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joann3's review
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Animal death
catsy2022's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rating: A
“You guys must be parched. What’ll it be? VB or VB?”
An unexpectedly great short story. Set in the Australian outback, a group of cavers undertake an expedition to explore a new cave system recently discovered on farmland by a small town in NSW. Host to many opal mines in the 50s, now abandoned, the locals tell of the legend of the Miners' Mother, a mysterious creature believed to be inhabiting the caves and mines in the area to whom the locals sacrificed small animals and drained their own blood into shrines carved in the tunnel systems.
“Folklore states that Knockers were creatures who would notify miners of danger, by making tapping or creaking noises from deep within the stone. To ignore such a warning would often result in death, whether through tunnel collapse, horrific injury, or for others… disappearance without a trace."
I had initially been drawn to read this book after a friend did and praised the story. Upon finding it was written by an Australian author with paramedics amongst the main character party, I was excited to finish this book. I found it to be a great blend of The Descent, Alien and The Ruins, a thoroughly claustrophobic horror with competent protagonists. Sam is a paramedic, Frida is a biologist, Ellie is a geographer with her brother Max and their friend Aaron - the group has more than 1000 hours of experience caving. I felt like the pacing was just right in this book. I loved the mystery and the rational and realistic thought.
An image of the child’s face flashed before Sam’s eyes, and his gut clenched, goosebumps puckering the backs of his arms. No, it couldn’t be possible.
One of my favourite parts of this book was the sampling of the biological creatures. I felt like that was an amazing part of the book and very realistic, as well as the paramedics being able to "switch off" and go into medical training to treat injured people. I did feel like maybe the monsters took too much inspiration from other forms of media but I liked the small scale and the overall outcome of the story. A great read.
If there was a one percent chance of survival, the other ninety-nine could go get fucked.
“You guys must be parched. What’ll it be? VB or VB?”
An unexpectedly great short story. Set in the Australian outback, a group of cavers undertake an expedition to explore a new cave system recently discovered on farmland by a small town in NSW. Host to many opal mines in the 50s, now abandoned, the locals tell of the legend of the Miners' Mother, a mysterious creature believed to be inhabiting the caves and mines in the area to whom the locals sacrificed small animals and drained their own blood into shrines carved in the tunnel systems.
“Folklore states that Knockers were creatures who would notify miners of danger, by making tapping or creaking noises from deep within the stone. To ignore such a warning would often result in death, whether through tunnel collapse, horrific injury, or for others… disappearance without a trace."
I had initially been drawn to read this book after a friend did and praised the story. Upon finding it was written by an Australian author with paramedics amongst the main character party, I was excited to finish this book. I found it to be a great blend of The Descent, Alien and The Ruins, a thoroughly claustrophobic horror with competent protagonists. Sam is a paramedic, Frida is a biologist, Ellie is a geographer with her brother Max and their friend Aaron - the group has more than 1000 hours of experience caving. I felt like the pacing was just right in this book. I loved the mystery and the rational and realistic thought.
An image of the child’s face flashed before Sam’s eyes, and his gut clenched, goosebumps puckering the backs of his arms. No, it couldn’t be possible.
One of my favourite parts of this book was the sampling of the biological creatures. I felt like that was an amazing part of the book and very realistic, as well as the paramedics being able to "switch off" and go into medical training to treat injured people. I did feel like maybe the monsters took too much inspiration from other forms of media but I liked the small scale and the overall outcome of the story. A great read.
If there was a one percent chance of survival, the other ninety-nine could go get fucked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Gun violence, Torture, Death, and Body horror
Minor: Animal death, Vomit, and Self harm
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