Spiders is the sequel to the previous novel in the series, Thirteen, by Tom Hoyle, a book I thoroughly enjoyed. This novel is the same in style - fast paced and quick moving. There doesn't seem to be a dull moment in this novel and I agree with what Tom Hoyle writes at the end of his book: 'I wanted there to be action in every chapter.' He has certainly achieved this, creating a very enjoyable novel that is sure to be welcomed by fans Thirteen and also attract new fans to his writing.
I think the cover is very well designed, simplistic yet attractive. One of the things that attracted me to the novel was the beautifully decorated page edges - you'll get what I'm on about if you've seen the book.
Personally, I found certain aspects of the book a little strange – though that might just be me. Throughout the novel I found Tom Hoyle explaining terms that didn't really need to be explained, and I can't decide if this is just me being fussy or the author simply being a little too patronising. The style also seems a little simple for the audience it appears to be aimed at, which I presume is youngish teens, judging the by the amount of bad language in the writing, which seems to grow less as the novel progresses. On top of this, I found that the plot was a little predictable. From the first couple of pages I could already predict how a certain character was going to turn out - you'll know what I mean when you've read the book. The writing style admittedly seemed a little awkward, and at times made me want to cringe. The characters and plot were also a little undeveloped in my opinion, and characters did not seem to have much depth to them. Near the beginning of the book a new character is introduced, who unfortunately seemed a little flat and at times unbelievable.
However, despite this, I was thoroughly gripped by the story. There was something that drew me into this book… a little like a fly into a spider's web. Somehow, despite my problems with the book, I soon became interested in how the plot would play out. Against my reservations, I did find the odd scene particularly enjoyable.
The ending of this book, again like the first novel, seemed a little rushed. The whole of the second half of the writing seems to have been building up to the end, and then it was over in merely three pages. This sort of left me with a deflated feeling, as I feel there was so much more that could have been added to the book.
I suppose this book could be read as a standalone novel, though I feel a better understanding will be gained if the first book is actually read first, as a large amount of references are made to it.
Finishing this book within a day (I didn't have anything better to do), I really enjoyed how the plot of this book played out. However, the fact that it largely resembled the plot of the first book and the way the ending seemed quite rushed to me let this book down. In my opinion, the first book by the author seemed to be a much better read.
• Buy this book at the Guardian Bookshop.
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