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Crab Attack
Lake Lucas is a place of tranquility. Known for its long trails, camping grounds, and fishing, it is a popular place for hikers, campers, and anyone looking to get away from society. For ex-con Valentine Krane, it is the perfect place to start fresh and new.
Unfortunately, nature has other plans.
When someone from his past is violently murdered in the lake, Valentine finds himself under suspicion. The police investigate him, oblivious to the real threat lurking under the tranquil water.
Their search for answers reveals a series of strange occurrences. A camp is discovered on the shore, its occupants missing, the sand covered with blood; vacant fishing boats idly drift in shallow coves; and a tent is found shredded to ribbons.
By the time they learn the truth, it may be too late. Radioactive crabs, equipped with razor-sharp claws that can tear through Kevlar, have infiltrated the lake.
Hungry, ravenous, and without mercy, they seek to devour anything and anyone in their way.
Anyone in the path of this crab attack is doomed to suffer a violent death.
Unfortunately, nature has other plans.
When someone from his past is violently murdered in the lake, Valentine finds himself under suspicion. The police investigate him, oblivious to the real threat lurking under the tranquil water.
Their search for answers reveals a series of strange occurrences. A camp is discovered on the shore, its occupants missing, the sand covered with blood; vacant fishing boats idly drift in shallow coves; and a tent is found shredded to ribbons.
By the time they learn the truth, it may be too late. Radioactive crabs, equipped with razor-sharp claws that can tear through Kevlar, have infiltrated the lake.
Hungry, ravenous, and without mercy, they seek to devour anything and anyone in their way.
Anyone in the path of this crab attack is doomed to suffer a violent death.
191 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 11, 2022
61 people are currently reading
49 people want to read
About the author
Michael R. Cole
40 books118 followersMichael R. Cole is an author of creature horror and science fiction. He was born in Toledo, Ohio and grew up in lower Michigan. He has a profound love for monster movies and book as well as the action genre. In addition to writing, his hobbies include martial arts and fishing.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
November 16, 2025
Giant mutant crabs, mass killing spree, victims you’re glad to see die.
Not much in terms of plot needed. Recreation park. Lots of patrons: fishers, picnicers, group celebrators. Plenty of reasons to go in or near the water. High death toll. Low survival ratio. Body gore. Nothing too shocking though.
The premise worked well. The action scenes were well written. The plot and downtime story parts were so-so. The characters were good for the buffet, nothing else. But it serves it’s audience well. A quick n easy read.
Not much in terms of plot needed. Recreation park. Lots of patrons: fishers, picnicers, group celebrators. Plenty of reasons to go in or near the water. High death toll. Low survival ratio. Body gore. Nothing too shocking though.
The premise worked well. The action scenes were well written. The plot and downtime story parts were so-so. The characters were good for the buffet, nothing else. But it serves it’s audience well. A quick n easy read.
April 18, 2023
This is exactly as middle-of-the-road, just as it says on the tin as the name implies. It's about a crab attack. THE crab attack, you might say. Nothing more, nothing less. About midway through, the author name-drops Guy N. Smith's infamous Crabs series--this is a slightly gentrified version of that. More technically proficient, maybe, but less memorably camp.
So I'm not going to ding it too hard. I just feel like, with the limitless budget of the written word, things could be pushed a little further. Maybe it's just that I'm comparing it to my recent reads of John Halkin's Slime/Slither/Squeltch trilogy, where you not only got better than average 'human interest' stuff, but Great Britain itself was on the chopping block by the time the snakes/jellyfish/caterpillars had gotten revved up.
There's little here that wouldn't make it into a Syfy Channel Original Movie. A lake is full of radioactive crabs. They gobble up a number of doomed walk-ons in little vignettes, which do little to advance the plot but lots to showcase how many ways the author can describe people being diced up by crab pincers.
They also gobble up most of the main characters, who are generally evil or unpleasant, the better to salve the conscience as they're crabbed up. A few of the characters are good and they put up a fight against the otherwise invincible crabs. There’s a big climax where scores of humans are slaughtered and the crabs are definitively dealt with, but not so definitively that there can’t be a sequel.
Textbook Roger Corman.
The third act is a bit fun, with our remaining characters scrambling to stay one step ahead of the crabs now that the monsters aren’t arbitrarily staying hidden, but the second act kinda bored me, with a “wrong man accused” plot where the main character was blamed for some of the crabs’ kills. Since it’s obvious that the authorities have to figure out that there are giant people-eating crabs in the lake eventually, I wasn’t too worried about the guy getting arrested.
And, well, that’s all she wrote. I come not to bury Crab Attack or to praise it, but simply to say it was a book that I read which had many people being attacked by crabs.
