Deathwatch

by Robb White

Madec was not the kind of man Ben would ordinarily have chosen as a companion for a quiet hunting trip. The only time Madec ever laughed was when he told some story about how smart he was. He was a cold man who liked to hurt things and he was dangerous with a gun. But Ben needed money to pay for another semester at college, and so when Madec offered to hire him as a guide to hunt bighorn sheep in the desert mountains, he agreed. It was a mistake that very nearly cost Ben his life.

Genres: Fiction, Young Adult, Adventure, Survival, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Mystery

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

Robb White was partnered with gimmick horror film king William Castle during Castle's most popular and productive period. Born in the Philippines, White was a preacher's son who held a wide variety of jobs before landing in the Navy during World War II. He initially collaborated with Castle on the short-lived TV series "Men of Annapolis" (1957), then joined forces with the enterprising producer-director on the horror thrillers "Macabre" (1958), "House on Haunted Hill" (1959), "The Tingler" (1959), "Homicidal" (1961), and "13 Ghosts" (1960). He later went back to TV writing, including "Perry Mason" (1957), as well as novels.

Reviews

[Colleen AF · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in 6th grade and I remembered two main things about it a) i had read it in one sitting and found it super compelling and action packed b) the main boy was totally naked about it, which aa) gave 6th grade Colleen the giggles and bb) I blame this book and my overactive imagination for me becoming boy crazy. Rereading this as an adult (a no longer boy crazy one) I find it hysterical that my first literary crush was so bland and stuck in such a 'meh' book. Sure it had it's moments but I was rather bored through most of it, which is odd considering it's a book about a man hunting a teenage boy in the dessert and how he survives. Probably won't be re-re-reading this anytime soon.

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Newer review:

Initial reaction:

Coming shortly. I raised the rating by half a star. Brilliantly told story and a classic cat/mouse survival thriller, though sometimes hampered in the pacing despite a hefty (and admirable) amount of attention to detail.

Full review:

I revisited one of my favorite books in middle school in the year of 2023. I mentioned this in my previous review of Robb White's "Deathwatch", but this book had a profound impact on me as a kid/teen in the vein of survival thriller and it still influences both my reading and writing fiction to this day. It was originally written in 1972 (51 years ago!). While I've read this book several times before, I'm still stunned how this ages as well as it does for the appeal it has.

That stated, it's not a perfect book. As much as I enjoy it, there are caveats to this that may not necessarily have it connect to the audience it's aimed for. This is one of the few young adult books where the main characters are not teenagers. Ben himself is 22 years old, a naive college student just trying to go on a hunting expedition with Madec, an older gentleman who doesn't necessarily have the moral compass that Ben does. Something about this book that I did not pick up on when I was younger is how aware Ben is for Madec being not a good person. He knows, he gets it, but he still wants to do the job that he's tasked with. And it's not so much that Ben lacks personality contrary to what I said in my previous review. I re-read this and was surprised by how sassy and point blank Ben was towards Madec's attitude and actions.

When they find a dead body, Ben and Madec's mutually tenuous beneficial relationship goes off the rails very quickly. Ben, more interested in doing the right thing, really does his best to shove off any excuses that Madec makes with what to do with the body. Madec's like "Forget it, bury it, speak no more of it and head back. I'll even offer you money to not say anything." Ben's like "Heck no, we're taking this body back and reporting the person's death. Doesn't matter what responsibility you had in it. Accident." And for all the gaslighting and offering Madec does, Ben's not having it. (Smart guy.)

At least until Madec starts waiving around the gun. Tells Ben to strip down to his underpants. Basically tells Ben that he's going to deprive him of any kind of water or aid and leave him to die in the desert. A slow, painful, burning death in the middle of the desert. Even to this day, Madec's cruelty in what he does to Ben stayed with me, because this poor young guy ends up fighting for his life. Ben, to his credit, is very resourceful and he's not going down without a fight. He does what he can to survive, despite bleeding feet, scorching heat, and outpacing a man with a gun determined to take his time making sure Ben never returns. And even when it gets to the point where Ben is fully naked and starving for food and water, you're realizing as the reader that Ben is in the absolute worst position he can possibly be in for the narrative. If he doesn't starve, face dehydration, burn to death in the scorching heat, or bleed out/get infection from his injuries - Ben's faces death at the hand of Madec's guns.

