Customer Reviews

The Manhattan Hunt Club

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This book is vintage Saul; take too many under-developed characters, place them in a suspenseful plot full of twist and turns which eventually result in a big, suspenseful, over-the-top finale. The Manhattan Hunt Club is a very good summer read; it's the kind of book that reads itself quickly and which you can't help but find entertaining.

The plot is simple in itself; a society of rich, high-class socialites have developed the ulitmate game. They send prisoners down the subway tunnel systems where they hunt them to death. Our main hero, Jeff, becomes a huntee but, of course, he isn't guilty of the crimes he is accused of. He needs to run away from the hunters and survive their attacks. Mix to this about half a dozen more characters, including a female politician, Jeff's father and mother, Jeff's girlfriend and Jinx, a young girl who lives in the tunnels and you get a book that is very full. Maybe even a little too full.

Sure, the tale moves along quickly and it is very suspenseful, but stopping at just a little over 300 pages, the book never gives you the satisfaction of truly knowing any of the characters. Saul spends too much time on suspense and not enough time developing the characters. Hence, you end up not really caring for any of them.

Still, the book offers some great moment and the 75-pages finale is pretty great. This is a good summer read. It's classic Saul, but it's not Saul at his best.

In "The Manhattan Hunt Club", John Saul weaves a frightening tale of underground Manhattan...

After being wrongfully accused for a crime he didn't commit, Jeff Converse's world was turned upside down in a matter of seconds. But on his transport to prison, an "accident" happens and he is thrust from the police van by strangers that claim to want to help him escape. So without much time to think about the consequence of his actions, Jeff Converse chooses to follow his rescuers deep into the subway tunnels of underground Manhattan where the homeless (or rather, "houseless") now take shelter. But little does he know that he is about to become prey inside this labyrinth of caverns and chambers as he struggles to find his way to the surface before the hunters (which also happen to be guarding all possible escape routes) can kill and then claim him as their prize.

And just to warn you ahead of time: Once you reach Chapter 31, the storyline takes a huge plot twist as the character's reveal their true nature and the book title suddenly becomes crystal clear...

John Saul is quickly becoming one of my all-time favorite writers when it comes to suspense and horror. And while I find "The Right Hand Of Evil" to be slightly better, it's hard to compare the two of them for they're completely different.

I find "The Manhattan Hunt Club" to be a very entertaining thriller that (for once!) doesn't have those dull, page flipping moments in between!

This is highly recommended.

MoonGoddess

The promising future of New York City college student Jeff Converse is destroyed when he is accused of a crime he didn't commit.

After the victim swears Jeff is the man who assaulted her, Jeff is convicted and sentenced, but on his way to the prison, he is abducted and lured to the underground tunnels of New York, where he will become game for a vicious group of hunters who call themselves "THE MANHATTAN HUNT CLUB". Determined to escape alive, Jeff will use all his wits to come out the victor, and clear his name.

Jeff's parents are told he is dead, and only after viewing the horribly burned body, does Keith Converse realize his son is alive. Now, teaming with Jeff's fiancée, Keith and Mary Converse must enter into the labyrinth tunnels below the city to find their son and bring him back alive, and put a stop to the twisted individual heading up this murderous club.

`Manhattan Hunt Club' is an enjoyable suspense novel, fans looking for horror will be disappointed. John Saul has taken the high road to action/suspense, and he does a good job of it. Combining a creepy plot, and his usual cast of likable characters, Mr. Saul goes full steam ahead with an action novel that takes off on the first page, and barrels through twist after twist, leading to a shocking and satisfying conclusion.

Nick Gonnella

This has been one of the best books I've ever read hands down. In this book expect the unexpected. I've missed hourse of sleep staying up late late reading this. I just couldn't put it down, it was full of suspense, and fear(just imagining how Jeff Converse felt in the pitch blackness of the underground Labrynth). I also couldn't help but to wander if something like this could actually happen. I would love to see an adaption of this for the big screen. Maybe so! Bottom line: bored? wanna read a book to fill-in empty time, read The Manhattan Hunt Club, unless..you're scared...

