4/5 stars

The Hurricane by Hugh Howey

The Hurricane was a nice little story, full of double meaning and lessons for life. I especially enjoyed the idea of the “digital hurricane” we are all living in, tied to the electronic devices that allow us to instantly communicate with eachother and consume all forms of media instantly. The story touches on broken families, true friends, first love, real love, living with regrets, avoiding regrets, alcoholism, true beauty, being popular vs being yourself . . . those are just the themes that come to mind as I write. Oh ya, and there’s a hurricane–a real one!

As I’ve discovered in all of Hugh Howey’s stories, the writing is surpurb. I’ve never read an author who does such a great job describing the scene in so few words. Here’s an example that stuck out to me:

“The world went by in reverse. Daniel and Anna watched the past from the back of the Bronco, the road sliding off into the distance as they leaned against the back of the seat adn peered out the rear window. A tree that they had cut and hauled out of the way just hours before popped into view and then slid away from them. The plastic grocery bags rustled in the breeze. Bits of conversation from the two men in the front drifted back, but in an indistinguishable slur. The deep silence from Hunter and Chen was much nearer.” (From The Hurricane, location 2284 on Kindle, Chapter 23)

I’m a sucker for great prose, but I’ll never get into a story that has a plot that doesn’t hold my attention. As I’ve said before in my reviews, the story is king. Luckily The Hurricane was story enough to keep pulling me through to the end.

My only frustration that I continue to have with Hugh Howey is the language in his books. He’s not as profane as the Stephen King books that crossed the line for me, but he certainly is pushing my limits of tolerance.

I recommend The Hurricane to anyone who enjoys a good story, but with the disclaimer that you’re not allowed to come back and say I didn’t warn you about colorful adjectives!