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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
The best page-turner I’ve read in ages. Fun, thrilling, surprising. Go read it.
Dreadful! I kept reading it thinking it had to improve; it didn't. One star is being generous. There needs to be a no star category.
Cliché, 2 dimensional, and often reads like a middle aged white man circa 2015 trying to appeal to a younger demographic because his publisher told him to. Between the flat writing and the unlistenably inconsistent accents in the audiobook I couldn't finish this and wouldn't recommend either said audiobook or the print version. The Descent this is not.
I started reading this book late at night and only got through some pages. The next morning, I definitely did not like my bed companion. After a few more pages, I got sucked into it. The problem is that Nolan, the main character, is decidedly unappealing. His saving grace is that he knows that he is "at best a rough first draft".
Nolan and his team are looking for a cave in the Grand Canyon, that some other explorers found a century earlier but which was then lost again. It's supposed to contain secrets that will topple the accepted world views and be - an anomaly. Of course things go sideways! However, they do so in unexpected ways and despite having read a great deal of similar books, I was nonetheless both entertained and surprised. This is a page turner and the characters in the book even show development. This is not the type of book where you would expect to find insights into the human condition, but even that is provided. I'm seriously impressed, even if the plot twist took some extreme suspension of disbelief.
Nolan and his team are looking for a cave in the Grand Canyon, that some other explorers found a century earlier but which was then lost again. It's supposed to contain secrets that will topple the accepted world views and be - an anomaly. Of course things go sideways! However, they do so in unexpected ways and despite having read a great deal of similar books, I was nonetheless both entertained and surprised. This is a page turner and the characters in the book even show development. This is not the type of book where you would expect to find insights into the human condition, but even that is provided. I'm seriously impressed, even if the plot twist took some extreme suspension of disbelief.
Super fun sci-fi/horror/action. Good quick, compelling read. Creepy and claustrophobic with enjoyable characters.
fast-paced
Members of a web series called The Anomaly Files decide to go on the hunt for a hidden cavern inside the Grand Canyon that an archeologist had discovered a century prior. Upon arriving, they become trapped inside and while searching for a way out, start to experience horrific entities. Will they make it out alive to tell the story of what’s inside?
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I’m not a huge fan of sci fi, but this one was pretty good. It was a slow start but gradually built the suspense and then pure horror ensued, bringing it to a fantastic end. I would definitely recommend to fans of sci fi or anyone interested in archaeology and the discovery of ancient cultures.
4/5⭐️
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I’m not a huge fan of sci fi, but this one was pretty good. It was a slow start but gradually built the suspense and then pure horror ensued, bringing it to a fantastic end. I would definitely recommend to fans of sci fi or anyone interested in archaeology and the discovery of ancient cultures.
4/5⭐️
I just finished The Anomaly last night and I need to wait until July for the sequel??!!!! Torture!
Ok so this book was amazing.
When I looked up the description, "If Indiana Jones lived in the X-Files era...", I knew i had to try it.
I'm a little leary of cave-type horror. I've read a few, including The Descent, and in spite of the glowing praise, I never liked them all that much.
This one is different.
Right from the start you love the characters, all of them. At least I did. You understand the main character and how he thinks and feels, which makes everything that happens later on that much more believable. Which is really the key for me in a horror novel.
It takes about 30% to really start getting to the creepy stuff, but long before then I was interested and engaged. I liked these guys and had a great time following them to their destination.
I'll try not to spoil it too much, because I want people to enjoy this one as much as I did, so I'll just say that the discoveries inside the cave, and the rising fear and horror, are totally great. I actually had to stop reading last night because I gave myself a case of the creeps, which hasn't happened to me in a long time. It was a nice surprise. Even when it got to the really crazy stuff it was believable and fun.
Anyway, I loved it. It was a fast, easy read too. I binged it in 2 days. If you haven't heard of this one and need something fun and spooky to get behind, please do!
Ok so this book was amazing.
When I looked up the description, "If Indiana Jones lived in the X-Files era...", I knew i had to try it.
I'm a little leary of cave-type horror. I've read a few, including The Descent, and in spite of the glowing praise, I never liked them all that much.
This one is different.
Right from the start you love the characters, all of them. At least I did. You understand the main character and how he thinks and feels, which makes everything that happens later on that much more believable. Which is really the key for me in a horror novel.
It takes about 30% to really start getting to the creepy stuff, but long before then I was interested and engaged. I liked these guys and had a great time following them to their destination.
I'll try not to spoil it too much, because I want people to enjoy this one as much as I did, so I'll just say that the discoveries inside the cave, and the rising fear and horror, are totally great. I actually had to stop reading last night because I gave myself a case of the creeps, which hasn't happened to me in a long time. It was a nice surprise. Even when it got to the really crazy stuff it was believable and fun.
Anyway, I loved it. It was a fast, easy read too. I binged it in 2 days. If you haven't heard of this one and need something fun and spooky to get behind, please do!
Plot: The crew of a YouTube documentary series that investigates archaeological anomalies around the world travels to the Grand Canyon where they’ve heard rumours and read reports of a mysterious cavern, discovered in 1909 but never understood. The secrets the cave conceals are unknown but turn out to be stranger than you can imagine, as the documentary becomes a fight for survival.
