On Falstaff Island, Scoutmaster Tim Higgs leads five adolescent boys—Max, Newton, Ephraim, Shelley, and Kent—on a routine wilderness survival excursion. Their trip turns into a biological catastrophe when a skeletal, unnaturally hungry stranger arrives by boat, carrying a genetically engineered tapeworm parasite. This bio-engineered organism drives its hosts into a state of madness and insatiable starvation, spreading rapidly through the group. As the infection consumes their bodies, the boys fracture into rival factions, mimicking the predatory behavior of the organisms devouring them from within while attempting to survive the isolation of the Canadian wilderness.
Horror enthusiasts who appreciate detailed visceral descriptions and body horror will find this narrative particularly effective. It serves readers interested in the collapse of social structures and the raw reality of survival under extreme physiological duress. Those who enjoy examining the darker aspects of human psychology and adolescent group dynamics get a stark look at how isolation and fear strip away civilized behavior. A reader walks away with a vivid understanding of physical fragility and the specific terror found in losing control of one's own biological functions.
- Published
- 2014
- Language
- EN