The amount of detail White uses to describe how Ben survives is meticulously drawn. I don't think it was the survival details in this novel that weighed it down in retrospect, though I think some could draw that argument well enough for context. The pieces that felt repetitive to me came from the ruminations Ben had that didn't really have much to do with the rolling action of the text. Some would argue that it's realistic because Ben's fighting being delirious or having thoughts that a 22-year old would have in this situation. Some might even argue that some of the repetitive movements Ben takes are part of instilling his mind for routine: This is what I have to do to survive. This is what needs to be done for next steps. This is what I have to do, otherwise I'm dead.

Even for the 224 pages of this book, however, you can definitely feel certain places in the narrative where it weighs down. The overarching story it tells is absolutely well done. I think especially towards the moment where this book reaches its climax and Ben and Madec are facing off as far as how the truth of the ordeal plays out, it's realistic and it hurts. Ben's trying, and I remember even from when I read it as a kid how bad I felt for Ben because I understood he was trying his hardest to do the right thing and feeling frustrated at how it came out. But I'll not forget where this ended, and it was a fitting one considering the build up. I give this overall 3.5/5 stars for the execution, but I still name it as a favorite and influential novel for me personally.

Overall score: 3.5/5 stars.

Older Review:

Deathwatch is a book that I read in middle school - particularly the 7th grade (I must have read 300-400+ books during my middle school years - I kid you not), and this particular book caught my attention because it was the first cat and mouse adventure/survival story that I ever read. Ben, the protagonist, is a young adult looking for money to go to college. This leads him to pursue a trip into the desert under the direction of Madec, a greedy businessman. Madec shoots and kills a man in the desert, then tries to cover up the crime. Ben stands his ground and insists on reporting it, which causes Madec to turn on the young man. From then on, it's a 48 hour ordeal where Ben has to use his wits and brawn to run from Madec - without clothes, food, or water.

I actually liked Robb White's prose in this in spurts - it's far better than most contemporary books could note, but suffice to say that reading it now (and having read other books in this same genre) it does leave much to be desired, and there are parts of the book that drag on for longer than it should have. Madec's actions are sadistic and make you feel sympathetic to Ben, though Ben's characterization could have had much more to it looking back on the collective frame of the book. I genuinely liked the way the story ended, and it does tie up events in a way that brings the showdown to a close, and it makes you think about the complex morality and nature of people in due reflection. Overall, I really liked this book, and consider it one of the books that influenced my like of this particular genre, though I do also recognize its respective flaws.

Overall score: 3/5

[Checkman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic YA novel that was groundbreaking when it was released. A young man finds himself being hunted by a homicidal individual because he won't help cover up what is essentially a manslaughter. The story is short and simple as he uses his knowledge of the desert to outmaneuver the villain and survive. The story than wraps up with a legal conclusion reasserting the triumph of collective civilization over the rich and arrogant antagonist.

In 2017 younger readers will find it nothing unusual (perhaps), but in 1973 this was a very unusual novel to aim at younger readers. YA novels didn't cover such gritty material and rarely were the young protagonists put in mortal jeopardy (more often than not an adult/authority figure would eventually come along and make things right) and have to rely on their own abilities to survive. However by the early seventies the "world" was showing up every night ,at dinnertime, in the form of the evening news. War, terrorism, rapidly increasing crime rate, political corruption and so on had just become part of the evening's entertainment. Kids weren't stupid - they knew what was going on in the world. I suppose it made sense to publish YA novels that were grittier (i.e. violent and grim) and "Deathwatch" was one of the first.

"Deathwatch" is a pretty good novel. This type of story (lone hero in the wilderness on the run from villains) was pretty popular in the sixties and seventies. It was damn near a genre. Robb White simply wrote one for the kids and he didn't do a bad job. Give it a try if for no other reason than it was one of the first "adult" YA novels that led us to where we are now.

