I took off a star mainly because the first third of the book was a bit disjointed and ran like a misfiring roadster. It was a bit disconcerting to say the least to be following several story lines only to find out that one of them, for no apparent reason, took place 8 years before the other action in the book. The prologue, although amusing, really didn't relate to the story. It was like a really good movie that suffered from bad editing. It leveled off after that and was smooth and fast to the conclusion, although I could have used a bit more back-story as to how and why anyone wanted to create a large breed of vicious ants in the first place. As with the other books by Strand that I have read, the writing is smooth, the dialogue witty, and the story was compelling--exciting even. I will also say that as soon as I finished this I bought two more Jeff Strand books on Kindle. He is one of those authors that I will read absolutely everything he writes. ( )

Strand's books might not be the scariest out there but they are always fun. And for creepiness, this one did involve enough ants to provide you with a large degree of it.

Taking a page from the radiation movies and the monster bug movies of the 50s and 60s, Tampa, Florida finds itself overrun with fire ants that measure two inches long. It starts off as a minor enough problem when it is only a few ants. However, their numbers continue to grow into thousands, making the problem much more significant.

Rather than following a small set of characters, the story involves a dozen of characters if not more. This means more people to die from the ants. It pleasantly leaves you never too sure of who is going to make it or who won't. Will Trevor the awkward accountant make it? What about Roberta the dental hygienist? Or Dustin the ant expert who finds himself caught in a convenience store robbery? Anyone and everyone is a possible victim.

The book was a very fun read and should be enjoyed by any Strand fan. Plus by anyone else smart enough to pick up the book and give it a try. Plus it includes the usual Strand sense of humor by more than one character. Comments that give you a big smile. Oh, don't skip over the Introduction; his comments on the characters was awesome! ( )

Excellent book. While the theme was not really a new one, a great read. ( )

Jeff Strand is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Loved everything I have read by him, he has a way to take a book about giant sized ants and make it compelling, interesting, shocking, and humorous. This book plays out like a B-Side Horror film with an A+ script and cast if that makes any sense. Cannot wait to see what Strand comes up with next, he is a very refreshing author in what seems to be an overcrowded genre of copycats and unoriginal story ideas. ( )

This book rocks!!!! It was like taking Christopher Moore's humor and Brian Keene's death, doom and destruction, and squishing them together in an 80's monster flick. Who wouldn't love that? It is an incredibly fast read, with a vast cast of eclectic characters - most of whom end up as ant food. Also, on the plus side, unlike many books and movies within the horror genre, I couldn't pick out who was going to live and who was going to die within the first 20 minutes of starting the book. Some of my picks were correct, but there were plenty of surprises as well. So if you like psychopaths, giant ants, lots of gore and quirky jokes thrown in for good measure, then I would definitely recommend this book. I'm still itching with the thought of ants crawling all over me. ( )