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kate_rescueandreading's review against another edition
3.0
A fast paced adventure thriller! For those who love claustrophobic horror, creature features, and near hopeless situations.
Nick is on a quest to follow in his heroic grandfather’s footsteps; he is part of a documentary filming the abandoned Californian mine. Little do he and the crew know the horrors they will uncover.
Thank you to NetGalley, Kev Harrison, and Brigids Gate Press for a copy.
Nick is on a quest to follow in his heroic grandfather’s footsteps; he is part of a documentary filming the abandoned Californian mine. Little do he and the crew know the horrors they will uncover.
Thank you to NetGalley, Kev Harrison, and Brigids Gate Press for a copy.
teaandtales1's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
Despite being as far away as possible from a cave or underwater explorer, I'm always drawn to these types of stories. Something about the trapped, claustrophobia seems to check a box for me in both books and film, and Below called out to me from the NetGalley offerings and didn't disappoint.
Clocking in around 120 pages, this is an extremely quick read. The three main characters are introduced, they start to investigate an old mine for an upcoming tv special, and things start to go wrong.
There's not much more time to expand the world, but I didn't feel that the characters were underdeveloped. The reader knows something is going to go awry from the moment they open the book, but it was fun to experience the twists and turns as they come.
Overall I enjoyed this book. It was exactly what I expected (and hoped for) and was a fun read. I gave it 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4.
Thank you NetGalley for a lended copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Clocking in around 120 pages, this is an extremely quick read. The three main characters are introduced, they start to investigate an old mine for an upcoming tv special, and things start to go wrong.
There's not much more time to expand the world, but I didn't feel that the characters were underdeveloped. The reader knows something is going to go awry from the moment they open the book, but it was fun to experience the twists and turns as they come.
Overall I enjoyed this book. It was exactly what I expected (and hoped for) and was a fun read. I gave it 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4.
Thank you NetGalley for a lended copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
skywardstorytelling's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This had really good bones (no pun intended but yeesh, accurate). The concept was really creepy, and there were elements that were utterly terrifying. The central core of the story was really interesting, and I liked how it unfolded.
I wish that the author had given everything more time to play out - the book is so short and the chapters so brief that it felt like it all went past in a whirlwind, and that weakened the horror elements for me. The plot would really benefit from slowing down and letting the horror of it dawn on the reader, I think. I also wish that the characters had been more well-developed - I liked them a lot, but their motivations and personalities were sort of vague, given the brevity of the story. I would happily read a series about them going on adventures and uncovering creepy stuff (especially with that surprising but delightfully welcome queer representation!) but I think that Nick will never be going anywhere even remotely creepy ever again. Which is fair, given what went down.
Overall, I enjoyed this, but it would have been better if there was more of it.
I wish that the author had given everything more time to play out - the book is so short and the chapters so brief that it felt like it all went past in a whirlwind, and that weakened the horror elements for me. The plot would really benefit from slowing down and letting the horror of it dawn on the reader, I think. I also wish that the characters had been more well-developed - I liked them a lot, but their motivations and personalities were sort of vague, given the brevity of the story. I would happily read a series about them going on adventures and uncovering creepy stuff (especially with that surprising but delightfully welcome queer representation!) but I think that Nick will never be going anywhere even remotely creepy ever again. Which is fair, given what went down.
Overall, I enjoyed this, but it would have been better if there was more of it.
icanreadish's review
fast-paced
3.0
Below by Kev Harrison follows a camera crew venturing down in the dark to answer the mystery of Nick's grandfather's disappearance years ago.
I'm a huge fan of subterranean horror - the Descent, As Above So Below & the Luminous Dead are some of my favorite pieces of media. So, I'm thrilled to see another book in the genre. However, I never felt immersed or had a clear vision of the setting other than 'big rock to scale'. To me, the scariest thing about this subgenre is the setting, and here the setting came second to the creature / the mystery behind the grandfather figure. I also felt the TV camera crew angle was very underdeveloped and underutilized. The cover is also . . . not great (a blinding white background for a novel that takes place mostly underground?)
