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The Wrath
Book by Robbins, David
368 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 20, 2022
Professor Artemas Crenshaw has come to Egypt to translate an ancient scroll; once completed, it tells the reader where to find "the Valley of the Dog People," the first mention of such a place, ever in history. It goes on to say, this valley was once a lush paradise, which was conquered by a tribe referred to as "the Dog People." A prince was sent to find the Dog People, but was killed in battle and entombed nearby. A powerful magician then appeared and destroyed the Dog People - every last one - with "fire ash." The city was then burned to the ground and the king declared the area unfit for living; anyone who disobeyed was put to death.
Now, Professor Crenshaw and his colleague, Amy Brant are searching for the tomb of Prince Hiros, and feel they are close. Sure enough, to their great excitement, their archaeology team tell the two that they have found the entrance to the tomb. Once inside, Professor Crenshaw translates the hieroglyphics to Amy, telling her they warn that the Dog People must never be allowed to live again, "for the safety of mankind."
The warnings go on and on throughout the tomb, telling anyone to turn back immediately, but little do the pair know just how dire the consequences will be for their defiance. Eventually they find the coffin of Prince Hiros, but the professor has never seen anything like this - for the Prince's coffin itself is shaped like an animal on all fours. As excited as they are to begin exhuming the tomb, they must wait and notify the Egyptian government first.
The professor sets up a night guard outside, so no grave robbers will get their hands on the Prince's treasures. However, the night guard himself is a poor man with a large family to provide for, and he decides to open the coffin and take the largest jewel he can find from the Prince. He pulls the emerald ring off his finger and the entire skeleton collapses, showering dust and debris into his face.
Days later, Professor Crenshaw is woken by strange howling and as he is walking to check on the tomb, he sees a half dozen shadowy figures dart for cover from his flashlight. He doesn't notice detail, but notes their odd movement. Once he reaches the entrance, he sees the night watchman has been brutally killed - his throat ripped out. He immediately thinks of grave robbers, but when a wild dog shows up, he wonders if they are responsible. As they began to come closer to him, he has no choice but to flee into the tomb. When he manages to turn his flashlight onto the creatures chasing him, he realizes these are no regular wild dogs. He is nearly paralyzed with fear and finally understands what a fool he had been to ignore the numerous warnings in the tomb.
Back in America, the news begins reporting on widespread violence quickly taking city by city. Travel in or out is stopped. Martial law is declared. Riots begin. And then there are people - humans being transformed into creatures who run around on all fours and brutally attack anyone they see. No one knows how exactly the plague is passed or how to stop it, but they know it happens quickly. Too quickly to have a fighting chance.
As days go by, Amy Brant begins to wonder if somehow this "Canine" plague, as they are calling it has anything to do with the warnings of Dog People plastered all over the Prince's tomb back in Egypt... Once one infected person got on a plane from Egypt to the States, it kept spreading in the same fashion from country to country, city to city, until the entire world was all but overrun. Amy remembers hearing about the "fire dust" that defeated the ancient race of Dog People, but what does that mean - and who would even listen to her anyways?
Can Amy figure out a way to stop the Dog People for a second time - before they kill everyone she loves?
---------------
This is my third David Robbins book and I just love his stuff. This one turned out to be different than I envisioned, but still a great read nonetheless. This was a nice quick, straightforward read.
Now, Professor Crenshaw and his colleague, Amy Brant are searching for the tomb of Prince Hiros, and feel they are close. Sure enough, to their great excitement, their archaeology team tell the two that they have found the entrance to the tomb. Once inside, Professor Crenshaw translates the hieroglyphics to Amy, telling her they warn that the Dog People must never be allowed to live again, "for the safety of mankind."
The warnings go on and on throughout the tomb, telling anyone to turn back immediately, but little do the pair know just how dire the consequences will be for their defiance. Eventually they find the coffin of Prince Hiros, but the professor has never seen anything like this - for the Prince's coffin itself is shaped like an animal on all fours. As excited as they are to begin exhuming the tomb, they must wait and notify the Egyptian government first.
