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Maneater #2
Prey
When a Russian criminal is torn to pieces by a powerful animal, Moscow cop Lev Dasaev follows the trail to the U.S. - and to the lair of a murderous madman called Wheeler Burns. Ruth Templeton will stop at nothing to destroy Laura Greenacre, the mysterious woman who was last seen disappearing into the tunnels beneath London - and her quest leads her to America.
The Templetons and the Greenacres will go to war one last time. And as in London eight years previously, werewolves will be unleashed - this time on the streets of New York. Bloodlust and vengeance unite Ruth and Burns as they conspire to annihilate Lev and Laura - and the ultimate hunter becomes the ultimate prey...
The Templetons and the Greenacres will go to war one last time. And as in London eight years previously, werewolves will be unleashed - this time on the streets of New York. Bloodlust and vengeance unite Ruth and Burns as they conspire to annihilate Lev and Laura - and the ultimate hunter becomes the ultimate prey...
352 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2009
164 people want to read
About the author
Thomas Emson
26 books69 followersThomas Emson is a British horror author. He has written eight novels, all published by Snowbooks in the UK. They include Maneater, Skarlet, and Zombie Brittanica. His Jack The Ripper novel Pariah was published by Tantor Media in the U.S.
His collection of stories The Trees And Other Stories was published on Kindle and CreateSpace. He has also written How To Write A Novel In 6 Months, a how-to guide for would-be novelists, which is available on Amazon.
He is represented by Mariam Keen at the Whispering Buffalo Literary Agency.
His collection of stories The Trees And Other Stories was published on Kindle and CreateSpace. He has also written How To Write A Novel In 6 Months, a how-to guide for would-be novelists, which is available on Amazon.
He is represented by Mariam Keen at the Whispering Buffalo Literary Agency.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 25, 2020
3 stars. It was okay, but I didn't enjoy it like the first one.
I'm not going to write an in-depth review of this. I enjoyed it, just not as much as the first one. It's a decent sequel, but not a necessary one.
I'm not going to write an in-depth review of this. I enjoyed it, just not as much as the first one. It's a decent sequel, but not a necessary one.
April 4, 2017
This is the second Thomas Emson novel that I've read. Indeed, the final chapter of the "Maneater" series featuring the werewolf Laura Greenacre. No doubt about it, Emson knows how to engage readers with a thrilling, intense drama that gives one the feeling of being on a rocketing, roller-coaster ride.
Here's a brief rundown of events in this novel. It is 2007 and Ruth Templeton has emerged from prison after serving an 8-year sentence for kidnapping. She was once part of a family --- the Templetons --- who commanded considerable power, wealth, and influence in the UK for the past several centuries. Ruth had lost her son, and is set on exacting her revenge on Laura Greenacre and John Thorn, the former policeman who had once been in charge of the security detail for her late brother, Sir Adam Templeton. She holds them both responsible for her beloved son's death. To this end, she goes to Moscow to seek out Lawrence Proctor, a doctor on the run from Britain for sex crimes, to inject her with a vial of Laura's blood that he had painstakingly collected back in the UK (the reader of this review is free to read the first novel of the series, "MANEATER: A Werewolf's Tale" for the particulars).
There had been an age's old enmity between the Greenacres and Templetons, both of whom were lycanthropes. That is to say, werewolves since time out of mind. But as western civilization extended itself beyond Greece and Rome and both families migrated across Europe, the Templetons eschewed their ancient power, suppressing it by dispersing their gene pool from generation to generation til they could no longer transform at will into werewolves. For the Templetons, this was part of a carefully calculated bid for power and wealth among civilized societies. (As for the Greenacres, they clung to their ancient power. But they were never free from the Templetons, who hunted them down through the ages whenever possible. Leaving Laura as the last of the Greenacres.)
As a result of the injection of Laura's blood, Ruth now has the power to become a werewolf herself. Glorying in her newborn power, Ruth embarks on a killing spree across Europe designed to bring Laura Greenacre out of the shadows. For she has seemingly disappeared without a trace --- both she and John Thorn --- over the previous 8 years. Rather than elaborate further, I invite the reader of this review to take up "PREY" for him/herself and take pleasure in an exciting, cinematic, heartstopping story. It's a journey the reader will delight in up to the final page.
Here's a brief rundown of events in this novel. It is 2007 and Ruth Templeton has emerged from prison after serving an 8-year sentence for kidnapping. She was once part of a family --- the Templetons --- who commanded considerable power, wealth, and influence in the UK for the past several centuries. Ruth had lost her son, and is set on exacting her revenge on Laura Greenacre and John Thorn, the former policeman who had once been in charge of the security detail for her late brother, Sir Adam Templeton. She holds them both responsible for her beloved son's death. To this end, she goes to Moscow to seek out Lawrence Proctor, a doctor on the run from Britain for sex crimes, to inject her with a vial of Laura's blood that he had painstakingly collected back in the UK (the reader of this review is free to read the first novel of the series, "MANEATER: A Werewolf's Tale" for the particulars).