So I'm not going to ding it too hard. I just feel like, with the limitless budget of the written word, things could be pushed a little further. Maybe it's just that I'm comparing it to my recent reads of John Halkin's Slime/Slither/Squeltch trilogy, where you not only got better than average 'human interest' stuff, but Great Britain itself was on the chopping block by the time the snakes/jellyfish/caterpillars had gotten revved up.
There's little here that wouldn't make it into a Syfy Channel Original Movie. A lake is full of radioactive crabs. They gobble up a number of doomed walk-ons in little vignettes, which do little to advance the plot but lots to showcase how many ways the author can describe people being diced up by crab pincers.
They also gobble up most of the main characters, who are generally evil or unpleasant, the better to salve the conscience as they're crabbed up. A few of the characters are good and they put up a fight against the otherwise invincible crabs. There’s a big climax where scores of humans are slaughtered and the crabs are definitively dealt with, but not so definitively that there can’t be a sequel.
Textbook Roger Corman.
The third act is a bit fun, with our remaining characters scrambling to stay one step ahead of the crabs now that the monsters aren’t arbitrarily staying hidden, but the second act kinda bored me, with a “wrong man accused” plot where the main character was blamed for some of the crabs’ kills. Since it’s obvious that the authorities have to figure out that there are giant people-eating crabs in the lake eventually, I wasn’t too worried about the guy getting arrested.
And, well, that’s all she wrote. I come not to bury Crab Attack or to praise it, but simply to say it was a book that I read which had many people being attacked by crabs.
November 26, 2023
Awesomely fun thriller …. Hilarious!!
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one, other than it likely being an exciting read due to the author being Michael Cole — a master of the creature genre.
And true to his other work, Crab Attack is a gripping, intensely imaginative story!
The character development & world building is outstanding. Lots of rich detail, history & backstory, vivid imagery, emotionally compelling, a bit of science, & just like watching a film on the big screen (except this one plays out smoothly within the mind’s eye).
This book is also quite funny - too many humorous moments to single any out in particular. This causes the tale to be extra enjoyable.
I highly suggest Googling the “creature” in particular. It’s quite the specimen to behold!
Definitely recommend this Cole story for readers across the spectrum — sci-fi, drama, humor, creature, apocalyptic, & even light romance.
It’s a fast, supremely entertaining read!……
I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one, other than it likely being an exciting read due to the author being Michael Cole — a master of the creature genre.
And true to his other work, Crab Attack is a gripping, intensely imaginative story!
The character development & world building is outstanding. Lots of rich detail, history & backstory, vivid imagery, emotionally compelling, a bit of science, & just like watching a film on the big screen (except this one plays out smoothly within the mind’s eye).
This book is also quite funny - too many humorous moments to single any out in particular. This causes the tale to be extra enjoyable.
I highly suggest Googling the “creature” in particular. It’s quite the specimen to behold!
Definitely recommend this Cole story for readers across the spectrum — sci-fi, drama, humor, creature, apocalyptic, & even light romance.
It’s a fast, supremely entertaining read!……
June 30, 2025
"His life came to a shocking end." If you know, you know. Lol!
God, I love Michael Cole. I wish I could give Crab Attack 4.5 stars, because it deserves more than 4 stars. This book was so much fun. It has just the right amount of horror, action, humor, and character development. It even has a little romance, but not enough to bog down the narrative. The one negative I have to say about this book is that it bogs down just a little in the third act, but damn, what a conclusion! You are going to hit a part of the novel where you may feel like you are spending way too much time with a family (full of awful people) preparing for a wedding, but I promise that that subplot has a delicious payoff, no pun intended.
If you want a fast, fun, thrilling creature feature with gruesome kill scenes and heroes you actually root for, look no further than Michael Cole.
God, I love Michael Cole. I wish I could give Crab Attack 4.5 stars, because it deserves more than 4 stars. This book was so much fun. It has just the right amount of horror, action, humor, and character development. It even has a little romance, but not enough to bog down the narrative. The one negative I have to say about this book is that it bogs down just a little in the third act, but damn, what a conclusion! You are going to hit a part of the novel where you may feel like you are spending way too much time with a family (full of awful people) preparing for a wedding, but I promise that that subplot has a delicious payoff, no pun intended.
If you want a fast, fun, thrilling creature feature with gruesome kill scenes and heroes you actually root for, look no further than Michael Cole.
January 17, 2023
So much fun!
Love Cole. Been reading his books since his start. I love creature features and he always, always delivers. This one was a hoot! Total fun. Great characters that you are anxious to revisit each time you pick up the book. Ghastly beasties this time around and so very hungry. Cole's grip on the action is unrelenting. His gory descriptions making one's stomach turn over a bit. Great stuff. This book was particularly more fun due to the wedding party and its members. That's all I say on that. Read the book. Highly recommended.