John Saul is a consumate storyteller, and a fine craftsman, which he's proven once again with THE MANHATTAN HUNT CLUB! This one takes you into the underground tunnels beneath Manhattan - a gripping story of evil, revenge and madness. A hellofa read! I stayed up until 3:00 a.m. to finish it. I'm a big John Saul fan, but I think he might have surpassed himself this time. Along with the thrills and chills, it makes you think. I doubt anyone who reads THE MANHATTAN HUNT CLUB will find it quite so easy to pass that next homeless person they see without at least a twinge of conscience. Or perhaps even unease...

On the surface this book is a good read. The suspense will make you want to keep reading or listening on. However, one may find getting through all the stereo types used in this story a bit much. In addition the nice wrapped up ending with a big bow was not to realistic. Still as a work of fiction it wasn't bad but if Saul was indirectly trying to make a point about the homeless he missed the mark. In this book they are portrayed as ruthless who can be turned into murderers for a few bucks. Gay folk are either pathetic or homicidal; and everybody rich or poor is rotten to the core say for our hero of course who is perfect in every way with a perfect girlfriend to boot. Give me a break! As well, how many times did the batteries run out in order to move the story along or how many times did characters bump into each other on the subway. Sorry, once twice okay but not over and over again. A good attempt but could have been more developed and more realistic. I mean waht was the point for the club leader to go into the tunnels? Another dumb ploy to get the bad guys? Lets hope the next one is a bit more better.

Ok,I have read all but three of John Saul's novels and I must say that he truly knows how to turn out some chilling books. I'm sad to say that this is not one of them. I am sure by now you already know what this book is about and I wont bore you with a synopsis. John is great at creating memorable characters that you truly feel for and you root them on all the way to the very end. I didn't find myself doing that here. I was able to predict who would be killed and by whom. I did not find myself walking around with this book reading evey word and becoming engrossed with the story.

What I did find myself doing was putting it down for days and then coming to it later. I found myself wanting to read other books, but I still pressed on hoping it would get better. It never really did. The wrapping up of loose ends, I felt, was a far stretch. I know that as a reader you're exepcted to have a suspension of belief. But this is also a two way street because the author is supposed to give you reasons and environments to create that suspension.

John Saul failed in doing so with this book.

I highly recommend his earlier works which, I feel, rival some of the best King or Koontz books. They are SECOND CHILD, GUARDIAN, NATHANIEL, THE HOMING, RIGHT HAND OF EVIL, BLACKSTONE CHRONICLES, and BLACK LIGHTNING.

John Saul is not an author who is going down hill, he just tried something different and missed the mark. I'm sure his next one, MIDNIGHT VOICES, will be absolutely amazing!!!

I could not put this book down. It was one of the best page turners I have ever read. The last few books Saul wrote left a bad taste in my mouth but this one was wonderful. From the one-hundred members of the 'Hundred Club' in New York City, a handful form 'The Manhattan Hunt Club'. They turn known criminals loose in the subway tunnels under the city and then hunt them down. They make a mistake when they, unknowingly, choose an innocent man for their 'hunt'. Very entertaining and thought provoking.

In "The Manhattan Hunt Club," John Saul has gone into new territory both with the geographic setting of the novel and his literary reach. MHC will attract and inspire new fans because of its well told mystery appeal and it's almost cinema-like action and characters.

This compelling book explores the life under New York City in the tunnels, air ducts, subways and crevices that are the residences of thousands of homeless in New York City.

MHC brings home a strong social message that the much heralded triumph over homeless people has literally been pushed underground. Mayor Rudy "Combover" Guliani cannot be pleased at the flurry of media attention MHC is likely to inspire underneath his backyard.

Any Saul fan will cherish this tale, yet this is a perfect place to start for those who have never been taken on one of Saul's amazing rides.

I like some of John Saul's work, but I thought THE MANHATTAN HUNT CLUB was a pretty mediocre effort.

The concept of this novel (people living in the tunnels underneath the New York Subway) is potentially interesting, but Saul invests little effort in creating believable characters or a realistic plot. In particular, I found the identity of the villains to be ridiculous. The overall silliness of this book made it hard for me to enjoy.

In short, THE MANHATTAN HUNT CLUB is pretty lackluster. My advice is to try some of Saul's better known work, such as SUFFER THE CHILDREN or THE GOD PROJECT. Those novels are more exciting, and have much stronger plots and characters.