Just finished Matthew Reilly’s Hover Car Racer. This is a bit of a departure from his previous novels, and is aimed at a younger audience. Set in the future, the car has been replaced by the hover car, and formula 1 has evolved to being hover cars with jet engines attached, and the book reads a little like Phantom Menace Vs Wipeout Vs Harry Potter, as we follow Jason Chaser, a 14 year old racing prodigy through racing school and in his quest for a professional contract. In tow is his younger brother, The Bug, who is a maths genius, and hence makes a great navigator.
In typical Reilly fashion, this book moves at a startling pace, descriptive text is kept to a minimum, the plot moving as fast as the hover cars, our character’s development is effectively told in his behaviour in a series of increasingly difficult races. Originally published free on the interweb in serial form (at http://www.hovercarracer.com), it’s a fun read, with a few nice twists and turns, although I did find it a bit predictable, but then I don’t think it’s aimed at my age. Still, it’s an entertaining read. The movie rights have been snapped up by Disney Pictures, so expect to see it on the big screen in a couple of years. And spurred on by this, a sequel book is in the works.
Been looking to see if I can get a copy of Reilly’s new Seven Ancient Wonders, which is only out on Oz, but at £30 to import I’ve decided to wait until Feb, mean I’ll have to try again on Richard Morgan’s Woken Furies. After the lack of maghook action in Hell Island however, I could do with another Scarecrow novel.
gladiatorial tournament set in the New York public library! The best books are those featuring Shane “Scarecrow” Schofield, an incredibly tough hombre who is a cross between Jack Bauer, John McClane and Snake Plissken (in my head). Check out Ice Station, Area 7 and Scarecrow for his adventures. 