[Brigham Inkley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was ok. It wasn't really that interesting and I swear I might've fallen asleep. It looked really good from the back and the reviews it got on the inside cover. But, I was disappointed. There really aren't that many great or intense moments in it. Then you got to listen to the same thing over and over again for at least five chapters after they got back into town. So yeah. That's what I think of it.

This book is about Ben, a college-aged boy who needs money for college. He's hired by a wealthy business man to hunt bighorn in the desert. This man, Madec, accidentally shoots an old man. While Ben is working to get the old man in the Jeep, Madec makes it look like Ben shot the old man. He then tries to bribe Ben into not saying anything about the prospector. Madec makes Ben strip down and walk 45 miles out into the desert without any food or water.

Ben walks and walks until finally, he sees a butte. He climbs it and goes into a tunnel where he finds water. He uses a slingshot he found to kill a couple of birds. He decides he has to get the upper hand on Madec. So, that night, he uses the slingshot tubes to bury himself in the sand. He shoots Madec and drives into town.

In the town, no one believes him and he is put on trial. Luckily, Madec left one loose string out of his story and Ben is not convicted. The end............of this sorta lame story.

[Robert Beveridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robb White, Deathwatch (Doubleday, 1972)

When I was a kid-- say, from about three years old until high school-- I did a lot more rereading than I do now. In fact, there were some books I read and re-read so much that I ended up having to buy copies to replace those I'd worn down. I think everyone does this with a kids' picture book or two, but there were three novels I did it with in fifth and sixth grade. One of them was Wilson Rawls' Where the Red Fern Grows. I think I went through three copies of that one. The other two were by Robb White, and they were Up Periscope and Deathwatch. When you're ten years old, this is just about the best thing ever. When you're thirty-nine, not so much, but it didn't lose nearly as much impact as I expected it to reading it all these years later.

The story: a local boy named Ben, looking to make money for college, offers to escort a city-dweller named Madec on a bighorn hunt. As the book opens, Madec claims to see horns over a ridge. Ben doesn't. Madec takes the shot anyway. When they get there and find out when Madec really shot, the two get into the kind of argument that has Madec forcing Ben to try and survive in the desert with no clothing, no food and no water.

It's the little details that give White's writing the power it has. Even all these years later, I still remembered the smeared-lipstick passage with almost perfect clarity, and the “bird guano” passages. (This was my first exposure to the word “guano” and I had to look it up.) The story definitely pushes the limits of disbelief-- a dehydrated, hallucinating Ben is capable of pulling off physical feats that would try the abilities of an athlete in a number of passages-- but the pacing, the character development (impressive that other characters get development when Ben takes center stage most of the time), and description are dead-on. I'm not quite as obsessed with it as I was when I was ten, but it's still a cracking good read. ****

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm interested to see how my seventh and eighth grade students will react to this book in 2013-2014. It was written in the 70s, and the last time I read it was in the 90s, when it was assigned reading for eighth grade English students in my fieldwork school. For fans of survival stories (most of my current students would think of Gary Paulsen's Hatchet), I think this one will still work, even though there is not a cell phone to be seen in it. When Ben takes cold, scheming California businessman, Madec into the desert to hunt a bighorn sheep, he ends up 45 miles from the nearest town, naked, without food or water, and at the end of Madec's .358 Magnum. If it were a story merely about surviving the heat without dehydrating, and finding food and shelter, it would be interesting, but the addition of being hunted adds significantly to the suspense - and there is more that Ben must endure beyond surviving adverse conditions and being hunted. I mostly liked the story, but there are a few spots where the action lags - most notably at the beginning of the book where White describes the geologic and evolutionary history of the desert in a bit more detail than is necessary (and I admit to wondering how creationists would respond to the timeline presented here), and there are a few descriptions of how Ben climbs a butte that I cannot quite visualize.

