Scout's Honor

This was a new addition to my bookshelf, and my growing TBR pile, that was bought on a whim during an unscheduled (and quite unnecessary) trip to the bookstore. This particular book happened to be on one of the display tables around the store, and I’m a sucker for a good book display, so I grabbed myself a copy and, after some more browsing and selecting, made my way to the cashier with a small stack of books wrapped in my arms. I’m not entirely sure why, perhaps something intuitively sank its hooks in me, but I knew that this was a book that I needed to begin right away. After more than 150 pages in one night, I was captivated, engrossed, and frankly horrified, but I couldn’t seem to put it down.

“The Troop” by Nick Cutter is the gripping tale of a small troop of boy scouts who become stranded on an island off the coast of their hometown while on a camping retreat with their scoutmaster. When a strange boat comes ashore one night, carrying an even stranger man, the scouts and their leader have their world turned upside down. Carrying a parasitic worm inside of him, the stranger who lands on the island is desperate to eat and is inflicted with an inhuman hunger. As the man slowly rots, the scoutmaster does his best to protect Max, Ephriam, Newton, Kent, and Shelley from potential danger, however, his protection comes at a great personal sacrifice. As these parasitic worms begin to spread, the boys quickly realize the gravity of the situation and do everything they can to save themselves and get back to their families.

I loved so much about this book! I loved the concept, the pacing, the characters, and even the different media mix-ins (interview notes, ads, etc..) that were interspersed through the book. Cutter does a fantastic job at writing a book that reads like a slow burn; the emotion builds, the suspense builds, and even the trauma builds until everything boils over in a gripping climax that left me staring down at the pages in shock. The way that everything builds and the way that the different layers of the story compound on top of one another left me furiously turning the pages, desperate to find out what could possibly happen next.

In terms of characters, my heart absolutely broke for this group of boys. Watching them realize the horrors that they are faced with, and watching the despair creep upon them as they realize how utterly isolated they are from their parents, their community, and from any form of help was truly heart wrenching. It was emotional because you realize that these are children, and as you think about children enduring such hardship you can’t help but become emotionally invested and attached. There is almost an innate protective instinct that adults have towards children, and I felt as though Cutter activated that instinct by creating such a beautifully written story. Without giving too much away, I would be remiss if I didn’t commend Cutter on the way he developed and wrote the character of Shelley– truly and utterly skin crawling–but each of the boys was rich with their own ethics, morals, and developed personalities.

There was nothing that I really didn’t like about this book. If anything, there were moments when certain passages seemed repetitive; there were a lot of descriptions that seemed to be repeated, but, ultimately, I don’t think that hindered the reading experience at all.

I would highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for a gripping tale of horror and survival. This book touches on the tenacity of the human spirit, the power of friendship, and the unbelievable strength and resilience of children. For me, especially coming out of the pandemic, a horror story like this seems substantially more intense and seems so much more real. If you are looking for a slow burn that you just can’t put down, I would strongly urge you to pick up a copy of “The Troop”--you won’t be disappointed.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★