Cape Fear by John D. MacDonaldMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Considering the size of this book, it felt like it took an AGE to read! I'm not familiar with the film, other than the fact that it's a thriller, so I went in with a blank mind.
The book is very dated. It's odd that I can read Sherlock Holmes and that not seem dated, yet reading this seemed out of touch. The main couple did not share a bed and some of the terminology and language used was strange.
Although I recognise that MacDonald writes well, I wasn't particularly enthralled by the novel. Not a lot happened until the final third of the novel, which was exciting and made by pulse race. I felt Sam's injuries with every step he took and needed to know what had happened.
The other characters were a bit confusing, apart from Sam's daughter Nancy who I related to the most. I couldn't remember how old each of the children were and there were lots of people that were mentioned once (given a name) that we never met again.
Nevertheless, this novel really highlighted that one single man can be very scary. A threat does not need to be a bomb, or a warlord. I felt that MacDonald portrayed the feelings of the family well, especially Sam's wife Carol and how she coped with the strain put on their family.
I'm really intrigued to watch both versions of the film to see how well the terror translates to the movies.
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