Thirst
By Guy N. Smith
1980 New English Library
Paperback, 219 pages
1980 New English Library
Paperback, 219 pages
1980 David McAllister art 1988 reprint
El maestro GNS starts this one off with a bang that keeps going for the first two-thirds of the book. While it does fizzle a little bit after that, the story as a whole is so good that it’s forgivable. This one is visceral, claustrophobic and let me warn you… you will get thirsty reading it. I suggest having a glass of your favorite beverage within reach while you read.
A tanker truck full of “Weedkiller”, a highly toxic herbicide, careens off of the road and into a reservoir. Did it spill open? You bet it did and this brand of herbicide has had a few mishaps in the past and it is lethal. A team from the company, including one of its inventors, Ron Blythe, our “hero”, is called in to try to figure out how to clean the spill or at least shut down the flow from the reservoir to Birmingham. They can’t and all hell breaks loose.
Just getting it on your skin is bad enough but ingesting the chemical/ water mixture is a sure way to become infected. First, there is thirst. Then, you break out in clusters of pus-filled ulcers and ruddy sores. Then, if you’re lucky, you die quickly. The contaminated water isn’t the only problem in Birmingham. Between an infected driver and train engineer, crashes and giant building fires occur. Better pump some water on those flames! Fuck! The chemical is highly flammable. Much of Birmingham is in flames. People are hurriedly trying to get out any way they can. Looks like it’s time for Martial Law.
Yeah, the shit really hits the fan in ol’ Birmingham. There’s even a prison break, releasing an axe murderer who forces Blythe help him. Y’see, Blythe, a longtime lothario (like all chemists… ahem…huh?) has fallen in love with a woman he met during the crisis. This makes it easier for the killer. This is where I feel the book falters a bit. It’s action-packed, suspenseful and filled with gory bits until these three are forced to team up. They even haul along a brat at one point. The romance blooms too quickly and Blythe is already (unhappily) married. A bit too convenient, I should think.
Even with those minor quibbles, in the maestro’s hands, the story is always compelling. Nobody serves up the destruction of Britain like GNS and this book is pure pleasure. The copy I read was a 1988 reprint with an OK cover, but you should look for any of the first five printings with a screaming, pustule covered woman in the foreground and the reservoir in the background. It’s a striking cover by David McAllister and is much more eye-catching than the ‘88 edition.
El maestro GNS starts this one off with a bang that keeps going for the first two-thirds of the book. While it does fizzle a little bit after that, the story as a whole is so good that it’s forgivable. This one is visceral, claustrophobic and let me warn you… you will get thirsty reading it. I suggest having a glass of your favorite beverage within reach while you read.
A tanker truck full of “Weedkiller”, a highly toxic herbicide, careens off of the road and into a reservoir. Did it spill open? You bet it did and this brand of herbicide has had a few mishaps in the past and it is lethal. A team from the company, including one of its inventors, Ron Blythe, our “hero”, is called in to try to figure out how to clean the spill or at least shut down the flow from the reservoir to Birmingham. They can’t and all hell breaks loose.
Just getting it on your skin is bad enough but ingesting the chemical/ water mixture is a sure way to become infected. First, there is thirst. Then, you break out in clusters of pus-filled ulcers and ruddy sores. Then, if you’re lucky, you die quickly. The contaminated water isn’t the only problem in Birmingham. Between an infected driver and train engineer, crashes and giant building fires occur. Better pump some water on those flames! Fuck! The chemical is highly flammable. Much of Birmingham is in flames. People are hurriedly trying to get out any way they can. Looks like it’s time for Martial Law.
Yeah, the shit really hits the fan in ol’ Birmingham. There’s even a prison break, releasing an axe murderer who forces Blythe help him. Y’see, Blythe, a longtime lothario (like all chemists… ahem…huh?) has fallen in love with a woman he met during the crisis. This makes it easier for the killer. This is where I feel the book falters a bit. It’s action-packed, suspenseful and filled with gory bits until these three are forced to team up. They even haul along a brat at one point. The romance blooms too quickly and Blythe is already (unhappily) married. A bit too convenient, I should think.
Even with those minor quibbles, in the maestro’s hands, the story is always compelling. Nobody serves up the destruction of Britain like GNS and this book is pure pleasure. The copy I read was a 1988 reprint with an OK cover, but you should look for any of the first five printings with a screaming, pustule covered woman in the foreground and the reservoir in the background. It’s a striking cover by David McAllister and is much more eye-catching than the ‘88 edition.
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