Book: The Lost World (Michael Crichton, 1995)

I always try to make an effort to read a book before seeing the movie adaptation as I have this odd thing where I find it difficult to read the book if I've seen the film first. Unfortunately this was next to impossible with Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park novels not least because, upon the release of both films, I was only eight and twelve respectively, with Crichton's penchant for in depth talks about all things science going way above and beyond my intellectual capacity.

It's fortunate then that both books are vastly different from their film counterparts, more so with this, Crichton's only sequel and one that, on the outset, seemed wholly unnecessary. Written for the same reasons as all of Thomas Harris' post Silence of the Lambs novels, The Lost World has "cash in" written all over it. The reasons for there being a second island with dinosaurs are weak and many of the character motivations for getting there, especially with the antagonists (stealing dino eggs to use as test subjects for genetic experiments? Really?) are on the wrong side of silly.

With the source novel being so widely different from the movie though it was like I was reading a totally unrelated story that just so happened to have the same setting and the same characters. As with all of Crichton's work, the science jargon and philosophical arguments concerning the nature of life and extinction are layered on thick, but all this becomes secondary when the action starts. Crichton is a master of building tension and when the principals makes it to the island, the thrills come in spades. With the exception of the T-rex attack on the trailer, the latter half of the novel is totally different and, most crucially never leaves the island (I have major issues with the T-rex rampage in San Diego at the climax of the movie). As such, there's an extra sense of vulnerability as our heroes are well and truly stuck in a hostile and unforgiving environment.

It's definitely not as good as the first novel but, for what it's worth, The Lost World is near equal to the likes of Pirate Latitudes and Disclosure in terms of thrilling Crichton reads.

4/5