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Jungle Land
Eight Teenage boys set off for a weekend long camping trip in the wooded area that surrounds their small community...not all of them return.
Jungle Land is the story of two brothers who, after dealing with horrendous events in their young lives, get relocated to a small retirement community in the San Joaquin Valley. The brothers soon make a couple of friends and, along with four other kids from the community,decide to play a weekend-long game of capture the flag. The game deviates from the normal rules when the teens begin to not only capture, but torture one another for the location of their secret bases. The torture leads to a death and the cover-up leads to many more.
Jungle Land is the story of two brothers who, after dealing with horrendous events in their young lives, get relocated to a small retirement community in the San Joaquin Valley. The brothers soon make a couple of friends and, along with four other kids from the community,decide to play a weekend-long game of capture the flag. The game deviates from the normal rules when the teens begin to not only capture, but torture one another for the location of their secret bases. The torture leads to a death and the cover-up leads to many more.
127 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 4, 2013
34 people want to read
About the author
R.M. DuChene
36 books33 followersR.M. DuChene has written over 50 short stories, published about 30 in online magazines and has multiple works self-published.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 14, 2013
I struggled with what rating to give this book, so I settled on a 4 star.
To me, this was two books, mixed together inextricably. One book I would give a 5 star to is the book that is quick-paced, thrilling, gives great detail to a "lord of the flies" type event between young boys, the complicated relationship between brothers, both damaged by life in psychological and tangible ways. This book excels and I would highly recommend to anyone. Nice writing, good suspense, twists and turns, outright surprises.
The second book mixed in with the first I would have given a 3 star to: the mundane, apparently pointless recounting of routine things, Like someone is brushing teeth, Like someone gets chicken pox, it's just mentioned in passing, it doesn't mean anything, it feels superfluous. These parts seem mixed in among the good stuff that leave you scratching your head. I think they're supposed to be what the narrator would write, to give it authenticity, but to me it detracted from the real story. I feel those could have been trimmed and the book improved.
But overall, I give this a 4 star and I'm pretty comfortable with that. When the drama gets moving, its pretty breathtaking.
To me, this was two books, mixed together inextricably. One book I would give a 5 star to is the book that is quick-paced, thrilling, gives great detail to a "lord of the flies" type event between young boys, the complicated relationship between brothers, both damaged by life in psychological and tangible ways. This book excels and I would highly recommend to anyone. Nice writing, good suspense, twists and turns, outright surprises.
The second book mixed in with the first I would have given a 3 star to: the mundane, apparently pointless recounting of routine things, Like someone is brushing teeth, Like someone gets chicken pox, it's just mentioned in passing, it doesn't mean anything, it feels superfluous. These parts seem mixed in among the good stuff that leave you scratching your head. I think they're supposed to be what the narrator would write, to give it authenticity, but to me it detracted from the real story. I feel those could have been trimmed and the book improved.
But overall, I give this a 4 star and I'm pretty comfortable with that. When the drama gets moving, its pretty breathtaking.
April 20, 2013
'Jungle Land' is the story of brothers Eric & Randy and the events in their childhoods that made them who they were.
This short novel is mainly told in a simple and conversational style through Eric as first person narrator, and I think this is what breathes life into the characters and makes the horror so gripping and real. I was hooked very quickly and enjoyed reading about the lives of the brothers who seemed upbeat enough in the beginning despite having very little in the way of money & possessions. They had each other and they began to figure out their own ways to make money.
Without spoiling the plot, some bad turns lead to a build up of horrific incidents. The tension mounts rapidly in the last quarter of the book and results in nail-biting, edge of seat reading. Some of the more disturbing scenes stayed with me and I've been thinking about the story ever since I read it earlier in the week. I think it has gotten under my skin as it feels like something that could actually happen and that is a truly horrifying thought! There are some nice twists and shocks in the story and the ending was both unexpected and satisfying.
I find DuChene's stories consistently excellent. They are told simply and are effective in delivering thrills and frights with many a well plotted twist and often with a moral message built in. 'Jungle Land' is another example of this, just in a novel format. Highly recommended horror!
This short novel is mainly told in a simple and conversational style through Eric as first person narrator, and I think this is what breathes life into the characters and makes the horror so gripping and real. I was hooked very quickly and enjoyed reading about the lives of the brothers who seemed upbeat enough in the beginning despite having very little in the way of money & possessions. They had each other and they began to figure out their own ways to make money.
Without spoiling the plot, some bad turns lead to a build up of horrific incidents. The tension mounts rapidly in the last quarter of the book and results in nail-biting, edge of seat reading. Some of the more disturbing scenes stayed with me and I've been thinking about the story ever since I read it earlier in the week. I think it has gotten under my skin as it feels like something that could actually happen and that is a truly horrifying thought! There are some nice twists and shocks in the story and the ending was both unexpected and satisfying.
I find DuChene's stories consistently excellent. They are told simply and are effective in delivering thrills and frights with many a well plotted twist and often with a moral message built in. 'Jungle Land' is another example of this, just in a novel format. Highly recommended horror!
May 5, 2013
Jungle Land by R.M. DuChene starts with a man (Eric) hauling an unconscious woman to a cave. After she regains consciousness, the man promises to let her go, once he finishes reading her his story. The tale starts with his earliest memories about his brother, Randy. The two unsupervised boys struggle to find food, witness a suicide hanging of “Uncle Mark,” one of their mom's boyfriends, and play in an area near home that they call Jungle Land. In this secluded area, they build forts, and then destroy them by throwing stones and rocks at each other as they hide behind their fortresses. With time, they invite friends to join them. As the innocent game becomes more aggressive, the story reminds me of Lord of the Flies.
Eric's childhood recollections seem real with the logic of a young boy. I could hear the conversations he had with Randy and later with his best friend, Andrew Wilkes. The pace is quick and, for the most part, chronological. The only thing prevented me from giving it four stars is the need for
Eric's childhood recollections seem real with the logic of a young boy. I could hear the conversations he had with Randy and later with his best friend, Andrew Wilkes. The pace is quick and, for the most part, chronological. The only thing prevented me from giving it four stars is the need for
October 9, 2015
The first half of this tale of two brothers as they grow up in impoverished circumstance in the 1980s is gripping, but I felt the tension drift as they expanded their circle a little. If it hadn’t been for the curious circumstances at the start, I could have given up on it, but it revived after another quarter of the book to a very bloodthirsty climax and somewhat tame ending. Worth keeping going with it. I hope I had an early copy and some further editing has taken place since. Note: I checked but haven’t been able to find this for sale anywhere; Goodreads lists it as a Smashwords edition, but I can’t find it there or in my Smashwords library..
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews