Genre: Psychological Thriller, Horror
Published: The Unnamed Press, February 2025 My Rating: 3/5 stars
Three junior archeologists and their gloryhound advisor arrive at a remote cave in the heart of the Siberian wilderness to carry out the first extensive Western dig on Russian soil since the execution of the Czar. When one of their first digs immediately produces an ancient bone-needle, hinting at prehistoric civilization in the area, curiosity, tempers and greed are sparked within the different group members. As tensions rise among them, there’s more to worry over than just the hazards of an unexplored cave system. There are dangers both human and natural around them, and maybe something that falls somewhere in between…
What I liked:
It took me a while to get a feeling of what to expect from The Sleeping Land. Was I in for a creature-feature-horror, a psychological thriller, a man-vs-nature survival story, or something else entirely? In the end, I’d describe it as more of a psychological thriller, with a bit of a horror twist, which suited the story perfectly.
Highlights include its isolated wilderness setting and slowly building tension. There’s a scene that perfectly encapsulates this, in which one of the characters attempts to navigate a narrow cave-passage. You can feel the claustrophobic terror of the cave walls coming in, as well as an added layer of interpersonal mistrust, as she isn’t quite sure if she can fully trust her climbing-partner, on whom her life fully depends during the descent.
Although the tension is more “gradual” than in-your-face, the book still keeps a tight pacing. I started reading it during a 3-hour flight, and had finished the book before we even touched down.
What I didn’t like:
The characters and their development keep the story from being a full 4- or 5-star read for me. Our main cast of 4 men and 1 woman have quite a bit of history, which we don’t actually get to see on page. Because of that, it’s hard to get a true feeling for them individually, or the depth of their relationships, which becomes a problem when much of the tension in the mid-part hinges upon that. Without that background, some of it feels shallow. More than once I was a bit annoyed having to read about the characters personal drama (mainly about the way most of the men seemed to have slept with the single, pretty woman among them at one point or another), instead of the actual adventure and discovery they were there for.
Then there’s the final twist; what they find in the caves… It’ll be a hit or miss for people. I’m glad the story didn’t go full creature-feature, but the twist we got is one that I often find unbelievable. So too here. (view spoiler)
With a bit more time in the oven for character-development (perhaps some flash-backs in which we would’ve gotten tot see them interact before the dig more), this could’ve been a standout novel. As it stands, it was a good time that I don’t regret and would recommend for fans of archeological-/wilderness-themed thrillers.
Many thanks to The Unnamed Press and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
You can find this book here on Goodreads.
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