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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
This was a cracking, atmospheric novel set in the Antarctic winter, with boatloads of suspense and an absolutely stunning (in a horrifying way) setting. While Kate North is not the most endearing of characters, I found her quite believable. For a while I was expecting a "and then there were none" type of situation, but that didn't happen. The only place I needed a suspension of disbelief was Kate knowing nothing about her predecessor's death—surely she had to have been briefed, or had the right to demand answers.
Anyway, Emma Haughton does a great job of setting up the space and the characters, and as unimaginable as it is to understand what that kind of deadly cold weather would feel like, you do get a sense of the imminent danger from the surroundings. I'll be looking out for more books from this author.
(Review copy from NetGalley)
Anyway, Emma Haughton does a great job of setting up the space and the characters, and as unimaginable as it is to understand what that kind of deadly cold weather would feel like, you do get a sense of the imminent danger from the surroundings. I'll be looking out for more books from this author.
(Review copy from NetGalley)
dark
mysterious
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fast-paced
adventurous
dark
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The Dark, by Emma Haughton, is a mystery set in Antarctica. After a personal trauma, Dr. Kate North decides to leave everything behind and take a post wintering over as the station physician. Not many researchers stay over the winter, through the 24-hour darkness and months without fresh supplies, but a few continue their work year-round. Kate’s ready for an extreme reset, where no one knows her past and where she can self-prescribe in peace.
Before arriving, Kate heard that the position is only open because the previous doctor died in an accident, but once she’s living in the research station, she begins to hear other things. Kate can’t seem to leave this alone, asking nosy questions and peeking around, and I felt a real conflict as she started to look into what could have happened. She’s a mess in her personal life, and maybe this project will distract her and pull her out of this? But then again, she’s a mess, so maybe she’s just going to make it all worse.
Full review on my book blog
Content Warnings
There is a body and an emergency surgery in The Dark, but it’s not gory at all.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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slow-paced
mysterious
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Thank you to the author, publishers Hodder & Stoughton and online book club The Pigeonhole for the chance to read this for free. This is an honest and voluntary review.
Trapped in an Antarctic ice station with no daylight for months, no hope of rescue, and a killer on the loose is a fantastic concept for a novel. The feeling of being trapped, of not knowing what is happening, who is doing it, or if there's any chance of survival gives this book a real head start for a compelling psychological thriller.
Opioid addicted emergency room doctor Kate has decided to escape her day-to-day life to embark on a completely new adventure, as the on-site doctor at an international ice station through the dark of winter. The previous station doctor, Jean-Luc, died in an accident no one wants to talk about, and the unit manager Sandrine seems to have issues with Kate from the start. Tensions in the winter team quickly reveal that some team members think there is more to jean-Luc's death than it first appears, and Kate gets drawn into the mystery.
This was a really easy to read book, although very hard to believe and longer than it needed to be. You have to embrace the ride and try not to question what's happening otherwise it all comes unstuck very quickly. Unfortunately I didn't find the characters compelling enough to overlook the weaknesses of the plotting, none of them are particularly nice people and Kate's unreliable narrator status as she pops the station's drug supplies like candy just makes her annoying rather than sympathetic.
The decision to give a number of team members similar names - Arne, Ark and Alex - is a necessary part of the plot, but just meant I kept mixing them up and forgetting what their role in the story and station life was. On top of that the patronising way the text drew attention to the language fumbles of the non-native English speakers made me very uncomfortable. All of the characters spoke English better than Kate spoke any other language, but she jumped on every time they fumbled an idiom or confused a word in a way that just added to my irritation with the character.
Fundamentally a great concept which didn't deliver due to poor characters and over the top plotting.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
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medium-paced
Dr Kate North arrives at the UN research station in Antarctica to take the place of the temporary medic. The previous long term doctor, Jean-Luc, died in an accident, and Kate is due to be in Antarctica for a year. She has her own secrets for wanting to be away from the rest of the world, but nothing could prepare her for finding out that Jean-Luc's death might not have been accident after all. Trapped in the inhospitable landscape with no means of escape, Kate must try and stay one step ahead of a dangerous killer.
I love books set in places like Antarctica so this was a must-read for me. It was largely enjoyable, although the main character made some silly decisions at times. The author really managed to get across the claustrophobic feel of being stuck on an isolated research station in almost total darkness. It was a thrilling read, even if I did work out the killer from almost the moment they were introduced into the story, it didn't spoil things.
Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Hodder & Stoughton, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
I love books set in places like Antarctica so this was a must-read for me. It was largely enjoyable, although the main character made some silly decisions at times. The author really managed to get across the claustrophobic feel of being stuck on an isolated research station in almost total darkness. It was a thrilling read, even if I did work out the killer from almost the moment they were introduced into the story, it didn't spoil things.
Thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Hodder & Stoughton, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
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medium-paced
mysterious
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Suicide, Murder
dark
mysterious
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slow-paced
I have to admit that it's been a while since I've read a thriller, especially a good one but this was pretty solid. I am probably slightly biased because I love a contained setting but once this book picked up I did enjoy it.
Some issues did annoy me. I understand it's a base and it's realistic but there were a lot of characters, some who were not relevant at all which made it hard to ascertain who's who for a large amount of the book. The focus also shifted about halfway, away from a few of the characters which made them seem unnecessary.
In addition to this, the other characters that you did know about were very bland at times. Some were pretty humanised but others I did not care about at all. And this included Kate.
I also had an issue with Kates addiction. Aside from professionally, there didn't seem to be any stakes or change in her or even very little wrong with her behaviour as an addict. I guess you could attribute her bad decisions which there were many of to addiction but that was not clear. It seemed more like a convenient plot device. I also found her pretty irritating, her decisions at times were questionable and she acknowledged it but then either did them again it made the decision.
Despite this, in the last 50 pages it did pick up and it was very much a who's who which I did enjoy. Overall it was very meh until the ending but a solid read.
Some issues did annoy me. I understand it's a base and it's realistic but there were a lot of characters, some who were not relevant at all which made it hard to ascertain who's who for a large amount of the book. The focus also shifted about halfway, away from a few of the characters which made them seem unnecessary.
In addition to this, the other characters that you did know about were very bland at times. Some were pretty humanised but others I did not care about at all. And this included Kate.
I also had an issue with Kates addiction. Aside from professionally, there didn't seem to be any stakes or change in her or even very little wrong with her behaviour as an addict. I guess you could attribute her bad decisions which there were many of to addiction but that was not clear. It seemed more like a convenient plot device. I also found her pretty irritating, her decisions at times were questionable and she acknowledged it but then either did them again it made the decision.
Despite this, in the last 50 pages it did pick up and it was very much a who's who which I did enjoy. Overall it was very meh until the ending but a solid read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Murder
Minor: Gun violence