I'm a huge fan of subterranean horror - the Descent, As Above So Below & the Luminous Dead are some of my favorite pieces of media. So, I'm thrilled to see another book in the genre. However, I never felt immersed or had a clear vision of the setting other than 'big rock to scale'. To me, the scariest thing about this subgenre is the setting, and here the setting came second to the creature / the mystery behind the grandfather figure. I also felt the TV camera crew angle was very underdeveloped and underutilized. The cover is also . . . not great (a blinding white background for a novel that takes place mostly underground?)
chrissypops's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
3.25
Thank you Netgalley, Brigids Gate Press, LLC and Kev Harrison for the eArc of Below.
This is a fast paced, quick read from Kev Harrison and it my first book from this author. I pretty much read this book in a few sittings and the plot was gripping enough to keep you engaged. The main characters were fairly well fleshed out and felt sensible and level headed and were easy to follow and bond with. Saying that, I felt that more could have been given to these characters, a bit of recklessness maybe could have made them more interesting and added to the overall atmosphere of the book.
The horror elements were well executed and gave homage to the claustrophobic/ creature feature tropes very similar to The Cave/Descent films, which I love. Again though, I felt like there could have been a lot more to build the atmosphere and this I feel is where the Book falls slightly short for me. I loved the whole underlaying backstory and the little tipbits of foreshadowing as the plot goes exactly where you think its gonna.
Overall, its a well formatted, well paced and a well written book in which I thoroughly enjoyed.
3.25 stars for StoryGraph rounded to 3 for other review sites.
This is a fast paced, quick read from Kev Harrison and it my first book from this author. I pretty much read this book in a few sittings and the plot was gripping enough to keep you engaged. The main characters were fairly well fleshed out and felt sensible and level headed and were easy to follow and bond with. Saying that, I felt that more could have been given to these characters, a bit of recklessness maybe could have made them more interesting and added to the overall atmosphere of the book.
The horror elements were well executed and gave homage to the claustrophobic/ creature feature tropes very similar to The Cave/Descent films, which I love. Again though, I felt like there could have been a lot more to build the atmosphere and this I feel is where the Book falls slightly short for me. I loved the whole underlaying backstory and the little tipbits of foreshadowing as the plot goes exactly where you think its gonna.
Overall, its a well formatted, well paced and a well written book in which I thoroughly enjoyed.
3.25 stars for StoryGraph rounded to 3 for other review sites.
dreereads's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
If you liked the movies, The Descent or As Above So Below, you'll enjoy this quick subterranean horror story! The pacing was great and the characters were realistic. I loved the twists and really enjoyed the letters left behind from the Grandfather, it really helped piece together what was happening underground. I also enjoyed that one of the characters was a content creator! This was definitely a quick and easy read, absolutely recommend!
novellearts's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Nick's grandfather is celebrated as a hero for helping miners escape out of a collapsed mine. Nick, Jess, and Sofia decide to go into the mine many years later to document the mines and end up with an accurate account of Nick's grandfather's final moments. As they enter into the mines, strange things begin happening and they start finding even stranger journal entries written by Nick's grandfather.
This story reminded me a bit of As Above So Below and The Descent. This story was fast-paced and pretty action-packed. My only complaint is that I felt as though the book ended abruptly. It was also a little bit predictable, but still very enjoyable.
This story reminded me a bit of As Above So Below and The Descent. This story was fast-paced and pretty action-packed. My only complaint is that I felt as though the book ended abruptly. It was also a little bit predictable, but still very enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Cannibalism, and Injury/Injury detail
sorkatani's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This is an awkward book to review.
On one hand, it wasn't a very good horror novel, and yet, on the other hand, I really kind of liked it.
After reading, I went and double-checked what its genre shelving was, and it's definitely shelved as 'horror'. In that regard, it's a pretty mediocre story.
The situation, especially the television production and health and safety aspects, is extremely contrived and often unbelievable. The male protagonist - Nick - is supposedly claustrophobic but gives only the shallowest indications of it. There's never a real sense of atmosphere or danger since the characters are very capable and level-headed and don't seem to be that concerned by their situation. Not to mention the always dependable satellite phone.
