Review: Domain

Domain by James Herbert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Domain is the third book in James Herbert’s The Rats trilogy, and it is safe to say it is my favourite. The first book, The Rats, was an interesting read but it wasn’t quite what I had anticipated. The second book, Lair, was a lot more enjoyable. This third book, Domain, hit even more spots.

Domain has a very different atmosphere to the first two books in the series, and I believe this is what left me to enjoy the book so much. Throughout the series we have been dealing with the fear of something in the real world, a creature made nightmarish. The first two books added something more to make the creatures more grotesque, yet the story was told in a real-world setting. With Domain, we deal with the monstrous creatures following the end of the world as it was once known.

Domain may be considered dated by some, as it deals with what was a fear in the past. The idea of nations hitting the red button, countries being blasted out of existence. There was a time in the past where this was an everyday fear, and James Herbert takes this and then adds in further fears. Some may find it hard to connect to the story, as many of the elements are based upon past fears, but I felt as though it simply added new layers to the story. It may have been dated in some ways, yet it still reaches many very real fears.

A lot of the book does focus on the fears of a destroyed world. The collapse of society, the horrors of radiation, the fears of what has happened to others, and many other end of the world elements are prevalent throughout. These elements of the story are focused upon, yet throughout the knowledge of the rats remains. They appear slowly, creeping in to add additional layers of horror to the story.

Moreover, James Herbert continues as he has throughout the rest of the series – with each additional book, the rats become more. There is more horror to be found, the creatures having developed even further. By the end, we get to see what the series has been building towards throughout, we get to see just how creepy James Herbert can make the creatures.

Without a doubt, Domain was my favourite of The Rats trilogy. Although there is a graphic novel as well, a strange book four, I doubt I will be reading it. I rather like the way things ended here (and, to be honest, some of the reviews I have read have put me off reading the ‘fourth book’).

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