paperback_whiplash's reviews
311 reviews

adventurous emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

“Hunger, disease, war, warming- these threats loom over us like building storm clouds. But ninety-nine percent of humanity reads about our crumbling world in the morning headlines, then ignores it and gets on with their day.”

Wow - Blake Crouch spitting facts and calling us out.

Crouch asks the question - if we could Upgrade humans to have superior intelligence, would the world be a better place?

My favourite book written by him so far. Action-packed, easy to follow Sci-Fi and interesting characters.

From Below by Darcy Coates

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

"From Below" follows two timelines. 60 years ago on the last voyage of SS Arcadia and the present-day scuba diving crew filming the documentary of the shipwreck. Both timelines are equally captivating and eerie.

The book was a little slow in the middle and could have been a bit shorter. One of the divers made a horrible (so, so incredibly stupid) decision towards the end that made me rooting for their death. It was so unnecessary and made the ending drag. It felt like the climax could have been earlier in the previous scuba diving trip. There a multiple dives down to the wreck and it felt like one too many.

It did itch that scratch of haunted ghost ship vibes that are sometimes hard to find.
3.25

Content Warnings