History Literature / Carnosaur

* PrehistoricMonster: Despite being fairly progressive in dinosaur depictions, it is still very much guilty of this. All but one of the carnivorous dinosaurs mercilessly hunt down humans and devour them long after their appetites should be sated. This is especially weird for creatures like ''Dilophosaurus'' and the plesiosaur, which would not be very well equipped to eat large, fast-moving prey like human beings. However in the case of the larger carnivores like the ''Deinonychus'' and ''Tarbosaurus'', this could be [[JustifiedTrope explained]] in that mammals would have been a common food source for them as babies and they were fed cattle at Penward's estate. Just as humans have an atavistic fear of dinosaurs, the dinosaurs would have an atavistic instinct to equate mammals with easy food.

* CoversAlwaysLie: Tor released a movie tie-in version of the novel to coincide with Corman's film, whose cover, featuring the movie poster artwork, blurts, "[[BlatantLies In the Startling Tradition of Jurassic Park]]!". It gets double ironic when you consider the novel predates ''Jurassic Park'' in both novel and film format by six and nine years respectively. Especially {{JustForFun/Egregious}} considering the simple fact that neither of those characters are in the novel, although a reader who never saw the movie would just assume its what the two unrelated main characters of the novel look like. It even extends to the dinosaur on the cover, which is an adult ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. While the Tyrant Lizard King is present in the book, it's only in infant form and the main threat comes from a ''Tarbosaurus'' (which admittedly is a close relative, and very similar in size and appearance - most people would assume it was a ''T-Rex'' on first sight) who is a completely different coloration than the film beast.

* CoversAlwaysLie: Tor released a movie tie-in version of the novel to coincide with Corman's film, whose cover, featuring the movie poster artwork, blurts, "[[BlatantLies In the Startling Tradition of Jurassic Park]]!". It gets double ironic when you consider the novel predates ''Jurassic Park'' in both novel and film format by six and nine years respectively. Especially {{JustForFun/Egregious}} considering the simple fact that neither of those characters are in the novel, although a reader who never saw the movie would just assume its what the two unrelated main characters of the novel look like. It even extends to the dinosaur on the cover, which is an adult ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. While the Tyrant Lizard King is present in the book, it's only in infant form and the main threat comes from a similar ''Tarbosaurus'' who is a completely different coloration than the film beast.

* PoliceAreUseless: Not only do they fail to investigate the very shady Penward even when he falsely admits several murders were from a tiger he owned, but when Penward's dinosaurs and panthers break out they are hopelessly outclassed until the army shows up.

* InfantImmortality: Averted. Fiona gets killed.

* CoversAlwaysLie: Tor released a movie tie-in version of the novel to coincide with Corman's film, whose cover, featuring the movie poster artwork, blurts, "[[BlatantLies In the Startling Tradition of Jurassic Park]]!". It gets double ironic when you consider the novel predates ''Jurassic Park'' in both novel and film format by six and nine years respectively. Especially {{JustForFun/Egregious}} considering the simple fact that neither of those characters are in the novel, although a reader who never saw the movie would just assume its what the two unrelated main characters of the novel look like. It even extends to the dinosaur on the cover, which is an adult ''TyrannosaurusRex''. While the Tyrant Lizard King is present in the book, it's only in infant form and the main threat comes from a similar ''Tarbosaurus'' who is a completely different coloration than the film beast.

* TyrannosaurusRex: Downplayed. The only ones featured are a pair of hatchlings [[spoiler:which only appear in the end devouring Lady Jane]]. The very similar, but still distinct ''Tarbosaurus'' instead takes its place as the main threat. In-universe however, characters repeatedly mistake the ''Tarbosaurus'' for its North American cousin.

A novel by [[FunWithAcronyms Harry Adam Knight]] (a penname of Australian science fiction author Creator/JohnBrosnan, used for his schlockiest work), written in the [[TheEighties 80's]], some time prior to ''Literature/JurassicPark''. The novel's story is vastly different from the InNameOnly Roger Corman film. In it, [[IntrepidReporter David Pascal]] in Cambridgeshire, England is trying to discover the causes of a recent rash of deaths. The local bigshot, Sir Darren Penward, who collects rare and exotic predators, insists it was a Siberian tiger that escaped from his private zoo. However the lone survivor of one of the attacks, a small boy, claims it was a dinosaur.

* LightningBruiser: The ''Tarbosaurus'' is the main large predator in the novel and alongside being strong enough to ram down walls and chew up a car it is able to keep pace with a car until it shifts into higher gears. Even then it manages to maintain its speed long enough to catch back up to the protagonists when they get stopped. Numerous victims are caught off guard by the tyrannosaurid being much faster than its bulk would imply. TruthInTelevision as tyrannosauridae, outside of the super heavy ''Tyrannosaurus'' were fairly agile runners.

* SequelHook: [[spoiler: Two ''Tyrannosaurus'' hatch and no one knows where they are at]]. Considering it's been about 30 years, and the author died, it's unlikely to be followed up on.

* DiabolusExMachina: [[spoiler: The ''Deinonychus'' that Pascal forgets about homes right in on Jenny's home and slaughters her family and gravely wounds both her and Pascal. What are the chances it would pick her house?]]

** Sort of applies to [[spoiler: the ''Megalosaurus'', an adolescent male who gets run down by an articulated truck while searching in vain for a mate.]]

* HellishCopter: Used several times by Penward and his men. [[spoiler: Their attempts to use it against the rampaging ''Tarbosaurus'' aren't very successful however...]]

* ImmuneToBullets: Subverted with the larger dinosaurs. Gun calibers meant to kill humans either fail to penetrate their hide or just get lodged in their dense muscle. The ''Tarbosaurus'' survives getting shot with multiple hunting rifles and a buckshot blast without issue. However when heavier implements are used, they do go down. It just takes [[UpToEleven artillery pieces and anti-tank rounds]] in some cases.

* CurbStompBattle: A pride of lions panics at the escaping dinosaurs and a few attack the ''Tarbosaurus'' when it rams down their fence. We see the ''Tarbosaurus'' minutes later without one of the offending lions in sight and blood on its jaws, leaving little to suspect who was victorious between the 150-200 kilogram lions and the 6,350 kilogram dinosaur.

** In one of the few sequences that actually gets somewhat depicted in the film, Pat and Jeremy are mauled to death by a ''Deinonychus'' while getting it on in their car.

* FragileSpeedster: The ''Deinonychus'' isn't especially durable, but is extremely agile and fast as it disembowels people with one slash; being compared to Bruce Lee with knives on its feet.

* ImmuneToBullets: Subverted with the larger dinosaurs. Gun calibers meant to kill humans either fail to penetrate their hide or just get lodged in their dense muscle. The ''Tarbosaurus'' tanks getting shot with multiple hunting rifles and a buckshot blast without issue. However when heavier implements are used, they do go down. It just takes [[UpToEleven artillery pieces and anti-tank rounds]] in some cases.

** ''Dilophosaurus'' is featured. This is also before it was made stock, and as such, isn't depicted as frilled or venomous.

** A plesiosaur (unknown exactly which kind but likely an ''Elasmosaurus'' given size) is a big threat as well.

* AlwaysABiggerFish: Penward's private zoo has many big cats such as leopards, tigers, and a whole pride of lions. While dangerous, they're terrified of the dinosaurs on account of PrimalFear. During the breakout several lions go for Pascal, only for the ''Tarbosaurus'' to attack and kill the felines.

* WhyDontYouJustShooHim: Regarding the above, David, at one point actually does attempt to throttle Penward, who then orders the guard accompanying them to simply knock David out as gently as possible, saying "the less bruising, the better."

* ActionSurvivor: David and his girlfriend Jenny are really put through the ringer.

* DeathByIrony: Besides the dinosaurs, Sir Penward's estate houses all manner of nature's extant carnivores, many of which get loose when the dinosaurs go on the rampage. The animal that's ultimately responsible for doing Penward in? [[spoiler: One of the steers he kept for feeding purposes gores him in the thigh]], and it's lampshaded several times throughout the novel.

* IAmNotWeasel: Numerous characters--in fact, pretty much everyone except for Penward himself-- mistake the ''Tarbosaurus'' for a T-rex.

** So, to sum it up, 2 great stock, 3 secondary stock, 2 rarely-seen stock, and the rest are non-stock.

* SeldomSeenSpecies: Knight uses ''Tarbosaurus'' instead of a ''T. rex'' as the novel's main threat. ''Altispinax'' and ''Scolosaurus'' briefly turn up as well. ''Megalosaurus'' is an example of a seldom-seen [[StockDinosaurs stock dinosaur]].

** Lastly, two baby ''Tyrannosaurus'' are hatched. The similar, related ''Tarbosaurus'' stands in for it as the big predator.

** So, to sum it up, 2 great stock, 3 secondary stock, 1 rarely-seen stock, and the rest are non-stock.

** The book repeatedly emphasizes how bird-like some of the predatory dinosaurs look and behave. When the ''Deinonychus'' and ''Tarbosaurus'' feed, they're compared to carnivorous birds in how they pin their prey down with a foot and rip into it with their jaws. This theory actually is well accepted even today and all supporting evidence for it came ''after'' the book was published! The bird-like features of the dinosaurs cause an UncannyValley effect on anyone seeing them as most of the characters in-universe are expecting big, slow, lizard-like monsters.

** The book repeatedly emphasizes how bird-like some of the predatory dinosaurs look and behave. When the ''Deinonychus'' and ''Tarbosaurus'' feed, they're compared to carnivorous birds in how they pin their prey down with a foot and rip into it with their jaws. This theory actually is well accepted even today and all supporting evidence for it came ''after'' the book was published!
** While no dinosaurs in the novel have feathers, due to being written in 1984, it's repeatedly started they look and move extremely bird-like, which causes an UncannyValley effect on anyone seeing them as most of the characters in-universe are expecting big, slow, lizard-like monsters.

** While no dinosaurs have feathers, due to the novel being written in 1984, it's repeatedly started they look and move extremely bird-like, which causes an UncannyValley effect on anyone seeing them as most of the characters in-universe are expecting big, slow, lizard-like monsters.

* TheDreaded: The dinosaurs are this to humans and other mammals on account of PrimalFear. The scent and sound of the Theropods causes humans to feel an instinctive panic.

* {{Gorn}}: People are killed and devoured in rather gruesome ways. Limbs get ripped off, gusts spilled down, and the ''Deinonychus'' has a habit of going for people's face like a predatory bird.

* LightningBruiser: The ''Tarbosaurus'' is the main large predator in the novel and alongside being strong enough to ram down walls and chew up a car it is able to keep pace with a car until it shifts into higher gears. Even then it manages to maintain its speed long enough to catch back up to the protagonists when they get stopped. Numerous victims are caught off guard by the Tyrannosaurid being much faster than its bulk would imply. TruthInTelevision as Tyrannosauridae, outside of the super heavy ''Tyrannosaurus'' were fairly agile runners.

** While no dinosaurs have feathers, its repeatedly started they look and move extremely bird-like, which causes an UncannyValley effect on anyone seeing them as most of the characters in-universe are expecting big, slow, lizard-like monsters.

** A plesiosaur (unknown exactly which kind but likely an ''Elamosaurus'' given size) is a big threat as well.