The professor sets up a night guard outside, so no grave robbers will get their hands on the Prince's treasures. However, the night guard himself is a poor man with a large family to provide for, and he decides to open the coffin and take the largest jewel he can find from the Prince. He pulls the emerald ring off his finger and the entire skeleton collapses, showering dust and debris into his face.
Days later, Professor Crenshaw is woken by strange howling and as he is walking to check on the tomb, he sees a half dozen shadowy figures dart for cover from his flashlight. He doesn't notice detail, but notes their odd movement. Once he reaches the entrance, he sees the night watchman has been brutally killed - his throat ripped out. He immediately thinks of grave robbers, but when a wild dog shows up, he wonders if they are responsible. As they began to come closer to him, he has no choice but to flee into the tomb. When he manages to turn his flashlight onto the creatures chasing him, he realizes these are no regular wild dogs. He is nearly paralyzed with fear and finally understands what a fool he had been to ignore the numerous warnings in the tomb.
Back in America, the news begins reporting on widespread violence quickly taking city by city. Travel in or out is stopped. Martial law is declared. Riots begin. And then there are people - humans being transformed into creatures who run around on all fours and brutally attack anyone they see. No one knows how exactly the plague is passed or how to stop it, but they know it happens quickly. Too quickly to have a fighting chance.
As days go by, Amy Brant begins to wonder if somehow this "Canine" plague, as they are calling it has anything to do with the warnings of Dog People plastered all over the Prince's tomb back in Egypt... Once one infected person got on a plane from Egypt to the States, it kept spreading in the same fashion from country to country, city to city, until the entire world was all but overrun. Amy remembers hearing about the "fire dust" that defeated the ancient race of Dog People, but what does that mean - and who would even listen to her anyways?
Can Amy figure out a way to stop the Dog People for a second time - before they kill everyone she loves?
---------------
This is my third David Robbins book and I just love his stuff. This one turned out to be different than I envisioned, but still a great read nonetheless. This was a nice quick, straightforward read.
June 1, 2023
An oddly compelling novel from Robbins, who wrote a handful of horror novels alongside his vast output of adventure/post-apocalyptic series. From the backflap, we know some ancient plague is going to be released from an Egyptian tomb, but The Wrath starts off more prosaically and we do not get to the plague foo until about halfway through as Robbins spends his time introducing the main characters. One of our protagonists, Amy, works as an assistant to a professor involved in finding the tomb of an Egyptian prince who died some 5000 years ago. Interestingly, the 'clue' for the prince came from an ancient scroll that also referenced the 'dog people'.
The other main characters include Amy's fiance Simon, an Interpol agent Simon befriends when the plane he is on gets hijacked on the way to Egypt, Buddy at the CDC, Simon's brother who teaches martial arts and others minor characters. The Wrath reminded me to a degree of Johnstone's work in that various, fairly conservative social commentary emerges in dialogue but is more farcical than serious, along with the gonzo pacing when the excrement hits the spinning blades. Also, Robbins loves his gunz and they depicted lovingly when they enter the scene.
The plague, deemed c-666 by the researchers at the CDC moves very quickly, and turns people into 'Canines' who move about on all fours and have a taste for blood. I will not go into the details, but definitely a novel take on the plague, and reading this after Covid, you almost feel that Robbins is a bit prophetic in how he envisioned how the plague spread. As with many action/adventure tales, the males here are pretty 'macho' prepared to protect the females-- a trope also displayed in his Hell-O-Ween.
All in all, a quick, pretty gonzo read by Robbins that was fun from start to finish. The banter among the characters dripped one-liners at times but the humor was not really dark, more like the quips from 80s action movies which this could well have been. The denouement was full of cheese, however, but it kinda fit the novel. Even having written this, still not quite sure why I enjoyed this one so much, but there you go. 3.5 'dog people, rounding up!
