‘The Noise’ is a recently published collaboration between American-based authors, James Patterson and J D Barker. We meet Tennant and her younger sister, Sophie, who live off-grid with their parents in a small community near Mount Hood in Oregon, USA. Whilst out trapping rabbits one day, their world is suddenly turned upside down. Through a combination of good fortune and the actions of their quick-thinking father, both survive a catastrophic event which befalls their community.

A team of scientists is quickly assembled and transported to the area to identify a cause, if possible and search for any survivors. It soon becomes clear that all is not what it seems and the team are working not only against an unknown phenomenon but also an establishment who is not telling them the whole story. The scene is set for a fast-moving action-packed race against time to stop the events in Oregon being repeated.

The book is written in the past tense and the third person. Each chapter is short and named after the character whose thoughts the reader is to share. This may have changed when the book was published but I reviewed a proof copy.

Each character is fleshed out in just enough depth for their place to be anchored in the story but I didn’t find any of them over-convincing. Initially, I found there were quite a lot of cast but our main protagonists are soon apparent, with psychologist, Dr Martha Chan and career soldier, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Fraser, taking centre stage for most of the story. It is indeed fortunate that Martha is also a medical doctor and surgeon, as her skills are needed more than once. This story really isn’t for the faint-hearted.

The accuracy of the military information is no doubt correct; likewise the medical aspects of the story. These sections are not overplayed and they add to the slick presentation readers expect from anything with James Patterson’s name attached to it. There are fewer twists than I expected but arguably this is counterbalanced by a relentless momentum as the threat from the anomaly builds in strength.

A lot of research has clearly been done by one or both authors. It is a clever scenario but it is also totally bleak and with no respite from the horrors of unfolding events. The ending was odd with a new character suddenly emerging. I found ‘The Noise’ both disturbing and compelling but I didn’t actually enjoy it. Nonetheless, its nightmare possibilities dictate that objectively, I should award four-and-a-half stars for a thought-provoking and cleverly-written tale.