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caitie145's review against another edition
4.0
This. Was. My. Worst. Nightmare. Probably doesn’t help that I am located in the books setting, never ever want to go cave exploring after this !!
While I did thoroughly enjoy the audiobook, the narrator did take me a while to get into and I’m not sure if they will be for everyone.
While I did thoroughly enjoy the audiobook, the narrator did take me a while to get into and I’m not sure if they will be for everyone.
cosmictreeslug's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Wasn't what I thought it would be. I don't mind a creature book. But you find out too much too soon.
shadowspinner's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Death
kyra_joy's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A fun little creature feature! Felt like watching one of those one off monster horror movies. It’s not super dead, and has pretty average writing but overall is a fun creepy little read.
frogggyyyyy's review against another edition
4.0
misleading cover-barely any underwater scenes. however, good body horror and general claustrophobic scenes (in a cave, very little underwater/scuba).
capnlinnius's review against another edition
4.0
3.5/5 rounded up because I had a blast.
This was like reading a mix of Predator, Alone in the Dark (the movie) and Tremors, with the claustrophobia of The Descent (the movie). It had all the action sci-fi horror tropes, but handled them amazingly, and seemed aware of its own over-the-top moments in a way that made me enjoy them rather than get pulled out of the story.
On the one hand, we have a group of caver friends excited to explore the caverns recently uncovered by a sinkhole, and being the first ones to get to map it out. One of them, our main character, is less excited, but comes along because 1, he's a paramedic, and 2, his girlfriend is going and he is in love. They encounter weird flora and fauna that their bio student friend takes samples of and sends off to her university. They hear strange things in the dark. They find the equipment of the missing couple that supposedly went into the cavern months ago. And there's something watching them from the dark waters they will have to dive through.
On the other hand, we have a small town in the Outback, where something crashed to Earth and left something behind, that the miners of the small town began to treat as some sort of matron saint, leaving offerings of their own blood to ensure their safety down there. Then people go missing in the 70s, and eventually the mines get closed down. One survivor of the group that went down to the mines in that time, to find the creature? to kill it?, is a Vietnam war veteran, and his character adds all of the comedic action dialog, as he retires to run a little bar, and warns off the cavers from going down the sinkhole.
So. We have claustrophobic moments of crawling through cracks and getting stuck. We have gore galore (the prologue has two people killed in gruesome detail). We have bad guys getting their comeuppance. We have "Let's finish this!". All in all a fun ride for anyone in the mood for some action horror with some sci-fi flavor.
This was like reading a mix of Predator, Alone in the Dark (the movie) and Tremors, with the claustrophobia of The Descent (the movie). It had all the action sci-fi horror tropes, but handled them amazingly, and seemed aware of its own over-the-top moments in a way that made me enjoy them rather than get pulled out of the story.
On the one hand, we have a group of caver friends excited to explore the caverns recently uncovered by a sinkhole, and being the first ones to get to map it out. One of them, our main character, is less excited, but comes along because 1, he's a paramedic, and 2, his girlfriend is going and he is in love. They encounter weird flora and fauna that their bio student friend takes samples of and sends off to her university. They hear strange things in the dark. They find the equipment of the missing couple that supposedly went into the cavern months ago. And there's something watching them from the dark waters they will have to dive through.
On the other hand, we have a small town in the Outback, where something crashed to Earth and left something behind, that the miners of the small town began to treat as some sort of matron saint, leaving offerings of their own blood to ensure their safety down there. Then people go missing in the 70s, and eventually the mines get closed down. One survivor of the group that went down to the mines in that time, to find the creature? to kill it?, is a Vietnam war veteran, and his character adds all of the comedic action dialog, as he retires to run a little bar, and warns off the cavers from going down the sinkhole.
So. We have claustrophobic moments of crawling through cracks and getting stuck. We have gore galore (the prologue has two people killed in gruesome detail). We have bad guys getting their comeuppance. We have "Let's finish this!". All in all a fun ride for anyone in the mood for some action horror with some sci-fi flavor.
roadtripreader's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
kitty31478's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
tarshka's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
4.0
A lamb is sacrificed and there are mentions of dogs being killed by the monster. Also some children die, in the past but one described in the story. And a bunch of adult people.
I liked that it was in Australia. I don't come across many books that take place there, don't know much about the country, and it's a nice change. Especially after listening to a couple books that took place in the USA, but where the 'American' characters talked about heights in meters and weighed things in kilos. Which was hilarious, certainly, but also very odd.
I liked that creature, it was interesting. It does mostly take place in a cave, not underwater, so that's a bit misleading for the cover I think. But there is cave diving, so it certainly is part of the story. It ended in a way that makes me wonder if the author is planning to write more in this setting, but not in a way that makes the story feel incomplete, which I appreciate.
Feels like most the main characters are there "just there to die to raise the stakes", as someone reviewing the video game Winback once said.
I liked that it was in Australia. I don't come across many books that take place there, don't know much about the country, and it's a nice change. Especially after listening to a couple books that took place in the USA, but where the 'American' characters talked about heights in meters and weighed things in kilos. Which was hilarious, certainly, but also very odd.
I liked that creature, it was interesting. It does mostly take place in a cave, not underwater, so that's a bit misleading for the cover I think. But there is cave diving, so it certainly is part of the story. It ended in a way that makes me wonder if the author is planning to write more in this setting, but not in a way that makes the story feel incomplete, which I appreciate.