| Hunted Past Reason By Richard Matheson |
| Richard Matheson is, with good reason, one of the genres most celebrated writers. I Am Legend is arguably the most influential vampire story written, behind only Bram Stoker's Dracula. My favorite aspect of Matheson is just the vast ground that his work covers. From horror and sci fi staples such as I Am Legend and The Incredible Shrinking Man to thought provoking metaphysical peices like What Dreams May Come and The Path, all the way down to black comedy of Now You See It..., Matheson is anything but formulaic. |
| Hunted Past reason is an enjoyable, though a little unbalanced, suspense story. The plot concerns two men on a backpacking trip through the dense Northern California woods. Bob Hansen is an identifiable writer with a level head on his shoulders. He dislikes violence and believes a person should stand up and take responsibility for their lives. He's also planning on writing a novel on backpacking and wants some authentic insight on the subject. Enter struggling actor Doug Crowley. Doug is an expert backpacker and completely resouceful outdoorsman. Doug and Bob are casual friends, and Doug offers to take him on a trip through the woods to aid his research. Bob doesn't know Doug as well as he thought though, and it's not too long before this jaunt into the woods becomes strained and tense. |
| Matheson tells the story from Bob's perspective as gradually learns just how unbalanced Doug is. This is where the story really shines. Matheson's ability to mount the tension to an almost unbearable point is unrivaled. It starts off mostly as nitpicking and backhanded remarks. This grows into intense theolgical debates and arguments and spends a grueling amount of time at the boiling point. A simple glance at the back of the book jacket will tell you that things are going to turn violent eventually, but Matheson handles this section with such skill that you continually have hope for a rational resolution. Unfortunately, the more we learn about Doug and his background, the more we realize that this is unlikely to happen. |
| When the story shifts gears into a battle for survival some of the tension and power are gone. When Doug is less brooding and mysterious his character turns into a more one dimensional maniac. He's ruthless and frightening to be sure it makes the novel feel a little less remarkable. I would compare Doug to Jack Nicholson's Jack Torrance in Kubrick's film version of The Shining. I would never argue that it was a memorable performance, but lacking the depth of Stephen King's character. |
| Another running theme that I found either underdeveloped or just flat out confusing was Bob's encounters with animals. It seems as if they're included just to further flesh out Bob's character, but sometimes they seem to have such little relevence to the story that I was left scratching my head. Thankfully, Matheson never damages the integrity of the story by giving the animals a silly sort of 'Disney-like'' personification. |
| Those complaints aside, Matheson proves once again with this novel that he is a master storyteller. He taps into primal fears that will probably not be easily forgotten the next time a reader ventures out into the wilderness. In the hands of a lesser author, the long spans of Bob's solitude could have been unforgivably boring. Instead, his internal dialogues are riveting and make this agonizing situation impossible to turn away from. |
| I wouldn't say the Hunted Past Reason is essential reading, but I would still feel confident in giving it a healthy recommendation. Matheson is one the most important authors of our time and his work is something to be treasured. This isn't his best work, but it's far from a let down. If you're brave enough, I would say this would be the perfect book to curl up with while on a camping trip! |
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| review by Joe Canistro 07/18/2005 |