There had been an age's old enmity between the Greenacres and Templetons, both of whom were lycanthropes. That is to say, werewolves since time out of mind. But as western civilization extended itself beyond Greece and Rome and both families migrated across Europe, the Templetons eschewed their ancient power, suppressing it by dispersing their gene pool from generation to generation til they could no longer transform at will into werewolves. For the Templetons, this was part of a carefully calculated bid for power and wealth among civilized societies. (As for the Greenacres, they clung to their ancient power. But they were never free from the Templetons, who hunted them down through the ages whenever possible. Leaving Laura as the last of the Greenacres.)
As a result of the injection of Laura's blood, Ruth now has the power to become a werewolf herself. Glorying in her newborn power, Ruth embarks on a killing spree across Europe designed to bring Laura Greenacre out of the shadows. For she has seemingly disappeared without a trace --- both she and John Thorn --- over the previous 8 years. Rather than elaborate further, I invite the reader of this review to take up "PREY" for him/herself and take pleasure in an exciting, cinematic, heartstopping story. It's a journey the reader will delight in up to the final page.
January 20, 2025
Prey is the sequel to Maneater and starts eight years on from where the first book finished. We see the return of Laura Greenacre and John Thorne who are both in hiding from the enemy Ruth Templeton.
A well worthy and brilliant read, and the book is just as good as the first. The book has plenty of gore and body ripping with werewolves on the rampage.
For me there has always been only three horror writers, Stephen King, James Herbert and Anne Rice, and now there is a fourth, Thomas Emson. What TE has done is given horror back to the adult. I am a big fan of the Twilights and Vampire Diaries but they lack the bite because they can be sugary and roamantic as they are aimed at the young adult market. Maneater and Prey are very adult but saying that can be read by the young adult but they are really gory and are pacy reads.
On a negative the book was too gory in places and there is only so much blood you can fit onto a page. I also felt that the final showdown between Laura and Ruth was very quick with no bulid up and was sorted on one page at the end of the story.
I have recently meet the author at a vampire event at my local library and he is a really nice guy. Next stop for me the vampires in Skarlet!
A well worthy and brilliant read, and the book is just as good as the first. The book has plenty of gore and body ripping with werewolves on the rampage.
For me there has always been only three horror writers, Stephen King, James Herbert and Anne Rice, and now there is a fourth, Thomas Emson. What TE has done is given horror back to the adult. I am a big fan of the Twilights and Vampire Diaries but they lack the bite because they can be sugary and roamantic as they are aimed at the young adult market. Maneater and Prey are very adult but saying that can be read by the young adult but they are really gory and are pacy reads.
On a negative the book was too gory in places and there is only so much blood you can fit onto a page. I also felt that the final showdown between Laura and Ruth was very quick with no bulid up and was sorted on one page at the end of the story.
I have recently meet the author at a vampire event at my local library and he is a really nice guy. Next stop for me the vampires in Skarlet!
December 30, 2018
Definitely fast paced, i do appreciate the different style of story telling through different characters each chapter and it didnt shy away from the gore and i enjoyed the confrontation in the end between the warring families.
I guess the reason for the low rating is because i couldnt find the first book when i brought this in a country town at a salvos and figured i give it a shot: trying to play catchup knowing i missed the entirety of the first book but gradually as i read on i got a rough understanding what transpired in the first book....i guess i wanted to know more about laura and ruth, but again, probably most likely all that is in the first book.
I'm gonna pass this book onto the book swap at my local shops and hope someone else enjoys it :)
I guess the reason for the low rating is because i couldnt find the first book when i brought this in a country town at a salvos and figured i give it a shot: trying to play catchup knowing i missed the entirety of the first book but gradually as i read on i got a rough understanding what transpired in the first book....i guess i wanted to know more about laura and ruth, but again, probably most likely all that is in the first book.
I'm gonna pass this book onto the book swap at my local shops and hope someone else enjoys it :)
December 1, 2020
Good read. Not so many mentions of the bladder which was good!!
September 6, 2010
I absolutely loved this book to pieces. Thomas Emson said after he wrote the first book that he wasn't really supposed to have been writing this second spectacular book to an already great Maneater but I’m so glad he did.
Laura Greenacre is feisty protagonist who can be easily liked by many. Woman and girls will love her for her gutsy attitude and men for her ‘attractiveness’. Also I love the Character of John Thorn and was so pleased to see he still featured later on in the story. Their relationship in the first book was amazing. Also liked the idea of how Emson split the book into three main sections of the story. One about Laura Greenacre who now lives in New York under her new name (Rose Blythe), the second one about Thorn lives out in the sticks of Wales with his daughter Sophie in hiding and the third about the characters all 'fighting for survival'.
Also loved the new character introduced called Lev Dasaev a Russian Cop. He was a very interesting and cool character in this blinder of a book. For me this has been one of the best books I have read this year and I’m looking forward to reading more from this great author.
