wilderthan | Aug. 10th, 2009

Hmmm, where to start. I picked I Am Legend up in a charity shop spree, but I've been meaning to read it for a while. Had no idea what it was about, but knew it was Something I Should Read. So I picked it up for, what, 79p? Awesome. Turns out, it's a kind of post-apocalyptic thing, and it's about vampires. It's not simple horror, and I didn't find it very scary, but there are all these attempts to make it make sense and be almost scientific. It doesn't really work, it just comes off as pseudo-science, but it's an interesting attempt. The pseudo-science is pretty excusable, actually, for the most part, when you consider that the main character isn't a scientist or anything. He's just trying to muddle his way through.

The main character isn't easy to sympathise with. I mean, on one level, it is easy -- he's the last surviving human, he's besieged and trying to do the best he can. Nothing is easy, and you know that you'd be as much of a wreck. At the same time, the point about the way he slaughters the vampires indiscriminately is a fair one. He doesn't seem to have considered the ethics of his situation.

The ending is interesting, though. A little twist, to make the reader see it clearly.

Overall, I wasn't blown away? It's easy to read, probably worth a read if you're interested in vampire literature, but it isn't exactly unmissable. Not in my opinion, anyway.