a big name for Hyperion and Endymion, has created another chilling event in the world of mystery tales.
The Terror is thoroughly enriched with sharp humor and the overwhelming confidence with which he takes on his subject. Simmons has realistically portrayed his characters as genuinely motivated. The novel has a strong constructive quality with vivid imagery and breathtaking details of action and language. The author appears highly successful in reproducing the aura of a 19th century sailing expedition.
A voluminous book like The Terror (nearly 800 pages) is likely to make readers think it will take weeks to read. But with the clever organization of this adventurous thriller, you do not start yawning while ending a chapter. And of course, it is hard to resist turning the next page.
Armchair Interview says: A great chilling gift to winter readers of mystery novels!