Book Review — 14

Title:  14
Author:  Peter Clines
Genre:  Sci-Fi
Pages:  Oversize paperback, 350
Publisher:  Permuted Press
ISBN:  978-1-61868-052-5
Opening Lines:  "He ran.  He ran as fast as he could.  As if Hell itself were chasing him.  As if his life depended on it."

Rating

"There are some odd things about Nate's new apartment.

"Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn't perfect, it's livable. The rent is love, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don't nag at him too much.

"At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbor across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela's apartment. And Tim's. And Veek's.

"Because every room in his old Los Angeles brownstone has a mystery or two. Mysteries that stretch back over a hundred years. Some of them are in plain sight. Some are behind locked doors. And all together these mysteries could mean the end of Nate and his friends.

"Or the end of everything . . ."

~ Jacket copy

My bother has been pestering me to read this book since he got it on Audible.  Honestly, I wasn't sure what the hype was about.  After listening to the first 20 minutes of it and the ceaseless pestering, I finally decided to ILL it from the local library.  And once I started, the book would not leave my hand!

This book is hard to quantify without giving away the entire plot.  In a nutshell, it is a mystery!  After finding a fairly cheap apartment with a good view in downtown L.A., Nate keeps his head down and just plugs away at his life as data entry.  However, he starts noticing odd things about his apartment building . . .

Wow! This book is amazing, time consuming, and ineffable!  My brother did a great thing forcing me to read 14.  Being an avid reader, it is easy to pick up on a plot because, at some level, you've seen it before.  Clines was able—at some level—to keep me guessing and on the edge of my seat.  However, when I was able to put the pieces together, it felt akin to an Earth-shattering accomplishment and a little surprise just for me.  And the reward was great!

Clines created a well crafted story with a unique plot line, believable characters, and a good all around mystery.  While it encompasses the sci-fi genre perfectly, it is set in modern-day L.A.  At the onset, it has the elements of a classic horror novel; however, little things like the cockroaches make the reader start to wonder.  He does a marvelous job making his audience question what's really happening along with the characters.

This book is extremely hard to discuss without giving away the surprise.  It is similar to discovering your Christmas presents in mom and dad's closet and trying to feign surprise when you finally open them.  It would be wonderful to talk about, but ruining that mystery for future readers is inexcusable.  This is a book you should not miss!