[Brendan Folk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Could you imagine trying to survive in the desert with no clothes or shoes, and having a man trying to kill you? Ben, the main character of the book, is doing just that. Ben is struggling with having no water to drink and has an idea to climb a butte to a tunnel that will get him out of the sun and provide him with food.
The main characters of this book are Ben and Madec. Ben is a young college kid who needs money to continue on with his studies. Madec is a high paying hunter who has a once in a lifetime chance at shooting a big horned sheep. This story takes place in the middle of the desert. Ben struggles to survive with no clothes and has nothing to defend himself from Madec, who is trying to get rid of Ben because he witnessed him kill an old man that no one knows. Ben is struggling to get away from Madec and the question throughout the book is if he will be able to. The main character learns in the book that, if you tell the truth, good things will happen to you in the end. Sometimes in life it is better to do the right thing than selling your morals for money.
I wanted to read this book because I love to hunt and being a hunting guide is a dream of mine. This book reminds me of going on hunting trips with my dad. My dad and I are always going on hunting trips together, it is safe to say that he is my hunting buddy. We have gone on hunting trips since I was about a year old. I can’t imagine hunting without him.
If you are interested in books that have to do with the outdoors and hunting, this is a book for you. This is a book that is hard to put down as it keeps you entertained throughout the entire book. This book is aimed at people who like adventures and can understand how deadly the outdoors can be when you aren’t prepared. I also think that anyone who enjoys a thrill of a read would truly enjoy this book.

[Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like the book "Deathwatch". It was a great thriller. It is a book about a guy that goes hunting with a man and ends up trying to kill one another.

In the book a man names Medec is hunting with a high school hunting guide named Ben. Medec thinks he has a clear shot at a longhorn sheep. He really shot an old man that was in the mountains where they were hunting. Ben says that should go back to town and tell the truth about the dead old man but Medec thinks differently so he takes away all of Ben's clothes and makes him try to survive.
Ben then runs away and tried to survive in the desert.


I would recommend the book to an high school ages boy because there is parts that could be scary for younger kids.Four out of five star rating.

[Hank Hoeft · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deathwatchis a good, solid juvenile suspense novel, In fact, it won the Edgar Award for best juvenile mystery in 1973. The copy I read was grabbed from my classroom library, and it originally came from a stack of discarded books I rescued from the library of the high school where I teach. Reading it reminded me of why I liked Robb White so much when I read Secret Sea, Up Periscope, and The Survivor back in the fifth and sixth grades. Oddly enough, my freshman English students had just last week read "The Most Dangerous Game." Now I can steer any student who wants more of the same sort of story to this little gem.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book that I read in the seventh grade that made me want to be a criminal prosecuting lawyer! I can't believe that I forgot it (thankyou Tara for reading it)!! We read it as a class and didn't read the last chapter. We put on a mock trial with the two main characters as prosecution and defense cilents. I was one of the prosecution lawyers. In the history of the seventh grade english teachers doing this activity with their classes the prosecution never won the case. Until me....it felt good.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

WOW!
Thought of the Short story about how a man is hunter and he hunts people, "The Most Dangerous Game, Richard Connell and the various movies that have been made off of this theme.
Easily sucked into and entrapped.
Survival at its best.
Great thing is man who doesn't panic and thinks, problem solves will win.

[Rune · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ben, my sweet summer child, I’m sure 1970’s California was a Wild West kind of time but GET A LAWYER

[Dartharagorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first "novel" I ever read as middle schooler. When I found it I just had to pick it up and read it again. It was a fun quick read. Was a great adventure read for a young person. If you're looking to fill a couple hours and see this one laying around some used book store you could do way worse.
A young man is his early 20's is a hunting guide. When there is an "accident" and he finds himself on a life and death quest.