My thoughts: Well, this was an interesting one that I read in one sitting on the plane – I was totally immersed in it because of this! The story was scary, with points that made me jump or hyperventilate, the atmosphere was claustrophobic (only heightened by being on a plane, I think!), and the plot was totally action packed. And I really enjoyed it, to my surprise! It’s compared to Indiana Jones crossed with the X files, and I totally agree here. I love creepy, weird things, so this totally appealed to that for me, plus it just kept pushing forward and forward, so I think I’d have struggled to put it down had I not been able to read it in one go.
I’ve since found out that Michael Rutger is a screenwriter, and this totally makes sense. Due to the level of action and the way it flowed, it felt more like an action movie that I could picture on a big screen than a book. There’s nothing wrong with this and I do enjoy books written this way occasionally, but I can see it would jar with some. Like I said, I really enjoyed it, so maybe give it a go and see if it surprises you too!
My thoughts: Well, this was an interesting one that I read in one sitting on the plane – I was totally immersed in it because of this! The story was scary, with points that made me jump or hyperventilate, the atmosphere was claustrophobic (only heightened by being on a plane, I think!), and the plot was totally action packed. And I really enjoyed it, to my surprise! It’s compared to Indiana Jones crossed with the X files, and I totally agree here. I love creepy, weird things, so this totally appealed to that for me, plus it just kept pushing forward and forward, so I think I’d have struggled to put it down had I not been able to read it in one go.
I’ve since found out that Michael Rutger is a screenwriter, and this totally makes sense. Due to the level of action and the way it flowed, it felt more like an action movie that I could picture on a big screen than a book. There’s nothing wrong with this and I do enjoy books written this way occasionally, but I can see it would jar with some. Like I said, I really enjoyed it, so maybe give it a go and see if it surprises you too!
This didn't start out great for me in terms of writing style or finesse, and then it just got WEIRD. No spoilers, but p. 232 and p. 257 had me laughing out loud at the outrageousness of it all (disbelief suspended not even for a second).
From mention of the "Kenmobile" on page 5, I knew I was in for one of those "bro" books, and this heaps on the accompanying rhetoric. There's little time spent on creative character development or world-building, and there's a heavy reliance on what's already been done in the world of adventure and pseudo-science narratives; see the references to Indiana Jones in both the jacket description and in several places throughout the novel, and the science and history reads like a poorly researched attempt at a Michael Crichton story. While the slow start turned into a page turner by halfway through, I was driven more by a WTF desire to see how this all ended than any suspension of disbelief to buy into the plot even remotely. The ending is like a slam on the brakes, boring-as-heck philosophical rambling and plot end tie-up that falls flat indeed. Ultimately, I suppose the dialogue reads naturally enough (although not lending itself to the creation of very complex or empathetic characters), which it should, given the author's career as a screenwriter. The prose and writing style could use some intense revision, though.
Finally, what really broke the deal for me on this book was the treatment of women characters and Native American cultures and histories.
From page 1 we have "Maqk--one of only two natives left, the others all dead or deserted or lost" to let us know how Native American characters and culture will be treated (largely absent, with culture used as token historical mention and mysticism). There's a flinchingly-bad line that should have never made it through the edit: "I yield to no one in my respect for the red-skinned man--both in his achievements in wiseness and his or her rights of precedence in your chaotic farce of a so-called country." Efforts I assume are attempts at cleverness manifest as increasingly problematic throughout the book. For women, there's sexism with a healthy dash of misogyny: "Molly is Ken's bitch for anything to do with work" (p. 9); "[Molly] The mom of the team" (p. 86); culminating, of course, in the c-word: "How about you stop being a cunt" (p. 201). Nooooooooo thanks.
Sigh. Such potential here, but this read like a made-for-TV SyFy channel movie script rather than a solid paranormal thriller.
From mention of the "Kenmobile" on page 5, I knew I was in for one of those "bro" books, and this heaps on the accompanying rhetoric. There's little time spent on creative character development or world-building, and there's a heavy reliance on what's already been done in the world of adventure and pseudo-science narratives; see the references to Indiana Jones in both the jacket description and in several places throughout the novel, and the science and history reads like a poorly researched attempt at a Michael Crichton story. While the slow start turned into a page turner by halfway through, I was driven more by a WTF desire to see how this all ended than any suspension of disbelief to buy into the plot even remotely. The ending is like a slam on the brakes, boring-as-heck philosophical rambling and plot end tie-up that falls flat indeed. Ultimately, I suppose the dialogue reads naturally enough (although not lending itself to the creation of very complex or empathetic characters), which it should, given the author's career as a screenwriter. The prose and writing style could use some intense revision, though.
Finally, what really broke the deal for me on this book was the treatment of women characters and Native American cultures and histories.
From page 1 we have "Maqk--one of only two natives left, the others all dead or deserted or lost" to let us know how Native American characters and culture will be treated (largely absent, with culture used as token historical mention and mysticism). There's a flinchingly-bad line that should have never made it through the edit: "I yield to no one in my respect for the red-skinned man--both in his achievements in wiseness and his or her rights of precedence in your chaotic farce of a so-called country." Efforts I assume are attempts at cleverness manifest as increasingly problematic throughout the book. For women, there's sexism with a healthy dash of misogyny: "Molly is Ken's bitch for anything to do with work" (p. 9); "[Molly] The mom of the team" (p. 86); culminating, of course, in the c-word: "How about you stop being a cunt" (p. 201). Nooooooooo thanks.
Sigh. Such potential here, but this read like a made-for-TV SyFy channel movie script rather than a solid paranormal thriller.