I mean, at no point did I feel like the characters were really in danger. The threat didn't feel that dangerous to me - neither from the environment (good ol' Al!) or the antagonist (wall-climbing doesn't make you scary).
The novel read more like an action story than a horror story.
So, I guess I would have to say that I didn't find it to be a very good horror story.
And yet...
I actually really enjoyed it! It's no work of literary mastery, but it was a lot of fun.
I enjoyed the story, despite how obvious and predictable it was, and I enjoyed how capable Jess and Sophia were. I loved that the LGBTQIA+ elements felt totally natural and unremarkable (a good thing), too.
And that's why I have absolutely no idea how to rate this book! I'm going to go with a nice neutral 3 stars until I can figure it out.
On one hand, it wasn't a very good horror novel, and yet, on the other hand, I really kind of liked it.
After reading, I went and double-checked what its genre shelving was, and it's definitely shelved as 'horror'. In that regard, it's a pretty mediocre story.
The situation, especially the television production and health and safety aspects, is extremely contrived and often unbelievable. The male protagonist - Nick - is supposedly claustrophobic but gives only the shallowest indications of it. There's never a real sense of atmosphere or danger since the characters are very capable and level-headed and don't seem to be that concerned by their situation. Not to mention the always dependable satellite phone.
I mean, at no point did I feel like the characters were really in danger. The threat didn't feel that dangerous to me - neither from the environment (good ol' Al!) or the antagonist (wall-climbing doesn't make you scary).
The novel read more like an action story than a horror story.
So, I guess I would have to say that I didn't find it to be a very good horror story.
And yet...
I actually really enjoyed it! It's no work of literary mastery, but it was a lot of fun.
I enjoyed the story, despite how obvious and predictable it was, and I enjoyed how capable Jess and Sophia were. I loved that the LGBTQIA+ elements felt totally natural and unremarkable (a good thing), too.
And that's why I have absolutely no idea how to rate this book! I'm going to go with a nice neutral 3 stars until I can figure it out.
the_baking_bibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
This was a quick and exciting read for anyone wanting a cool, creepy story! To me, it was very predictable. I knew from the first mention of his grandfather being caved in what the outcome of the book would be, and although it wasn’t specifically mentioned, I assume this was a “wendigo” story based on the lore of wendigos. Overall, I really enjoyed it!
This was a quick and exciting read for anyone wanting a cool, creepy story! To me, it was very predictable. I knew from the first mention of his grandfather being caved in what the outcome of the book would be, and although it wasn’t specifically mentioned, I assume this was a “wendigo” story based on the lore of wendigos. Overall, I really enjoyed it!
douglasweaver's review against another edition
5.0
Chasing your grandfather’s ghost in an abandoned mine for a reality tv show…what could possible go wrong?
This book is hard to review. I enjoyed it, but in the end, I found that the flatness of the characters, the all-too-conveniently placed clues, and the number of times that I had to completely suspend all disbelief to accept the events and timing of the plot left me unable to truly recommend it.
In my opinion, there needed to be more backstory to develop my concern for the characters, and either a more detailed account of what occurred with the grandfather, or perhaps the story could have been told using multiple time lines? In the end, I think that the story that needed to be told was too big for the format that it was presented in.
I do look forward to reading future work from Kev Harrison. He is a talented writer, but this story didn’t work for me.
This book is hard to review. I enjoyed it, but in the end, I found that the flatness of the characters, the all-too-conveniently placed clues, and the number of times that I had to completely suspend all disbelief to accept the events and timing of the plot left me unable to truly recommend it.
In my opinion, there needed to be more backstory to develop my concern for the characters, and either a more detailed account of what occurred with the grandfather, or perhaps the story could have been told using multiple time lines? In the end, I think that the story that needed to be told was too big for the format that it was presented in.
I do look forward to reading future work from Kev Harrison. He is a talented writer, but this story didn’t work for me.