Polar Explorers discussion

That's amazing, Q. It takes me a week to read 200 pages.

I frequently have to reread, too. It takes time to compute. I probably have ADD, but that wasn't a "thing" when I was a kid. Which is why I can't listen to audio books - too hard to concentrate. That's great that you got through so many books this week, Q.! That's a shame that the audios are not of higher quality.

Randolph, I would argue that the spoiler in question is more intriguing than that... but that doesn't count for much as I also felt my own share of disappointment when I hit that point in the novel and almost everything else that followed plot-wise.

I found it easier to enjoy when I started pretending this wasn't about the actual Franklin expedition, and just a tragedy that happened to resemble it.

(It's been about a year, but I read the Terror via audiobook courtesy of the library and I do recommend it. The reader--Simon Vance?--has a satisfying grasp on UK accents and that, at least, soothed a lot of my irritation regarding supernatural plot twists.)

I really liked the supernatural element in this one. I do agree that the whole situation was terrifying as is but, Lady Silence and the beast(cannot remember what he was called) brought the novel into the horror realm. The addition of the Inuit legend was a satisfying end, for me. I feel bad you guys didn't like it.

Kirstin wrote: "I really liked the supernatural element in this one. I do agree that the whole situation was terrifying as is but, Lady Silence and the beast(cannot remember what he was called) brought the novel i..."

Spoilers ahoy, I suppose!

The supernatural element would have been improved, I felt, if we never gotten a solid description of the Tuunbaq. In retrospect, I know what Simmons was trying to describe, but my initial mental image was so absurd that it the scenes involving said Tuunbaq became more comedy than nightmare fuel in the end. That was my major complaint, I think (and to be fair, one that I have with most stories/films that deal with monsters).

As much as I disliked how Simmons handled the supernatural aspects of his story, I did enjoy the final chapter where Crozier must say goodbye to his ship. That was very poignant and certain parts, to this day, I still try not to think about late at night or I spook myself.

I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction in general because the vast majority feels so anachronistic, so I was immediately biased against the Terror... but I can say, for the most part, I enjoyed this book more than I disliked it.

Randolph wrote: "It would have been a better read if I could have jumped out of the historical fact of the Franklin Expedition but Simmons spends so much time establishing verisimilitude, even using the real names ..."

I understand, and have had the same feeling with numerous books. A part of me wants to sympathize. Another part of me wants to say, read the rest of the book! It's so good! Ha! Did you make it to the Masque of the Red Death scene?

L. wrote: "Kirstin wrote: "I really liked the supernatural element in this one. I do agree that the whole situation was terrifying as is but, Lady Silence and the beast(cannot remember what he was called) bro..."

Here there be spoilers...

I thought of Tuunbaq(thank you for the name!) as a huge polar bear, I guess. He scared the crap out of me. Especially the scene where he's chasing the man through the masts of the ship.

It's been a while since I read this and I know there were parts that I found more comical than frightening. I just kept reading. The good outweighed the bad, by far.

I agree about Crozier, he was an incredible character. Goodsir too. I think I cried a couple of times at the end of this book. I'm not proud. :)

Kirstin wrote: "L. wrote: "Kirstin wrote: "I really liked the supernatural element in this one. I do agree that the whole situation was terrifying as is but, Lady Silence and the beast(cannot remember what he was ..."

The Tuunbaq unsettled me at first. I knew Simmons meant to describe a polar bear but somehow my inner eye short-circuited and the "triangular head" description made me think of a preying mantis instead. Then for the rest of the book I was stuck imagining a giant preying mantis scuttling over the ice... which was unbearably funny at times.

I'm currently borrowing a copy of Simmon's Abominable, so we'll see if his approach to writing monsters has changed...

I really enjoyed The Terror, but it took a while to read. I agree about the triangular head, that kind of confused me a bit as well, but I liked the supernatural aspects, and the ending was great! The book seemed so extremely well-researched (without me actually knowing all that much about polar expeditions) that I find it incredibly brave to throw in a monster in the mix.