The Grays by Whitley Strieber was an interesting story. This book is unlike many books that I’ve read lately. I enjoyed it but at the same time I felt that it was trying too hard especially towards the end.
So in all the years that I read science fiction, I’ve read relatively few stories about alien cover-ups and invasion. Normally the general population (or at least the parts that are focused on) knows about the aliens or there is one alien. The Grays is different since the majority of the population doesn’t know about the aliens that are on Earth. So it was cool to see the different perspectives of those who know nothing about the Grays, those that like the aliens and those that fear them.
The Grays is a complicated book. Set basically in our timeline (which after next year it will be slightly obsolete with the doomsday predictions) although it ties together the idea of the Roswell crash and alien abductions. You get several main characters: basically you have the child who will save the world but knows nothing until midway through the book (Conner), the military who know (Mike and Lauren), and the professors who suspect. Basically the book revolves around the idea that the Grays are on Earth and they are so old they are dying so they help to create a super genius name Conner (through the clever use of abductions and sheer luck). There are those who distrust the Grays since they believe they will turn the Human race into slaves while others believe their plans are less evil and could help save humanity. Conner has no idea about the Grays until one Triad who decide to speed along their plan by setting a fire. That fire creates a stir in the community (who are all professors to a local college).
As I said, this book was good but in the end, it had too many threads going on to make a neat bow. Instead it became a messy knot. So the ending was less than fully satisfying. It becomes like leftover gourmet cuisine.
I’m glad that my friend loaned me this book (Yes this year especially lately, I’ve had a few friends who really are helping me with this blog by not only sharing their recommendations but their books). It was a fun read and something different in a genre that I enjoy. I just wish the ending was a little tighter. But I loved the complexity to the book.
Glad you liked it! I was disappointed with the ending, too. That was one from my summer of books where I didn't like the endings. I think I had three or four books in a row where I was so disappointed with the book. I think I have another Whitley Strieber book to send along, and that one, I liked the ending much better.
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