The other main characters include Amy's fiance Simon, an Interpol agent Simon befriends when the plane he is on gets hijacked on the way to Egypt, Buddy at the CDC, Simon's brother who teaches martial arts and others minor characters. The Wrath reminded me to a degree of Johnstone's work in that various, fairly conservative social commentary emerges in dialogue but is more farcical than serious, along with the gonzo pacing when the excrement hits the spinning blades. Also, Robbins loves his gunz and they depicted lovingly when they enter the scene.
The plague, deemed c-666 by the researchers at the CDC moves very quickly, and turns people into 'Canines' who move about on all fours and have a taste for blood. I will not go into the details, but definitely a novel take on the plague, and reading this after Covid, you almost feel that Robbins is a bit prophetic in how he envisioned how the plague spread. As with many action/adventure tales, the males here are pretty 'macho' prepared to protect the females-- a trope also displayed in his Hell-O-Ween.
All in all, a quick, pretty gonzo read by Robbins that was fun from start to finish. The banter among the characters dripped one-liners at times but the humor was not really dark, more like the quips from 80s action movies which this could well have been. The denouement was full of cheese, however, but it kinda fit the novel. Even having written this, still not quite sure why I enjoyed this one so much, but there you go. 3.5 'dog people, rounding up!
August 5, 2022
A ridiculously entertaining and also just flat out ridiculous chunk of 80s pulp horror! Robbins doesn't let things like logic or realism get in the way of a good time. Set aside your good taste and enjoy the sheer excess of this thing. Delicious 80s Horror Junk Food, served up hot!
June 4, 2014
Curse of the pharaohs. From the silent tombs of the pharaohs it came, infecting the world with an insidious disease more terrifying than the Black Plague. The vile infection transformed those it touched into savage, demented beasts. But the victims of this ancient curse did not die, they overran the earth, thriving on the meat of the healthy. Survivors had two options: contract the hideous sickness, or meet a violent death in the rabid jaws of an inhuman killer,,,,
This is a fast paced, fun book!! Part Indiana Jones part 28 Days Later. Although a bit dated at times, I loved the sarcastic humor in this book. The characters were fairly realistic and the horror was over the top. A super fun read! A solid 4 stars.
This is a fast paced, fun book!! Part Indiana Jones part 28 Days Later. Although a bit dated at times, I loved the sarcastic humor in this book. The characters were fairly realistic and the horror was over the top. A super fun read! A solid 4 stars.
July 12, 2018
So this was published in 1988, the year I finished high school, and I'm sure if I read it then I probably would have loved it. Not so much now. Why? Because holy shoulder padded suits, it's so fucking eighties. It's not the clothing descriptions, or the pet doberman, or the virus named 'C666'. It's not the discovery of a hidden Egyptian tomb, or the martial arts expert, or the Spielberg action sequences, it's the patronizing, condescending depiction of women, who, at all times must be protected by the men.
There's Amy, whose wealthy parents offer her humble husband a flash job so she can live closer to them and won't 'let' their adult daughter return to her studies in Egypt. That's probably a good idea seeing as though she swoons and faints at the first death and has to be carried to safety.
There's Marcy, characterized as the proverbial sex-kitten. After witnessing a violent deadly rampage, where her boyfriend 'kung foos' the leaving the poor sod quite shocked and traumatized, she responds with "Calm down, lover." Not to mention when she's quietly bleeding to death after a nasty bite from said and her boyfriend wants to tear her dress to stop the bleeding, she squawks "My dress?...Do you know how much this cost?"
Then there's Amy's mum who, portrayed as the quintessential spoilt rich bitch, makes a fucking stupid decision, putting everyone's life at risk.
I'm a bit surprised at myself that I actually finished this, but then, I was kind of hoping they'd all get chomped. Did they? Let's just say the ending was ridiculous, but if you really want to know....
There's Amy, whose wealthy parents offer her humble husband a flash job so she can live closer to them and won't 'let' their adult daughter return to her studies in Egypt. That's probably a good idea seeing as though she swoons and faints at the first death and has to be carried to safety.
