Customer Reviews
Another good read - By: Sue Lewendon, 26 Jun 2008 
I read this straight after reading The Rats, & was drawn once again into a deeply dark & shocking world. The rats have escaped & are now on the loosein Epping Forest. There are some particularly gruesome moments which I love, (yes I AM sick!), & yet I still want more! Herbert is very good at describing the horrid bits & yet I wasn't scared. I'm still waiting for the 'toilet' scene that seemed to have scared my friend so much, & so I'm hoping it'll bein Domain. Read this especially if you enjoyed The Rats as it is once again a good read with a great 'hero'. The climax is much betterin this book too & I've already started reading Domain to see where I will be dragged to next! It's a great read but I still prefer Stephen King, sorry Mr Herbert.
good read. - By: Paul Greatrix, 02 Jun 2008 
The beauty of this novel isin its simplicity. Simple tale, told well with some vivid & exciting set pieces.
Not classic Herbert; but good, anyway. - By: Penguin Egg, 16 Jan 2005 
If you liked The Rats, then you will like this one, as it is more of the same, except this time the rats are on the rampagein a forest just outside London. (This is the second part of a trilogy, although the books can be read separately.) No-one does this quite like Herbert: The action is taut, the description is vivid, & the story is gripping. If the characterisation is a little one dimensional & the story a bit predictable, it doesn't ruin the enjoyment of the book. Come to it with average expectations & enjoy. Not his best but a good one nevertheless.
The Rats Part 2 - By: dogbarkssome, 20 Jun 2004 Following some eclectic journeying through the realms of the supernatural (The Survivor), fantasy (Fluke) & pulp thriller (The Spear), James Herbert returns to the 'unnatural disaster' format of his first two novels with this direct sequel to The Rats.
The action shifts out of London, & focuses on a new lair of mutant rats situatedin Epping Forest. In true 'Jaws' fashion, the local authorities initially refuse to believein any rat infestation until the spiralling number of deaths means they have no choice but to callin Ratkill & the armyin an effort to kill off the rats for good.
While the events of the first novel are referred to, we get a new 'hero' this time - Ratkill employee Lucas Pender, though unimaginatively his back story is identical to the lead of Herbert's last novel The Spear (bereaved lead character who lost their loved one to the threat they now face, leading to an additional personal grudge whilest freeing them up for some love interest). In fact the characterisation here is the weakest I've yet seenin a Herbert novel, with most of the supporting cast existing as little more than names. The obligatory love interest is also very unconvincing.
Lair is reasonably enjoyable, with some gruesome deaths & frantic action scenes, but aside from a little development of the rats hierarchy there's nothing here that's better - or crucially, different - from anythingin the first novel. The third time around Herbert's 'unnatural disaster' style is looking a little formulaic - lead characters gradual uncovering of events punctuated by episodes of violence perpetrated on characters created solely to die - & the open ending makes this novel seem like little more than a delaying tactic for the third novelin the trilogy.
Some exciting set-pieces make this worth reading for fans of The Rats, but ultimately Lair adds nothing new to the experience - just more of the same.
Outstanding - By: , 17 Jun 2003 Lair is an outstanding follow up to The Rats. James Herbert has done it again, this book is a griping, easy to read classic that you will not be able to put down. Herbert's writing style is so discriptive that you will hate the sight of rats for ever more. This is a must read book that will make you a lifelong fan of the best horror writerin the world today, & will encourage you to get every one of his amazingly readable novels.
