"The Five" by Robert McCammon

"Some things don't change, they never do.
Some things do change, they change with you."

Nomad, Ariel, Mike, Berke and Terry make up the struggling rock band 'The Five'. While on the road, one of them is shot by what at first appears to be a stray bullet. But when the others are fired at as well, they realise the band is being hunted by a sniper. The media coverage skyrockets CD sales and the demand for gigs is enormous. Furthermore, the FBI wants to use the band as bait to catch the shooter. So, the band decide to continue the tour. But they soon realise the sniper is not their only problem.

I really adore Robert McCammon's writing. "The Five" is yet another excellent thriller, which focuses on characterisation. This is quite a hefty tome (nearly 600 pages), but it never becomes dull because you can really feel for the characters. The 'bad guy' is not yet another deranged serial killer, but a well-rounded character whose actions are believable. It will probably help if you like rock music, because a major part of the novel is about life on the road. So much more than just another thriller, "The Five" is a thought-provoking story about friendship and love, good and evil, doubt and faith, courage and cowardice. I really don't understand why this author isn't more popular. He should be right up there with the likes of Stephen King and Dean Koontz.


Author: Robert McCammon
Title: The Five
Publisher: Tor, New York
Year: 2013 (orig. 2011)
Number of pages: 599 p.
ISBN: 9780765370266