There's Marcy, characterized as the proverbial sex-kitten. After witnessing a violent deadly rampage, where her boyfriend 'kung foos' the leaving the poor sod quite shocked and traumatized, she responds with "Calm down, lover." Not to mention when she's quietly bleeding to death after a nasty bite from said and her boyfriend wants to tear her dress to stop the bleeding, she squawks "My dress?...Do you know how much this cost?"
Then there's Amy's mum who, portrayed as the quintessential spoilt rich bitch, makes a fucking stupid decision, putting everyone's life at risk.
I'm a bit surprised at myself that I actually finished this, but then, I was kind of hoping they'd all get chomped. Did they? Let's just say the ending was ridiculous, but if you really want to know....
October 23, 2025
I really enjoyed the authors other horror novels and wondered why he stopped writing them. After reading this one, I can kind of guess. It seemed a bit forced and unbalanced. It sometimes crossed over to his other book genres, like the action ones. He has an Interpol agent here and lots of gun play. Although he did write a few more horror novels after this one, it feels like he lost interest in this type of book.
A plague of human killers on all fours swarms the world after an archeologist and his protege uncover the tomb of "The Dog People" in Egypt. The protege returns to America and all hell breaks loose around the world. Pretty silly to say the least. Naked hairy people running and howling like dogs descend on mankind. The ending is something you can pick up with a disposable baggie.
A plague of human killers on all fours swarms the world after an archeologist and his protege uncover the tomb of "The Dog People" in Egypt. The protege returns to America and all hell breaks loose around the world. Pretty silly to say the least. Naked hairy people running and howling like dogs descend on mankind. The ending is something you can pick up with a disposable baggie.
February 24, 2021
3.5 stars
It’s not that greatly written, and it has some pretty stupid moments (even by horror standards) but, in all honesty, The Wrath ended up being a lot better than I thought it would.
Of course, this being written at the tail end of the horror bubble (about 3 or 4 years before it burst), expecting the next It or Dracula is pretty short sided. The Wrath was cheaply written, produced, and thrown together as a means of cheap entertainment.
And, in that respect, this book actually delivers. Its easily readable and once you get passed the first ridiculous couple of chapters of pointless backstory, it races along and it’s hard to put down.
It’s not that greatly written, and it has some pretty stupid moments (even by horror standards) but, in all honesty, The Wrath ended up being a lot better than I thought it would.
Of course, this being written at the tail end of the horror bubble (about 3 or 4 years before it burst), expecting the next It or Dracula is pretty short sided. The Wrath was cheaply written, produced, and thrown together as a means of cheap entertainment.
And, in that respect, this book actually delivers. Its easily readable and once you get passed the first ridiculous couple of chapters of pointless backstory, it races along and it’s hard to put down.
October 28, 2018
Finally. It took me 6 years to figure out the title. Lol. I read it in jail in 2012 and the part where the outbreak happens during a wedding always seemed like it would be a great scene for film. Also, the ending stuck with me too. I remember the book laying around a pile of unwanted books on the library cart. As a fan of horror films I grabbed this with no expectation. It was hard to put down and I may have read it in one night. I kept a journal in there and brought it back with me, so I guess I can reference back to that. Read a lot of books in there and this was one of the few that stood out. When I couldn't remember the title I googled, "book with dog pharaoh on cover" to no avail for years. It popped up tonight as I researched the ancient Egyptian dogs and found the Pharaoh Hound. Googled "horror book with Pharaoh Hounds" and here it is! Been trying to collect all the books I have read in jail. Well, that's enough about that. Just glad I found it!
April 30, 2023
Great premise - opening a sealed tomb in Egypt releases a deadly plague that rapidly decimates humanity, but, unfortunately, The Wrath is poorly written and filled with stereotypes. Entertaining, but with little substance.
April 17, 2022
I have to admit i have read this book many times and it never disappoints.
January 16, 2024
Those goddamned flamingo decorations bruv.
February 23, 2015
This was a very cool book. Much more character development than I was expecting from a late 80s horror novel. A fast paced read with a very good story and plenty of action.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews