unlivinh 's review for:

The Deep by Nick Cutter

4.0

dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This book did a phenomenal job of instilling a sense of dread in the reader. I didn’t think it was possible for a book to make me feel claustrophobic, but The Deep did so. It was a great read and has a lot of potential for a reread. My only gripe is that female characters were not fully developed and did not get the same complexity and writing quality as the male characters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror

Moderate: Fatphobia, Terminal illness

Minor: Eating disorder, Incest, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Pandemic/Epidemic

the incest/child sexual abuse comes from a scene towards the end of the book when one of the characters remembers their mother’s abuse towards them. It is not explicit nor is it penetrative sex, the character’s mother forces him to hug her while she’s naked, and it is implied that she knows it makes him uncomfortable.