[Rowan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I recently finished Deathwatch by Robb White. It takes place in the Mojave Desert. I usually hate books I am assigned to read, and this one is no exception. This book was flat-out terrible. There are only two characters, Ben and Madec, and the main, and only, problem is that Ben is trying to survive in the desert with just nothing. NOTHING. Nothing to make the story interesting, nothing to have it be gripping, just nothing. Basically the whole idea was that Madec accidentally shot a guy, mistaking it for a bighorn sheep. After that, Ben wanted to report the accident to the sheriff and Madec decided to make him leave everything there and tell them himself. Ben doesn't have a choice, so he does by finding a little bit of water to drink (and when he did, Madec shot at him to keep him away from it), so he found more water on a cliff side, realizes Madec is coming up, slips to the bottom in the middle of the night, causes a distraction to make him run back to his camp, shoots him with a slingshot, and reports the incident. The people I would suggest this to are the people who like survival. If you don't like survival, don't read this book.

[Joanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in 6th grade and thought it was great, but I must have blocked out the ending because it's terrible. The dude pretty much gets hunted for sport and finally gets back to town, and everyone immedialty calls him a liar (even his family). The only plausable explanation to how awful everyone in town acts, is that Ben is a really big jerk, and everyone hated him already and wanted to see him burn for something random.

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

it's okay however rob White can ramble on for a few pages about nothing of interest.
and now im finished the end pissed me off i would rather gouge my eyes out with forks than write a 800 word essay on this horrible novel!
i want to burn the disgusting memory of it out of my mind.

[Brock Christensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Madec was not the kind of man Ben would ordinarily have chosen as a companion for a quiet hunting trip. The only time Madec ever laughed was when he told some story about how smart he was. He was a cold man who liked to hurt things and he was dangerous with a gun. But Ben needed money to pay for another semester at college, and so when Madec offered to hire him as a guide to hunt bighorn sheep in the desert mountains, he agreed. It was a mistake that very nearly cost Ben his life. The thing I liked about the book was the constant suspense not knowing if Ben was to get shot by Madec at any point. This added to the feeling of constant relief and stress. What I disliked about the book was that it made Ben seem helpless. Yes, he was being hunted by a man known for his tracking skills and hunting abilities, however every time Ben seemed to have an upper hand, Madec would be right there waiting with his gun. It seemed too like too much power was being put on Madec. Overall, I give the book a 4 out of 5. The book itself was a very thought out story, and I am a sucker for suspense and thrill. Deathwatch is a very good book overall, and I recommend it for anyone seeking a human being hunted thriller with a lot of suspense.

[Caleb Thayer]

Student Name: Caleb Thayer Date Submitted: 4/3/2019
Book Title: Deathwatch Lexile:900

Personal Response: Deathwatch, in my opinion, is one of the better books I have read over the school year. The ending, on the other hand, wasn't that great compared to the rest of the book. Other than the ending, I really enjoyed reading this book.

Plot: The plot to Deathwatch is that Ben and Madec go out into the desert to hunt bighorn. Although one day Madec said he saw a bighorn, but instead he shot an innocent prospector in the desert. Madec then points his gun at Ben tells him to take his clothes off and walk all the way back to town, except Madec would be hunting him.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a suspenseful action book. I would also recommend this to anyone who enjoys realistic books. All in all Deathwatch is a great book and people should read it.

[Kayla Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ben takes Madec to go in the desert to shoot a bighorn sheep. Ben needs to do this because he needs money for college. Madec has everything he wants and is rich and influential. Madec shoots at something, but it is not a bighorn, but an old man and he has been shot three times. Ben wants to go to the police to tell them there was an accident, but Madec doesn’t want to do that. Instead, Ben must fight for his survival while naked and needs to find food, water, and to some how survive against crazy Madec.
I work as an aide with a student who has a disability. They have a practical English class and they were reading this in class. I was able to get a copy of the book each class period and I was able to read a long. I think this story is okay. I didn’t like the ending and felt bored during a lot of it since it is a survival story. I do like how Ben was strong and proactive.

[Andrew Schomburg · Rating 4 out of 5]

In middle school my homeroom class teacher read this to us all. I remembered being interested that so much was said about the firearms used and that so much detail was put into how the main character did things. Now that I am an adult and have taken up hunting and shooting as hobbies, I wanted to read the book again.

