Rating: 
Summary: It¿s good but¿hhhmmagm!
Review: This book is fantastic, even though there's so much wrong with it. I want to hate it, but it's just too good for that, and I want to love it, but those failings prevent that from happening. There are major lapses in temporality and pace - it is a quarter of the book before you really care about anyone, and the agonisingly slow build-up of the first hundred pages, hinting at the terrible possibility of an underground civilisation populated by monsters, is offset by the five pages in which suddenly the world discovers and everything changes, almost like Long got bored of the introduction and decided to finish it quick. It then leaps to 'three years later', bypassing a hell of a lot of background, and hits the ground running, so before you get a handle on things, you're thrust into the thick of it. There are so many facets of plot that before long you forget who people are and what motivates them, and there are some terrible inconsistencies in the writing - in the first chapter, for example, a group divides in two and agrees to meet up in an hour's time - one guy comes back in 'less than an hour', shines his torch around a chamber, then goes to look for the others and finds a chemical candle activated 'more than three hours [ago], less than six', and suddenly 'he had been hunting [them] for over nine hours now', which just makes no sense whatsoever. There are also a number of questions posed that never get answered, implausible moments (C.C. Cooper's annoyingly-unsupportive wife, a nun who doesn't believe in Satan but condones sex-before-marriage, the ability to stare at the horizon over an underground ocean when, let's face it, it's going to be kind of dark down there, and a helicopter-pilot who seems much more adept as an infantryman than most) and, true to form, many sections are rushed and rounded-up far too quickly to satisfy. So those are the negatives.The positives are that Long manages to create an engrossing story once the book reaches its second section, 'The Mission', by which time you care deeply about two of the characters and are fascinated by the vividly-painted and populated subterranean world into which they descend. Indeed, he manages to evoke comparisons with H.P.Lovecraft's descent into the hellish chambers of 'At The Mountains of Madness', and the tension and claustrophobia of the 'subplanet' is expertly balanced against the growing character dynamics of the relationship between Ike and Ali. He manages to inspire in us the same curiosity about fellow traveller Ike and the tunnelled world as felt by the characters, and as such your empathetic immersion into the book is masterful. In conclusion, 'Descent' is an inspired yet flawed read, and though I wouldn't normally forgive such shortcomings in a novel, there's something about this one which allows me to break a rule of a lifetime. I would recommend this to anyone into sci-fi, horror, adventure, thrillers, even fantasy, because it blends aspects of all of them into its narration, and offers some interesting asides about the nature of civilisation, humanity and religion. Even if the poor writing does put you off, I would bet that few people can find it in themselves to truly hold that against this novel, and so four stars, because though I can't love it, I can't hate it either.
Rating: 
Summary: sos - to jeff long or the publisher of the descent
Review: This is some kind of S.O.S. message. I'm trying to reach the publishers by this mail. I'm living in germany, I'm a writer and I really think THE DESCENT is a fine book. I read it in english and waited for it to be translated, so that my friend could read it too. Finally the translation was made and that's why I'm writing. They made a mess out of Jeffs Longs's novel. They shortened it, taking out passages to fit the novel in a kind of suspense-horror-novel-without-depth. It's a shame. And if there is someone out there who's checking the licenses, please do something and make some trouble for the german publisher. No writer has do endure this stripping. If you need more informations what they cut out and what they changed contact me under my e-mail-adress.
Rating:
Summary: sos - to jeff long or the publisher of the descent
Review: I'm living in germany, I'm a writer and I really thinkTHE DE-SCENT is a fine book. I read it in english and waited for it tobe translated, so that my friend could read it too. Finally thetranslation was made and that's why I'm writing. They made amess out of Jeffs Longs's novel. They shortened it, taking outpassages to fit the novel in a kind ofsuspense-horror-novel-without-depth. It's a shame.. No writer hasdo endure this stripping....
Rating: 
Summary: Almost well-done
Review: Jeff Long could have ascended to great author status with this intelligent, well-designed story of a subterranean world that incorporates all of our worst fears of Hell. He didn't, however, because of a lack of attention to details. Not only our heroes, but all characters in the book seem to be the ideal manifestations of the dreams of a liberal baby-boomer. From our Himalayan mountain climber guide (is this Jeff Long's idea of himself?) to the well-spoken, dignified congresswoman; through the military types that never seem to know anything, to the anti-Catholic sentiment that lines the entire story; it is obvious that there is a great book here if one can just make it through all of the rhetoric. Additionally, most of the names of the characters portray obvious stereotypes. Mustafah, Ali, Santos, and just about every member of the scholarly Beowulf Circle illustrate this point. In short, Jeff Long simply doesn't do himself justice as a writer by short-changing a great plot.
Rating:
Summary: A captive-eating book!
Review: This book will not only hold your attention, but leave you with plenty to think about months after you finish it. The ending is a little disappointing, but the story makes up for it. I read a copy from the library and liked it so much I just had to buy it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Subject Matter - Handled in a Superior Manner.
Review: The first chapter reaches out and grabs hold like nothing I've read before! If one accepts the main premise of the work - the Hadals - the rest of the book works extremely well. The future that is drawn for us is both plausable and interesting. Sort of a Blade Runner Journeys to the Center of the Earth Beneath the Planet of the Apes kinda thing. As with most novels - there are some pitfalls and pacing issues, but Mr. Long for the most part, handles his subject matter with enough eloquence to keep the reader locked-in. Excellent concept for a novel - I wish I had thought of it myself. If you are the least bit interested in the dustjacket description of the plot - read this book!
Rating:
Summary: The Descent
Review: I read this book several months ago and I'm still thinking about it. I'm afraid to go into the basement, or into dark places because I keep visualizing those frightening Hadals. I have read every book by King, Koonz, Rice, and many others, but none scared me as much as this. My only critique would be that Jeff Long created so many story tangents that as a reader we were left wondering what ever happened to those particular incidents. I hope he writes a sequel.
Rating:
Summary: The first three chapters are great
Review: I loved the first three chapters but then something happened and the story fell into it's own version of The Descent. It is a worthwhile read but disappointed me after such a wonderful start
Rating:
Summary: Not Your Run-of-the-Mill "Hell is Real" Novel
Review: "The Descent" was not exactly what I expected. Whichis a good thing - I hate figuring it all out before the end andwondering why the heck I spent [good money] on a book I could haveplotted myself. Based on the book jacket and comments by otherreaders, I expected a morality play in an "Us vs. Them"wrapper. I expected to learn that, for all their hideous appearance,the underground dwellers, called Hadals, were not so bad and that manwas the true beast. Well, I didn't. What I found instead was arollicking adventure filled with monsters, villains (both Hadal andhuman), and terrific suspense. Surprisingly, I also found a prettyinteresting romance between a nun travelling the underworld and thedisfigured former prisoner who guides her and her party through thedepths. The story is ambitious: humans finally become aware of thetribes of Hadals who have lived beneath our feet for millenia. To beexpected, our response to this knowledge is to hunt the hadals toextinction and colonize the underworld. Before this goal can beaccomplished, we first send an exploration team to map the interiorworld. Meanwhile, a team of scientists and philosophers hunt thecritter known to us as "Satan", in the hope that we cansomehow bridge the species gap. The ultimate decimation of theexploration team is inevitable and consumes a good portion of thebook, but at no time do you get the impression that Long is slackingin his storytelling. Something interesting is always going on and weare pulled mesmerically through the tale. The love affair thateventually develops between Ike, the guide who had been held as aHadal prisoner for decades, and Ali, a nun sent to spy on theexplorers' progress, develops slowly and carefully and eventuallymakes sense. If I were forced to point out a negative, it would beonly that Long had so many ideas about the Hadals that he was neverreally clear on what they were. They are variously described asbatlike, simian or amphibious. I know enough about evolution to knowthat so many varieties couldn't have come from a common ancestor, soit distracted me from the rest of the tale. But that's minor. It'snitpicking. And it doesn't give Jeff Long the praise he deserves forthis wonderful novel.
Rating:
Summary: I reccommend this book to anyone who asks for good adventure
Review: The ride was incredible, the characters involving, and the ideas HUGE! "The Descent" is on my list of favorite books because it pulled me in, wrapped me up and dragged me kicking and screaming down into the dark where the monsters lurk. If it hadn't been for the screaming of my body for food and other needs I wouldn't have put this book down at all! People that I know, who have read "The Descent", talk about what should be covered in the sequel and hope that Mr Long is given the chance to enthrall us again.
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