The Rats: Amazon.ca: James Herbert: Books

Product Description

Book Description

Two cassettes. Playing time 3 hours. Read by Steven Pacey.

From the Publisher

These audiobooks from Macmillan UK offer abridged readings of some of the world's most popular authors. Handsomely packaged, they feature readings by eminent actors of the stage and screen, including James Fox, Martin Shaw, Tim Pigott-Smith and David Rintoul.

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Customer Reviews

10 Reviews

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Rats, Oct 31 2002

By

Paul Roberts (Hertfordshire, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rats (Audio Cassette)

As the result of genetic engineering gone wrong, the rats of London have evolved. They are no longer the small black dirty things that sculk about under floorboards and flee at the first sight of man. They are big, and getting bolder by the day. After their first of human victim, they have decided they want more. It is with a chill that man decides it cannot stop them.

This is one of James Herbert's best books. It is incredibly difficult to put it down, and it keeps its qualities to the last page. The morbid horror of it grips you, as well as the involvement you feel with the main character as he tries to face the rats.

It is not a book for the faint hearted.

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4.0 out of 5 stars The horror novel that launched an entire genre!, Feb 26 2002

By

Chadwick H. Saxelid "Bookworm" (Concord, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rats (Paperback)

This slim, grim piece of b-movie trash (and believe me, I mean that in the most positive and respectful way) actually launched a sub-genre in the british horror novel industry - the mutant pet and/or pest novel. The next few years would see bookshelves stuffed with grue dripping books about killer cats, dogs, bats, crabs, slugs (yes, I said slugs), spiders, jellyfish, and assorted other nasties. For this alone Herbert's novel deserves some kind of special recognition.

The novel itself was written, by hand I believe, on a lark. In one interview Herbert even admitted to not even bothering to do a rewrite! The story is simple: giant mutant rats gobble down assorted victims as, in between the gruesome attacks, scientists and members of the government scratch their heads and wonder how to do away with the seemingly indestructable beasties. In what would grow to be a trademark storytelling style, Herbert lavishes as much character detail on the victims to be as he does on the actual characters. An essential book for animal on the rampage buffs and rodent lovers everywhere.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Best of the Trilogy, Jan 20 2002

By

Colin Willey (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rats (Paperback)

This is Herbert's first book in his Rats trilogy, and by far his best. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire trilogy, however Rats, the first was especially well done. Having a personal phobia of rats, I found this novel to be especially chilling. The entire book is a short, yet gripping read. If you are able to get a hold of this novel, and have a keen interest in the horror genre, definitely give this one a go - you won't be disappointed. Essentially, the Rats tells the story of a mutated species of rats that plague London and attempt to annihilate human life in the city. There are several graphic scenes with gruesome details found throughout the novel. For a true scare and escape, I strongly recommend the Rats by James Herbert.

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Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Exercise in Mediocrity
Herbert is a British writer, and like many of his literary countrymen, generally adopts understatement as his prefered method of delivery. Read more

Published on July 15 2001 by Dr. Christopher Coleman

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Fiction From A Great Writer
I read a review of this book that said that the book starts with Chapter 1 introducing a character and then having him/her killed horribly, Chapter 2 doing the same, and so on... Read more

Published on July 14 2001 by netchild