It's a fun, quick read. I read it in about two sittings. The author has clearly spent some time both in the desert and around firearms, and I love the detail of the story. I think a bit more character development for Ben would have been nice. The reader starts to get a bit different picture of Ben at the end from some of his uncle's comments. Madec is infuriating, but he might be too good at being a bad guy. He's certainly one of the more competent bad guys that I've ever encountered. Overall, it's a fun, quick read.

[Dianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember my sixth grade teacher reading this to our class, so I couldn't pass it up when I saw it available at the library. It's super intense, and was probably a great choice for a class of inattentive and apathetic sixth graders. I can see why I haven't forgotten it over the years.

Summary: Ben, a young pre-college student, guides a rich executive through the desert on a hunting trip. But when a strange man is accidentally shot, Ben suddenly becomes the prey as the executive turns on him to cover the evidence.

Content: there is some cringey violence/injury/blood stuff and the main character is naked for part of the story (but not in a gross or overly descriptive way). I'd say sixth grade would be a great minimum age for this story, but steer clear if you don't like to read about blood and injuries.

[Allie Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an entertaining survival story that resembles vaguely resembles The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell. The plot was good but the characters weren't as fleshed out as I would've hoped. I would've liked to see more development of Ben's character and more of his background to get us emotionally invested in his survival. All we know about his personality is that he's got a moral compass.

[Carly Ybarra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can’t give 3.5 stars so I rounded up.

I read this book back in middle school and loved it! I decided to revisit it. It’s definitely jam packed with detail that can really slow the pace at times but Ben’s likability (our protagonist) makes up for it. His determination, straightforwardness, and integrity is refreshing. It’s a fun, yet intense, short read with some upsettingly accurate insights to man’s psyche.

[Raphael Kon · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a great book and would highly recommend if you like to hunt r if you like mystery or both subjects at the same time but be warned this is a very hard book at times to follow along with and will even be boring to a hunter I would know because I am one myself but how they work up to one event after another is slow and could use some work in only that area

[Linda O · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending was not what I wanted, but this book was hard to put down!

[Myah Duperreault · Rating 2 out of 5]

Class novel complete ✔️ this book was boring, but I had to be enthusiastic about it for the class

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deathwatch is told from the perspective of a college student named Ben. Ben lives with his uncle in a small town in the desert. When Ben is approached by a Los Angeles business man named Madec. Madec is a long time big game hunter and wants Ben to guide him through the desert to hunt bighorn sheep. He offers Ben enough money to carry him through the rest of college. Ben accepts and they begin their trek through the desert. Six days into their trip, Madec says he saw horns while stalking a group of bighorns. He mistakenly shoots an old man, presumably a prospector. Madec tells Ben that if they go back to report the accident his permit to hunt will run out of days, and he offers him even more money, and an opportunity to work with one of the biggest oil companies. Ben however, being an independent youth, refuses his offer. He proceeds to bring their jeep up the slope to load the old man in. It all goes terribly wrong when Madec forces him out of his clothes and boots, exposing him to the elements completely. Madec tracks him all through the desert until finally Ben starts showing symptoms of extreme thirst. He manages to climb a butte and finds a puddle of water, and birds. He uses the slingshot he found in the old mans camp to kill them, and he eats them. He can finally start fighting back. Madec starts to climb the butte, and this spurs Ben into action. One night while Madec is sleeping he climbs down the butte and uses the tubing from the sling shot to make a breathing and a hearing tube. He buries himself in the sand, and waited til Madec started to climb the butte again. When he hears Madec climbing he jumps out of the sand and torches his tent. When Madec comes running, Ben shoots him with doublo-o-buckshot from the slingshot. He shot him four times, three at his hands and one at his knee. After getting his clothes back, he ties Madec up and goes to find the old man. After that, they head back into town where no one believes Ben, and when Ben is put on trial for murder, he loses all hope. That is until the doctor that examined the old mans body, Madec, and Ben himself shows up with evidence that proving that Madec was to blame, not Ben. This ends the trial, and Ben is given the option to charge Madec with attempted murder, but says "I only came to report an accident." and the book ends. I loved this book, it was chock full of adventure, peril, and even a little insight on how the desert really works. I would definitely recommend it to people who don't mind a little gore. The author does kind of go into detail about wounds. My favorite line was the one I mentioned a few sentences ago. Despite all that Ben has been through with Madec, he refuses to stoop as low as Madec.

