Review - Contest by Matthew Reilly

Contest by Matthew Reilly
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
336 pages

Published March 10th 2003 by Thomas Dunne Books (first published 1996)

Source: Own copy 

Synopsis:
'The New York Public Library. A silent sanctuary of knowledge; a 100-year-old labyrinth of towering bookcases, narrow aisles and long marble hallways. For Doctor Stephen Swain and his daughter, Holly, it is the site of a nightmare. Because for one night this historic building is to be the venue for a contest. A contest in which Swain is to compete - whether he likes it or not.

The rules are simple: Seven contestants will enter, only one will leave.

With his daughter in his arms, Stephen Swain is plunged into a terrifying fight for survival. The stakes are high, the odds brutal. He can choose to run, to hide or to fight - but if he wants to live, he has to win. For in this contest, unless you leave as the victor, you do not leave at all.'My Thoughts:
This book took a little while to grab my attention and had been sitting on my bookcase for quite a while. But, once it did I found it hard to put it down as you jump straight into the story from the first page and then the rest moves in the typical fast fashion that Reilly is known for.

This book fits in with the theme of The Hunger Games but with Alien participants instead of just people. Seven contestants from all over the universe are chosen to participate in the 'Contest' and teleported to an 'arena' where no-one is allowed to leave until there is only one winner left.

I was fascinated with some of the concepts in this story and with the vivid descriptions of of the alien characters. I really felt like I got lost in this story and got excited at every twist and turn and I struggled to put it down.

If you're not normally a sci-fi fan then you may have a tendency to be put off by the theme of this book. I'm in no way a sci-fi fan at all and found that even though it included aliens as the main characters, it didn't feel like that aspect was the main focus of the book because it was still set in New York with a human hero and easy to understand concepts and language. I actually found the alien side of it added more interest than if it had just been between human participants.

In my opinion this is good read if you want something quick and easy to sink your teeth into to pass the time. If you're familiar with the writing style of Matthew Reilly you won't be disappointed with this book.

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