'The Meg' – Steve Alten (Head of Zeus)

“You should read this book Dad...”

So we're in a bookshop and my eight year old daughter found a copy of 'The Meg' on the shelf. She knew that I really enjoyed the film but what she didn't know was that I'd never read the book. Nothing against the book at all, I have a copy hidden somewhere in my Kindle, it just never seemed to be the right time; not until the other day when my youngest made a surprise recommendation ;o)

Little thing was so pleased she'd found it that of course I bought it. And yesterday, the sequel came through the door so you can guess what I thought of 'The Meg'. Oh ok, let me tell you about it anyway... ;o)

On a top-secret dive into the Pacific Ocean's deepest canyon, Jonas Taylor found himself face-to-face with the largest and most ferocious predator in the history of the animal kingdom. The sole survivor of the mission, Taylor is haunted by what he's sure he saw but still can't prove exists – Carcharodon megalodon, the massive mother of the great white shark.

Written off as a crackpot suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Taylor refuses to forget the depths that nearly cost him his life. But it takes an old friend in need to get him to return to the water, and a hotshot female submarine pilot to dare him back into a high-tech miniature sub.

Diving deeper than he ever has before, Taylor will face terror like he's never imagined, and what he finds could turn the tides bloody red until the end of time. MEG is about to surface. When she does, nothing and no one is going to be safe, and Jonas must face his greatest fear once again.

I've been pretty miserable these last few days, the change to autumn does that to me, so 'The Meg' came along at just the right time. It picked me up and took off into this mad world of a MASSIVE prehistoric shark that will eat absolutely anything and the people who are either trying to save it, or kill it... And Jonas Taylor, a haunted man on a mission to finally feel right in himself.

And that's it, that's the whole plot. I mean yeah, people fall in and out of love, double cross each other, and generally try to make some cash along the way, but the whole plot is basically this huge shark raising hell and everyone trying to stop it before it gives birth. I forgot to say, it's pregnant (or 'Meg-nant', a Dad joke of mine that only I found funny). There shouldn't be enough there for a whole book but not only does it work, it works very well indeed.

Alten is very adept at harnessing the chaos, caused by the Meg, and channelling it back into the plot, giving us a fast, yet evenly, paced tale that throws these moments of 'giant shark induced terror' at you and then moves you swiftly to the next one while you're still reeling. And you will be reeling, Alten has a knack for set piece moments that left me thinking, 'did I really just see that?' I did though, I saw a surfer surf straight down the Meg's throat, I saw the Meg take on a nuclear submarine and that's not even scratching the surface of what Alten gives us here. 'The Meg' is a book full of spectacle, just what you need when you're telling a 'giant shark' tale.

In between all those moments, Alten fills in the gaps with some surprisingly well drawn characters. I say 'surprisingly' because I was expecting the Meg to more or less carry the book and while that's the case, it's only to a certain extent as there are other tales that the Meg has an impact on. What struck me here was just how relatable everyone was. There are some real bastards on display here but Alten isn't about two dimensional villainy; everyone has a motive and reasons for doing what they do. You may not agree with what they do but you'll understand just why they're doing it and before you know it, there's a connection waiting to be ruthlessly exploited by Alten as he places people within the orbit of the Meg...

'The Meg' knows exactly what it is, a 'big dumb dinosaur' book, but is having far too much fun to care and that sense of fun is very much infectious. It was just what I needed after a few crappy days and I'll be carrying on with the series to see if I get that same buzz again. Fingers crossed...