The Final Hour is the fourth and final book in Andrew Klavan's Homelander series, but don't let that put you off because it works absolutely fine as a stand-alone novel. This series is aimed at teens, in particular I would say boys, but I still enjoyed reading it as an almost 40-year-old female !
The basic plotline, as described on the back of the book (so don't worry, this isn't a spoiler !), is that Charlie West went to bed one night an ordinary high-school kid and woke up, wanted for a murder he didn't commit and hunted by a bunch of ruthless terrorists. The Final Hour finds him in a tough prison, abandoned by his allies, with the terrorists still after him, and in the unenviable position of being the only one able to save the world ... if he can find a way to beat all the odds and recall the information he learned as an undercover agent, as well as get out of prison.
In a useful plot device, especially for those who haven't read the previous books, Charlie took a drug that wiped out his memory so that he wouldn't be able to reveal sensitive information under torture. The antidote is slowly giving him parts of his memory back, in violent and traumatic flashbacks, helping him (and the reader) to fill in the background.
It's a fast-paced, adrenalin-fuelled read that will have you turning the pages long after you meant to stop ! Classed as Christian fiction, it does have a very slight message of faith but nothing that will put off non-believers or those of a different faith.
It's not always realistic, with Charlie up against the odds and walking out with barely a scratch, and I did think the Islamist terrorists were a bit stereotypical, but for both of those, that's no worse than most of the Hollywood blockbusters !
star rating : 4/5
RRP : $14.99
for more information : www.TheHomelanders.com
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See I'm like you I don't really listen to the "Oh this is for teenage boys" or "this is a blokes book" if it looks interesting & has a good story line I'll read it!
ReplyDeleteWe used to travel to France for a month every year with the kids (Haven Europe now Siblu) & I would take hundreds of books for all of us, then pass the on to other holiday makers or staff at the places we stopped, hopefully swapping for something I hadn't read. Thats how I got into Harry Potter. I'd bought it for the girls to read & having read all my books I picked up this & was hooked. I was the one cueing up with them at midnight to get it - we ended up having to buy three copies as it wasn't fair to have read it before anyone else!
I'll get my local library to have me a copy of this saved so I can read it, thanks for the tip.
We just released a song on the Rock Band game called The Final Hour so this post grabbed me immediately.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds a little like Bourne for a younger audience.
I think my daughter would probably enjoy this book.
Now the only question is library or book shop!
This looks like a fun read.. might get this from the library when I find the time to start reading again!
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