The Descent

Rating:
Summary: A Whole New World of Terror
Review: Superb! Charting new territory beneath of skin of our planet, Longs leads us into a fully-realized world peopled with literally fabulous creatures. Are they devils from Hell or just another twist of humanity? Is it evolution or devolution? One thing for sure...it is a scary, claustrophobic trip.

Rating:
Summary: Original, different, compelling
Review: The Descent is a page-turner in every sense of the term--I read it in one or two sittings. An incredible concept and a terrific execution. Fantastic reading for anyone who likes their Stephen King with a dash of Krakauer and Dante.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Review: After reading about a quarter of this novel in 1 sitting I felt compelled to place my thoughts here as well. This book more than any I've picked up this year had me hooked from page 1 and only gets better the further you travel. I agree with the other comments:Great characters, great story, spooky as hell. Something for every fan of adventure, mystery and action. This is exactly the type of novel that could quickly become a bestseller and I couldn't be happier for Mr.Long. I'm looking forward to delving into his other works as soon as possible.

Rating:
Summary: Full of inaccuracies
Review: The author, who utilizes the US Armed Forces as a both a backdrop and a prime mover in his novel, has done little to no research in that area, and it shows. If the reader can pardon his mistakes, it is a fair adventure yarn. Better choices are available.

Rating:
Summary: One of the year's best adventures...
Review: High-tech adventure, warfare, mystery, lost civilizations, gruesome horror, the list goes on and on...An incredible read.

Rating:
Summary: Best in Years!
Review: Forget Michael Crichton and Stephen King: think Conrad, Borges, Pinchon, Asimov. Character, plot, symbol, and allegory fold together, and sift through cinematic prose, to be lithified by the weight of the idea of this story into one rock of a book. Cult classic? Too big for one movie? See for yourself. Great read!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: This is a top-notch, very smart horror/adventure/thriller novel. I can't remember the last time I devoured a book so quickly or felt so compelled to keep reading. It's scary, fun and altogether engaging.

Rating:
Summary: Absolute page turner!
Review: Completely hooked from page one. Recommend that this book be read in a dark room with a flashlight!

Rating:
Summary: To Hell and back
Review: The Descent. This could have been a classic. Judging by the premise, that is. It seems Hell is real. And it's filled with demonic minions. All beneath your feet. For underneath the surface of the planet, far underneath the surface, lay a vast network of tunnels inhabited by a mysterious, and ancient, race. So old, in fact, that they pre-date any known human civilization. And it seems that they are the root of man's concept of an underworld repository of condemned souls. In other words, Hell. For these beings, known as Hadals, are horned and utterly sadistic. They thrive on torture. Or do they? Big Business and Government are determined to find out. What they discover is not so much a lost race of killers, but an historical and geological treasure trove. Unfortunately, this is a central weakness of the novel: for Long quickly despinses with the idea that the underground dwellers are hellish beasts. They are, merely, primitive. And so goes the fear factor. Indeed, it was thought that their leader was behind the concept of Satan. But as it turns out, the Devil is just another cult leader. Jeff Long could have really created a nightmare. But instead of Stephen King, we get Jules Verne. And not a very good one. First off, none of the characters are likable. And worse, everything they say is dull. There are several strange encounters with the Hadals thrown through out the book, but these encounters have a very jarring effective on the narrative. Long also has a rather odd literary detachment with his technological descriptions, as if he were determined not to write science fiction. Many important questions are never answered, lost in the [extremely] quick exposition of the books opening. It was clear that Jeff Long wanted to blend genres: Horror, sci-fi, thriller, but simply lacked the talent to pull it off. What he created was a tale that has interesting moments, but came across as a jumbled mess.

Rating:
Summary: The most scary intro I ever read
Review: The most scary intro I ever read.