Reviews tagging 'Death'

Ascension by Nicholas Binge

18 reviews

andrew_matteson's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I found Ascension is a fun horror read with Lovecraftian tropes. There are scenes that are memorable in their shock value, and the abiding sense of cosmic horror is well done. Basically all the characters, except the narrator, are flawed in their two dimensionality. This leaves several reveals in the book quite wanting, especially the final ones.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Death

Moderate: Violence and Suicide

torismazarine's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Drug use, Suicide, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Dementia, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Animal death, Self harm, Ableism, Murder, and Death

Minor: War

There's a lot of talk about religion and faith, the characters argue a lot about it (I'm paraphrasing here, but at some point a charachter says religious people are stupid, others have very strong faith, and for some of them it's fluctuating throughout).

There's also monsters and aliens, that are described extensively. At different points in the story people drown, get frostbite and altitude sickness, which are ways to die not in the content warnings, although reading a book about climbing a mountain the latter two could be guessed.

misshelenjune's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I'm really not sure how to rate this book. I went into it looking for an adventure/mountain climbing novel with elements of weird, and found one of the most complex and challenging (on a scientific level) books I've ever read. I even wondered a few times if I just wasn't smart enough to be reading it, but I persisted.

The premise lulls you into a false sense of preparedness by being so simple. A mountain appears out of nowhere and a team of various scientists are gathered to investigate it - after only two members of the previous team come back alive but very changed. One of these survivors is the ex-wife of our protagonist - Harold - and the story is largely told in the form of letters written to his estranged niece, which have been discovered after his death and his surviving family is now trying to make sense of.

The book does not shy away from the realities of mountaineering in extreme weather conditions, but as well as that the team soon begin to realise that the fabric of reality works differently in this place. There are questions about time, about the place of humanity in the universe, and our scientific understanding of how our planet works and why. I found these questions fascinating, as well as the slow reveal of Harold's own past, and the tragedies therein. 

This story is far more sci-fi than horror, but there are deaths, injuries, and other moments of unease, with a pleasing Lovecraftian edge to the goings on. Like the characters you will find yourself questioning everyone and everything as the situation deteriorates and paranoia increases. It is not a story I think anyone could rush - but I think how slowly you'll engage with it depends on how well you can follow the ideas.

For all this - and all my admiration for it - I struggle to give this 4 stars. There is a reveal at about 84% that's so silly, and honestly felt so juvenile, I felt it took the wind out of the sails. I understand what the author was going for with it, but looking at those words on paper I burst out laughing instead of feeling horror, which is a huge shame. 

I feel this is a book that won't appeal to everyone - or possibly not many at all because of how heavy the science and thought experiments are - but I do think it's worth the effort. If you're looking for a challenge, this is it. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Child death

samster_reads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Death

ambert's review

adventurous dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book made me contemplate death and the afterlife in the exact same way The Iron Giant did as a kid. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Child death, Murder, Body horror, and Death

Moderate: Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Death

Minor: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Death of parent

mandolin77's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, Child death, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Violence, and Mental illness

kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I’m never reading a book with a mountain on the cover again. EVER

this is the second time a mountain mystery sci fi premise has led me instead to the most boring drag of a read. so much climbing detail and internal to an unbearable degree. 

worst Halloween read yet methinks. the world building was cool I guess, woulda been cooler if it didn’t come 70% through the book…

I wanted more on Neil, more on the caves, more on Naoko than being an Asian Pixie Dream Doctor there only to absorb and reflect the white main chars suffering… don’t even get me started on the adopted refugee child that lived only to be a traumatic experience for a white man. booooo tomatoes 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, and Violence

cc_shelflove's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I enjoyed this book. Strange things quickly began to happen as Harold climbed to the top of a mountain that appeared out of nowhere. Its ending was twisty, reminiscent of the Netflix series 1899. It’s hard to write a review without giving away spoilers… Read it if you like weird stuff, I guess. 😂

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicide, Gun violence, and Blood

Minor: War

alireads's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Child death, Gun violence, Body horror, Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement, Grief, Bullying, Mental illness, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Kidnapping, Suicide, and Religious bigotry

zosiablue's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Oh I liked this so much. A little A Wrinkle in Time, a little Contact, a little Christopher Pike. One of the coolest "why are we alive?" metaphors I've read in a while. Well done. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Child death, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Blood, Dementia, Suicide, and Forced institutionalization