[Simon Lindley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deathwatch is the ultimate survival story. Ben, the protagonist, is a college student who needs money for another semester, so he takes a job as a guide in the desert. He goes out on a bighorn sheep hunt with Madec. Madec thinks he sees a bighorn, so he shoots. It turns out it was not a bighorn, but instead an old man wondering the desert alone. Ben wants to report the accident, but Madec wants to bury the old man and carry on hunting. As the plot progresses, Madec threatens to shoot Ben and forces him to take off his clothes. Madec leaves Ben stranded in the desert: no clothes, food, or water. The nearest highway is 45 miles away across the dangerously dry, desolate desert. It is impossible for Ben to travel any significant distance without shoes or water. Ben needs to think of a plan to over throw Madec at his camp, before his 48 hours are up and he succumbs to deadly dehydration.

Sometimes in life people are unusually cruel to others. This is shown through the relationship between Madec and Ben. I selected to read this book because I thought the cover of the book looked intriguing and I have always enjoyed survival books. Robb White, author of Deathwatch, went above and beyond my expectations for this book. I thought this book would be another stereotypical survival story, but Robb White really brought Ben’s struggle for survival to life through Ben’s emotions and injuries. This book is certainly not for anyone who dislikes reading about blood and wounds. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a different type of survival story: a story with mystery and a crime.

[Keinan Fratto · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a rich executive, Madec, from Los Angeles who hires a young college student named Ben who lives in a small town on the outskirts of the Mojave Desert, as a guide. Madec just received an admit to hunt bighorn sheep in this desert, and Ben is helping by driving him around the desert, to help find these bighorn.

Madec, who thought he was shooting at a bighorn, had accidently shot an old prospector. When Ben attempts in doing the right thing by reporting the accident, Madec disagrees, and forces Ben to strip down to his shorts and tells him to walk across the desert to the highway. Ben then, not wanting to get shot by the old man, decides to do what he says. After days and days of Madec constantly stalking him, Ben finally gets an idea that will hopefully gain Ben the upper hand on Madec.

My favorite part in the book was when Ben kept getting interrogated by the sheriff and other officers. I liked I because you knew that Ben was telling the truth about what had happened in the desert, and you knew that Madec was lying about it. You just wanted to crawl yourself into the book and tell them that Madec was making his story up and that Ben was being truthful.

If you enjoyed the Percy Jackson series, then I would like to personally suggest reading Deathwatch. If you think about it, these two books aren't too different. Deathwatch is definitely worth the read!!!

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

In my English class I read the book Deathwatch by Robb White. The book Deathwatch is about a young man, Ben who needs money for college. To earn that money he goes hunting with a CRAZY man named Madec. After Madec accidentally shoots an old man, he tries to convince Ben to forget the whole thing, but Ben doesn't agree. Now, Madec never loses, ever, so being as crazy as he is, he holds Ben at gunpoint. Ben ends up in in the desert with no clothes, water, or food while Madec is hunting him. The main conflict in the story is Ben fighting for his life. I think the theme of the book is, we need to try and do what is right even when that is the hardest thing to do. The theme relates to the readers because in everyone's lives they have to decide between right and wrong. Whether the circumstance is a friend is cheating on a test and only you know, or eating either an apple or cookie. In the Ben's case, he needs to decide whether or not to lie to the officials.

This book was a little too gruesome for me. I didn't like the whole plot of the story and how the book just kind of ended. I did like how Madec was thrown in jail, but it was just kind of like here is the proof, the end. If you enjoy books with intensity in them, and are mature, then definitely read this book. However, I would not recommend this book to students my age.