Crocodile Attack

(Extreme Adventures: Book 1)

by
Justin D'Ath

Kane Miller, January 2010 (2005), 121 pp.
ISBN: 978-1-935279-32-7

Genre: Young Reader
Subgenres: Action / Adventure
Reviewed: 2/12/2011

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

Excerpt

"Tam!" Nissa shrilled.

I looked in her direction and my heart lurched. What was she doing? She had climbed back down into the lowest fork! Now she was less than three feet above the water. The bull crocodile could reach her easily if it made another lunge.

I raised my head slightly and looked around. Where was that monster? There was no sign of it. For just a moment, my spirits rose. Maybe it had given up and gone away. We were safe!

Then I saw something that shattered my hopes. Fifty feet from the tree, a swirl dimpled the current. Two yellow eyes broke the surface, followed by a long, horny snout. Further back, a double row of tall, saw-toothed scales appeared, dragging a swift V-shaped ripple that moved arrow-like toward Nissa's dangling legs.

I stood up, head and shoulders out of the water, and yelled, "Climb back up!"

Nissa looked at me but didn't move.

"Nissa, climb up!" I screamed. The bull crocodile was less than five yards from the tree and increasing its speed. "Go higher!"

It was too late. Nissa still hadn't moved. Even if she moved now, she could not get out of the way in time. The monster was sliding through the water like a torpedo. It was massive, unstoppable, a killing machine. Nissa didn't have a chance.

Part of me didn't want to look. But I couldn't stop myself. Nissa and I had been through so much together. By closing my eyes, I'd be denying my responsibility, I'd be turning my back on her. There was nothing I could do for her now. She was going to die, no matter what I did. I couldn't simply shut my eyes and pretend it wasn't happening. I had to watch. I had to be with my little cousin in her final moments.

Plucky kid, the robber had called her. She wasn't even screaming.

As the crocodile reached the tree, I flinched. My whole body cringed as if it were me, not Nissa, being attacked. But I forced my eyes to remain open, forced myself to watch. A big sob was already rising in my chest.

Take me! I wanted to yell out to the horrible creature.

Take me instead of her!

The crocodile passed directly beneath Nissa's bare feet and shot out the other side. It swung in a smooth wide arc and came weaving straight towards me.

I looked into its evil yellow eyes with their strange slit pupils. I watched the two lines of tall, pointed scales that trailed behind them. I felt numb. This was what I had asked for - my life instead of Nissa's - but now that it was about to happen, I knew it wasn't what I wanted at all. People shouldn't be given choices like that. I wasn't a hero. I didn't want to die, and I especially didn't want to be killed by a crocodile.

But it was too late. There was no escape. I was as good as dead.

Synopsis

Tropical Storm Kandy hovers one hundred miles offshore of the Australians coast. Sam Fox's mum has the flu so he hops on his bike and rides through the downpour to his Aunt Erin's store to get her some medicine. His mum usually watched his two year old cousin, Nissa, during the day, but since she is sick, Nissa went to work with her mother.

With the rain pouring down and gale force winds blowing outside, a robber enters the store and pulls a gun on Aunt Erin. When the cyclone sirens go off outside, the robber freaks out and snatched Nissa from the floor to use as a hostage, thinking that the police are on their way. The robber flees outside and Sam runs after them hoping to rescue his tiny cousin. The robber takes them both hostage and shoved them into his pickup truck.

Driving madly toward the outback, the robber leaves behind the water-logged town of Crocodile Bridge. He is driving way to fast for the condition of a road that is only supposed to be used during the dry season when he crests a hill and flies directly into the rushing torment that is the flooded Crocodile River. Everyone in the car is knocked unconscious by the impact.

Waking up in a vehicle floating down a flooded river, Sam makes sure Nissa is okay. The robber is unconscious, so Sam retrieves the shotgun the robber used to rob his aunt's store. The back end of the truck slides up onto a termite mound and becomes stuck. Sam and Nissa exit the truck through the rear sliding window into the bed. The robber awakens and starts calling for help. Sam, being a humane person, helps the robber get free and pulls him partially into the bed through the window.

A large tree that had been uprooted by the storm bumps in the truck and a poisonous snake falls out of the branches into the bed of the truck. When the snake tries to bite Sam, Sam backs up and trips over the edge of the truck. He is able to crawl back into the bed of the truck and realizes to his horror that he had been holding Nissa in his arms when he fell overboard. Looking out into the churning brown water, Sam spots Nissa in the roots of the tree that has floated downstream and become stuck on something. Knowing that he must get to his cousin, Sam jumps in the deadly water after her.

They end up on a small island in the middle of the river. As the flood waters rise, Sam begins to fear for their safety. The warthog that was on the island has disappeared and Sam spots a crocodile swimming around the island looking at them. The island continues to shrink until they are standing on the only dry piece of land, a small mound. To Sam's horror, the mound begins to vibrate and baby crocodile begin to emerge from the sand. Sam realizes that they are standing on a crocodile nest and he looks up to see the mother crocodile heading straight for them.

Crocodile Attack is the first book in Extreme Adventures series written by Justin D'Ath. It is a stand-alone book and, according to the author, you do not have read them in order. The series is intended for readers 9 years and older.

Review

Crocodile Attack is a rip-roaring adventure-type book that I absolutely love. Here you have a kid stuck in a situation that is full of deadly peril and he is able to keep his head together. One exciting thing after another seems to happen in this story and it kept me reading late into the night. I just couldn't put it down! I didn't want to put it down! I just had to finish it . . . and quickly.

Sam Fox is an interesting character that Young Readers will instantly bond with. His main goal is to keep his two year old cousin safe from the robber, the flooded river, a deadly snake, and hungry crocodiles. To do that, he will have to survive all of these things himself. Oh, and don't forget all of the rain and wind that accompany and tropical storm. Nissa is a cute little character and I loved how she called Sam, "Tam."

I really enjoy stories that move along quickly and are filled with tense drama and a lot of action. The first book in the Extreme Adventures series delivered just that. Justin D'Ath has put pen to paper and created a series that I know I am going to fully enjoy. I was already thinking about the second book while I was reading this one. All I know is that I cannot wait to start the next book.

Boys will really enjoy this series. Girls who like a lot of action will enjoy it too. After all, the series is called "Extreme Adventures." I can tell you that the story is quite extreme and the book is stuffed full of adventure and dangerous situations. Anyone out there that is an adrenaline junkie will love this book.

Overall, Crocodile Attack is an excellent book that will keep a reader flipping pages while the find themselves immersed into this wild and crazy story. Like I said earlier, I cannot wait to see what happen with Sam Fox in his next adventure. The book is entitled Bushfire Rescue.

I rated this book a 9 out of 10.