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A review by maddypat
The Deep by Nick Cutter
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I was really excited to jump into The Deep - the premise of the book sounded really promising and like it had a high potential for some spookiness. I would say that, generally, the book delivered -- but it was just kind of meh.
Some things I liked:
- The pacing was good. I was pulled in quickly and never felt like any piece of it was dragging.
- I enjoyed how a few seemingly unimportant flashbacks in Luke's life seemed to suddenly fit together like puzzle pieces at the end
- The atmosphere was set really well. I was always aware of where they were, and the intensity of that place.
- There were a handful of times where I felt really tense reading it, like when Al and Luke are worming their way through the extremely tight chute .
Some things I didn't like:
- The language describing sensations sometimes felt kind of jarring and killed the flow of some passages
- A lot of "messages" felt really forced, a lot of telling without much showing, like when we learn at the end that Clayton had killed his and Luke's mom. Her abuse of Luke had been discussed a fair amount, and it could be assumed she did the same with Clayton, but it still felt out of place. The way that Luke handled this information was also weird. It felt like he was more upset about Clayton killing their mom than about their mom sexually and emotionally abusing him and Clayton.
- I really didn't like how Luke suddenly saw Al as a possible sexual partner like halfway through. It was only brought up a couple of times, but it just felt so out of place and weird. If I was in his position, there isn't a universe where I'd be thinking about sex.
- In general, the book felt kind of... forced? That isn't really the best word for it, but it's what I've got. For example, some dialogue sounded like it was meant to be quotable quips instead of actual people talking. There was also an inner monologue Luke had that just felt like someone read a Stephen King book and tried to replicate that feeling, but instead it just fell flat.
Overall, this book was alright. I think my personal preferences and general pickiness just made it less enjoyable than it would be for others!
Some things I liked:
- The pacing was good. I was pulled in quickly and never felt like any piece of it was dragging.
- I enjoyed how a few seemingly unimportant flashbacks in Luke's life seemed to suddenly fit together like puzzle pieces at the end
- The atmosphere was set really well. I was always aware of where they were, and the intensity of that place.
- There were a handful of times where I felt really tense reading it, like
Some things I didn't like:
- The language describing sensations sometimes felt kind of jarring and killed the flow of some passages
- A lot of "messages" felt really forced, a lot of telling without much showing, like when
- I really didn't like how Luke suddenly saw Al as a possible sexual partner like halfway through. It was only brought up a couple of times, but it just felt so out of place and weird. If I was in his position, there isn't a universe where I'd be thinking about sex.
- In general, the book felt kind of... forced? That isn't really the best word for it, but it's what I've got. For example, some dialogue sounded like it was meant to be quotable quips instead of actual people talking. There was also an inner monologue Luke had that just felt like someone read a Stephen King book and tried to replicate that feeling, but instead it just fell flat.
Overall, this book was alright. I think my personal preferences and general pickiness just made it less enjoyable than it would be for others!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Minor: Child abuse