From the New York Times bestseller and author of Netflix’s The Silence comes a terrifying horror novel set in a melting Arctic landscape. Something deadly has lain dormant for thousands of years, but now the permafrost is giving up its secrets…
Estranged friends Dean and Bethan meet after five years apart when they are drawn to a network of caves on a remote Arctic island. Bethan and her friends are environmental activists, determined to protect the land. But Dean’s group’s exploitation of rare earth minerals deep in the caves unleashes an horrific contagion that has rested frozen and undisturbed for many millennia. Fleeing the terrors emerging from the caves, Dean and Bethan and their rival teams undertake a perilous journey on foot across an unpredictable and volatile landscape. The ex-friends must learn to work together again if they’re to survive… and more importantly, stop the horror from spreading to the wider world.
A propulsive horror thriller––fast-moving, frightening, and shockingly relevant—this adventure will grip you until the final terrifying page.
Dark bleatings my fellow book lovers! It’s Christmas in less than a week and I am ecstatic. I LOVE December. As I type this, I’m sat in view of my beautiful new 8ft Christmas tree, basking in the lights and snowy decorations. And speaking of snowy, Tim Lebbon’s new upcoming novel made me feel chilly! It’s due for release on 6th Feb 2024, and – spoiler alert for whether or not this is a rave review – I highly recommend pre-ordering it.
The opening chapter scared the crap out of me. I was reading it in the middle of the night, as is my habit, which admittedly added to the horror a little bit. We start with a group illegally caving in uncharted territory, but they find something totally f***y. The scene depicted chilled me to the bone, the same way that the opening chapter of Adam Nevill’s The Reddening did. I won’t spoil the book but let me just say this…. a tableaux of bodies.
I’m going to avoid discussing the plot much for fear of my excitement pushing me into spoiler territory, but to give an idea of the kind of novel this is, I’d describe it as something akin to a merging of elements from The Thing, The Last of Us, and The Strain. But in a 30 Days of Night setting. And also while being a great original piece of work.
Suffice to say, the story had me hooked and I found the pacing perfect. I was giddy with glee towards the end – I had a hope for how everything would go and it did not disappoint.
My favourite thing about this book, I think, is how excellently Lebbon not only describes, but uses, the landscapes and terrains. I’ve never been in a place like this setting, nor have I any experience with what the characters are doing. However, it’s described so well that I could clearly plant myself right there, with total comprehension. I was wrapped in a blanket for the whole book – he’s excellent with his use of language and knows how to translate not just an image but a feeling, including temperature, apparently! As well as painting a perfect picture, the terrain works against the characters in a way that makes it seem like an extra antagonist – it’s almost personified in its ability to trip up, confuse, and endanger them.
In short, it’s an absolute belter of a horror novel.
You know, it’s become basically impossible for me to pick a favourite Tim Lebbon novel. The more I read, the harder it is to put his books in any sort of ranking order. Some writers’ work just clicks for you as a reader, doesn’t it? I was thrilled to receive an advance copy of Among the Living, and read it in one sitting. I stayed up until almost 8am reading it. Truth be told, I was pretty effed up the next day when I had to go out for shopping and appointments, but I didn’t care because my mind was still with the ending. Man, what an ending.
I’d imagine Among the Living will appeal to many of you horror fans, and it’s one of my most highly recommended books of this year (even though it’s technically out next year). If you’d like to pre-order your copy or check out the author, there are links below for you:
Happy Goat Horror 
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