Book: Pines
Series: Wayward Pines, #1
Author: Blake Crouch
Pages: 305
Genre: Mystery/thriller, SciFi
My rating: ★★★1/2
Secret service agent Ethan Burke arrives in Wayward Pines, Idaho, with a clear mission: locate and recover two federal agents who went missing in the bucolic town one month earlier. But within minutes of his arrival, Ethan is involved in a violent accident. He comes to in a hospital, with no ID, no cell phone, and no briefcase. The medical staff seems friendly enough, but something feels…off. As the days pass, Ethan’s investigation into the disappearance of his colleagues turns up more questions than answers. Why can’t he get any phone calls through to his wife and son in the outside world? Why doesn’t anyone believe he is who he says he is? And what is the purpose of the electrified fences surrounding the town? Are they meant to keep the residents in? Or something else out? Each step closer to the truth takes Ethan further from the world he thought he knew, from the man he thought he was, until he must face a horrifying fact—he may never get out of Wayward Pines alive.
This review will be short and sweet because, as usual, writing a review for a thriller without spoilers is a bit tough. Blake Crouch is known for writing Dark Matter, another scifi-thriller with raving reviews. I decided to start with the Wayward Pines trilogy because I was enthralled by the idea of a small town that seems “off”.
I love thrillers that involve missing people and a conspiracy. The premise is simple: Secret service agent Ethan Burke arrives in a small town called Wayward Pines to investigate the disappearance of two other federal agents. Then bad things start happening, the people act strange, and nothing is quite as it seems.
This book is non-stop action, to the point where it will stress you out. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing! I love a good page-turner! You will question everything and trust no one. You may even want to throw this book across the room because sh*t hits the fan. A lot.
A few drawbacks: Sometimes Ethan can be a bit of an “unreliable narrator”. If you’re fine with that, great! It’s a trope I’m getting a bit tired reading about, but it wasn’t enough to keep me from finishing the book. There are also some pacing issues for me toward the last quarter of the book, and the writing is a bit generic.
Overall, Pines is a very enjoyable page-turner that’s easy to fly through. You can easily finish this in one sitting. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of this trilogy!
xx,
Amy
A Court of Crowns and Quills 
Great review Amy even if it wasn’t quite what you were expecting. I have heard of the show & actually own a copy of Dark Matter, this one seems to have missed the mark though.Hope the next thriller you pick up is much more thrilling haha! Happy Reading 🙂
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Thank you, Lilly! I haven’t watched the show yet, although I hear it is quite different than the books! I still enjoyed Pines and I’d like to read the next two books, but the writing style was pretty basic. Nothing wrong with that; I just expected it to be a little more eloquent for some reason? It’s a “it’s not you, it’s me” thing LOL. There were definitely some thrilling parts, although it lacked the thrills toward the end. Hopefully the next 2 are good! xx 😀
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I’ve seen (and love) the show, and didn’t know it was a book series until very recently. I was thinking about reading it but I may put it at the low priority for the time being. Great review!
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Thank you! I’m interested in your review if you ever read it! ❤
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I’ve been wanting to read this trilogy for awhile so I needed this review! Dark Matter is one of my favourite books so check it out if you want something different. 😊xx
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[…] Pines (Wayward Pines, #1) ★★★1/2 […]
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