Additionally in my opinion the fact that this book is based around Werewolves gave this book 3 stars just for that. AND they are not the furry and cute kind that can also be sometimes be portrayed. *cough cough* Stephanie Meyer. These are how werewolves are supposed to be!
Laura Greenacre is feisty protagonist who can be easily liked by many. Woman and girls will love her for her gutsy attitude and men for her ‘attractiveness’. Also I love the Character of John Thorn and was so pleased to see he still featured later on in the story. Their relationship in the first book was amazing. Also liked the idea of how Emson split the book into three main sections of the story. One about Laura Greenacre who now lives in New York under her new name (Rose Blythe), the second one about Thorn lives out in the sticks of Wales with his daughter Sophie in hiding and the third about the characters all 'fighting for survival'.
Also loved the new character introduced called Lev Dasaev a Russian Cop. He was a very interesting and cool character in this blinder of a book. For me this has been one of the best books I have read this year and I’m looking forward to reading more from this great author.
Additionally in my opinion the fact that this book is based around Werewolves gave this book 3 stars just for that. AND they are not the furry and cute kind that can also be sometimes be portrayed. *cough cough* Stephanie Meyer. These are how werewolves are supposed to be!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 12, 2012
Second book I've read from Thomas Emson, and interesting to re-read my review of the first, because there was definitely more evidence of an editor at work here! The overall writing seemed to have a lighter touch, too. As this is only his third book, it bodes well for future improvement...
The overall story felt largely predictable, but nicely told nonetheless. He still has certain mannerisms as a writer that I find intensely annoying, although I'm always painfully aware I'm reviewing something I certainly wouldn't have the imagination to write myself!
Interestingly, in both this and Skarlet, he writes in a very cinematic style. I'm not sure if that's his intention, but certainly if they ever got adapted for the screen, he takes care to describe exactly the scene the director is looking for! Which translates well when it comes to setting the scene for a reader.
The overall story felt largely predictable, but nicely told nonetheless. He still has certain mannerisms as a writer that I find intensely annoying, although I'm always painfully aware I'm reviewing something I certainly wouldn't have the imagination to write myself!
Interestingly, in both this and Skarlet, he writes in a very cinematic style. I'm not sure if that's his intention, but certainly if they ever got adapted for the screen, he takes care to describe exactly the scene the director is looking for! Which translates well when it comes to setting the scene for a reader.
April 5, 2016
With old friends, old foes, previous characters rarely mentioned but now a fore front within the plot & new settings, Prey follows on from Maneater fantastically.
If you thought the 1st novel was dark & gory, you'll soon realise it quite tame compared to this book. It's a lot more ruthless, gorier and wanders into the dark side of the underworld.
This book purposely mirrors some of the events from Maneater & although Laura isn't present as much either, with this novel being more about Ruth Templeton's quest for revenge.
The ending was wrapped up perfectly and I felt that unless the government(s) decided to experiment on the bodies of the fallen Templetons, then Laura, Thorn & Sophie would go on to live a quiet life in their little Welsh cottage. But as Emson wrote in his 'extras', never say never.
If you thought the 1st novel was dark & gory, you'll soon realise it quite tame compared to this book. It's a lot more ruthless, gorier and wanders into the dark side of the underworld.
This book purposely mirrors some of the events from Maneater & although Laura isn't present as much either, with this novel being more about Ruth Templeton's quest for revenge.
The ending was wrapped up perfectly and I felt that unless the government(s) decided to experiment on the bodies of the fallen Templetons, then Laura, Thorn & Sophie would go on to live a quiet life in their little Welsh cottage. But as Emson wrote in his 'extras', never say never.
June 12, 2010
A book that was never meant to be, insists the author. Though his previous werewolf yarn Maneater ended ambiguously, there was never meant to be a sequel, and only the passage of time, and a poke from his publisher and others, led to him realising there might be one after all. I'm glad there is. Emson writes summer blockbusters, frenetically paced, explosive horror-thrillers, but the kind that have enough real heart and character to make it worth the entry fee. I think, with the ending, the feudal tale of Laura Greenacre and the Templetons is finally done, but it's been a splendid ride.
June 8, 2013
Absolutely amazing! For a sequel that was never meant to be written, it was well done. I loved visiting Laura & John's story again, how even though they are apart, they are together. New York as a back drop really worked & I could completely believe the scenes as they played out. But I think this is where we should leave the story. It was nicely rounded off with plenty of touching moments amongst the violence. Laura really doesn't need anything else to go wrong in her life. I think she deserves a break. She earned it.
If you are Team Werewolf....read this!
If you are Team Werewolf....read this!
April 12, 2010
This book blew me away!! This is hands down the best werewolf book I have ever read. I am a huge fan of An American Werewolf In London, Thomas Emson's PREY is better. If you love horror read this book...if you write horror, WATCH OUT for Thomas Emson!
March 27, 2011
I gave up because it was not as good as Maneater. I got to chapter 10 , the plot was not following and i did not get what he was trying get across to the reader.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews