3.25 stars, rounding down. This was my second John Saul book and I think the first one I read - The God Project - was a little better than this one. The God Project had a more intriguing mystery that unfurled itself over the course of the 300 or so pages, whereas the basic elements of this one you kind-of had mostly figured out in the first few chapters. The first half of Creature was a bit slow and padded out, and the second half the pacing picks up and is generally better.

If Dean Koontz is the poor-man's Stephen King then maybe Saul is the poor-man's Koontz. Saul's writing is pretty simplistic to the point where you feel like you're reading a YA novel, and you can get through his books in a day or maybe a couple of days at most. There's just more of a weighty feel to the prose of King or a Robert McCammon, and certainly more so if you delve back into classic horror like Shirley Jackson. I feel like Saul is a good place to start for a younger person maybe around 13 or 14 who's taking their first dip into full-on novels originally written for adults. They're not bad these John Saul novels, but they float away into the ether like cotton candy. I think from here on out with Saul I need to stick to what people say are his best work and not just read one of his based on a random goodreads algorithmic recommendation which is how I read this one. Most people say he really only has maybe 4 or 5 truly "good" books worthy of 4+ stars: Suffer The Children, Shadows, and maybe the Blackstone Chronicles, and maybe one or two more. I think I'll limit further reading of this author to these so-called "best of" his books, keeping in mind that "best of" is a relative term in this case.

Random observations on "Creature": As I recall, the whole "roid rage" phenomena hit the mainstream media coverage big time in the mid to late 80s, so this obviously inspired Saul for this story. Also, I'm guessing Saul isn't a big fan of Genesis drummer Phil Collins? He names one of the more unsavory characters in the novel, the high-school head football coach, by that name. Too funny...

excelente

2+ stars I guess.... This book was recommended by a friend, usually my taste aligns with hers, not this time.
My first thought was that this book was written for a juvenile audience, until the animals heads started getting ripped off. It wasn't really deep and didn't speak to me.
I liked the main characters allright. Mark and Sharon and Kelly I didn't like Blake and I didn't like any of the family dynamics. The mothers just going along with what the men of the family say regardless of their own feelings. The women helpless and can't hold their ground. Lame.
I liked the mutation and experimental portion of the book. I didn't like how the story gets very graphic and violent towards animals.
Which I don't get bothered by things like that in novels. I love Stephen King, but John Saul did it so frequently and tastelessly.
The weirdest part of this book was the fact that it felt like a book for a kid, then suddenly disgusting harsh murders. It was about a high school football team and the book felt like it was to simple written and for a young adult group which I didn't find entertaining then half ways through at the drop of a hat it goes into teens killing and ripping up animals by the throats, which I just didn't get.
It's long, and everyone dies. I hate that sort of ending in a book.
With all my complaints it was an allright story and for the most part I wanted to see what was going to happen next but now I'm glad it's over.

Stranger Things(ST)#1980
I'm in love with this TV series ST and it reminded me one of the first novels that I've read...Creature!
Set in a sleepy town where nothing sinister can ever happen, something evil is slowly making its presence felt. When I read this back then, I found it unputdownable..
I loved the main character, a kid named Mark and became very 'worried' about him like a family member.
It is predictable in a way but still fun for a casual read

Meh. Very meh.
Interesting enough to keep me turning pages, but very unfulfilling. Started out okay but unremarkable, then worked its way to a point where the plot and some of the characters had me rooting for a strong enough conclusion to tip the scales in the book’s favor. This despite some woeful character logic from certain players, a reliance on cliches, and a few too many bad beats. I will say that the onset of the third act gave me renewed hope for a rousing finish, though it was apparent that there weren’t enough pages left to ship the freight. Indeed, from that point on, every page yielded greater disappointment. By the time the book (mercifully) reached its conclusion, the climax had cemented itself as Creature’s greatest failing.
I wish I had devoted this time to watching 3 a.m. infomercials instead.

At the time I read this kind of book many years ago, I remember liking this one. This isn't my kind of reading anymore though.

Excellent,gripping read.Hard to put down.There was more PG-13 language and gore than other books I have read by this author,but I could not stop reading!

I found the story fascinating,especially with the 'fanaticism' and corruption around sports,we see today!

Highly recommended.

This was quick & easy read. The theme has been done many times in novels and on TV since this book was written in 1989. In fact, I would say you could find a kernel going back to Frankenstein!
Evil in the hearts of men come to the fore in the name of science, prestige, and prosperity in this seemingly idyllic town of Silverdale, CO.

Alert: I knew as soon as innocent animal characters were introduced that it would be a bad outcome for them. I hate that!!! I find it more difficult than when bad things happen to humans. What does that make me??!

I remember being scared when I read this in middle school, less so when I re-read it in high school. Now, I FEEL like I just read a YA book, not a book meant for adult readers- WAS this an adult book? Its writing style surely was meant for younger readers. The story is a good yarn and you DO keep compulsively turning the pages, but the book feels...juvenile. Saul can do better than this, I think.

If this book had a movie rating, it would be PG-13; it's not so much horror, but more like a sci-fi young adult drama, in my opinion. That said, i read this first back in 1990, around the time when it had first came out. I recently got another copy and just read it again; i feel like i enjoyed it a little more this time.

First third of the book was really slow, and I almost gave up at a few different times, but I raced through the last two-thirds in a day or two. I ended up really liking this book. Characters were great, and the story was interesting!

One of John Saul's great science fiction horror novels without supernatural elements. The story involves the destruction of a few families, like only Saul can do it. It's not terribly creepy or scary, but the constant suspense, a genuinely captivating story, and our concern for a few likeable characters keep the pages turning swiftly. As usual, Saul doesn't let his animal characters survive, so there are brief scenes of animal killing that I skipped over a bit. That's one big difference between Dean Koontz and John Saul, with the former never killing animals and the latter always killing them.

Together with being a good horror story, there are also important lessons to be learned. Sometimes the price for becoming what we think we want to be is just too high, especially if there's nothing wrong with us to start off with. There is also a message for parents who want their children to be like themselves, just to find out that their definition of success destroys their kids instead of making them succeed.