Love Cole. Been reading his books since his start. I love creature features and he always, always delivers. This one was a hoot! Total fun. Great characters that you are anxious to revisit each time you pick up the book. Ghastly beasties this time around and so very hungry. Cole's grip on the action is unrelenting. His gory descriptions making one's stomach turn over a bit. Great stuff. This book was particularly more fun due to the wedding party and its members. That's all I say on that. Read the book. Highly recommended.
December 27, 2023
Crab Attack
Crab Attack by Michael Cole is a really fun Creature Feature. While Cole as written about giant crabs before. These ones were defiantly the most brutal for sure. The overall plot was really enjoyable and flowed extremely well. The characters were also very well written and each had their own rich personality’s. As with some of Coles other books I really enjoyed the twist ending. All in all I would recommend Crab Attack to anyone who enjoys Creature Features.
Crab Attack by Michael Cole is a really fun Creature Feature. While Cole as written about giant crabs before. These ones were defiantly the most brutal for sure. The overall plot was really enjoyable and flowed extremely well. The characters were also very well written and each had their own rich personality’s. As with some of Coles other books I really enjoyed the twist ending. All in all I would recommend Crab Attack to anyone who enjoys Creature Features.
February 27, 2024
Amazingly fun. Felt very much like a traditional creature feature.
Pros:
+ descriptions of kills were over the top
+ the cast of characters fit a perfect mold of creature feature characters
Cons:
- I wish that the level of detail on the characters was used on the local and/or the monsters themselves
I know there’s no way for this to happen but it would have been fun to discover they were crabs rather than the title stating it
Pros:
+ descriptions of kills were over the top
+ the cast of characters fit a perfect mold of creature feature characters
Cons:
- I wish that the level of detail on the characters was used on the local and/or the monsters themselves
I know there’s no way for this to happen but it would have been fun to discover they were crabs rather than the title stating it
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 16, 2022
Michael Cole at his best
Having read most of this author's work , I found this one to be one of his best and a quite enjoyable monster romp. The creatures were unique and his main characters had a little more depth than usual making their budding relationship more interesting.
A few minor editing errors but overall a fun Michael Cole B movie in book form
Having read most of this author's work , I found this one to be one of his best and a quite enjoyable monster romp. The creatures were unique and his main characters had a little more depth than usual making their budding relationship more interesting.
A few minor editing errors but overall a fun Michael Cole B movie in book form
January 12, 2023
Sick and twisted and hilarious
I was not expecting the comedy. The part where the two fishermen were joking with each other about looking for a fishing spot had me laughing out loud! The general idea of the story is crabs get exposed to radiation and grow into giants and then rampage the lake community. Very entertaining with a good ending.
I was not expecting the comedy. The part where the two fishermen were joking with each other about looking for a fishing spot had me laughing out loud! The general idea of the story is crabs get exposed to radiation and grow into giants and then rampage the lake community. Very entertaining with a good ending.
April 26, 2023
Fast paced and entertaining
You liked the good characters and hated the bad ones. The pace of the story was fast, and even if a few things were predictable, it was done in a way that you enjoyed because of the twist spun on them. I read the entire thing in 24 hours I wanted to see what the crabs would do next!
You liked the good characters and hated the bad ones. The pace of the story was fast, and even if a few things were predictable, it was done in a way that you enjoyed because of the twist spun on them. I read the entire thing in 24 hours I wanted to see what the crabs would do next!
July 20, 2023
Crab Attack was another great icky bug. This is the type of creature feature I eat right up, just like my favorite B-movies. The story was short but sweet.
There were some grammar issues like repeated words, a bit of head-hopping and some obvious formatting issues, but overall, I had a great time right to the end. Recommended.
There were some grammar issues like repeated words, a bit of head-hopping and some obvious formatting issues, but overall, I had a great time right to the end. Recommended.
November 4, 2025
The name gives a promise, maybe chaos, claws, and crustacean carnage! And you can find some of that, but mostly it’s a small-town drama, an overlong wedding subplot, and a story that scuttles off in the wrong direction.. For a book about killer crabs, it’s surprisingly tame.
January 8, 2023
Amazing book
Looking forward to more stories. Great read about giant creatures!!! Ending was awesome. Left me wanting more. Hoping for continuation.
Looking forward to more stories. Great read about giant creatures!!! Ending was awesome. Left me wanting more. Hoping for continuation.
January 16, 2023
A lot better than I thought it would be.
It would make a very good horror - commedy film .It's a little bit predictable but it won't stop me eating crabs
It would make a very good horror - commedy film .It's a little bit predictable but it won't stop me eating crabs
February 22, 2023
Fun
Makings of a great old fashioned monster movie. No long build up, great characters and loved the ending. I was entertained.
Makings of a great old fashioned monster movie. No long build up, great characters and loved the ending. I was entertained.
August 26, 2023
Ok read but not really believable
December 17, 2024
This was great fun, a bit gory, a bit silly but with enough serious moments for you to be invested, an exciting creature feature! Lake placid vibes <3
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews