Rating: 
Summary: Things under the mountain
Review: In her second novel Kiernan seems to be getting back to her roots, drawing on her background as a paleontologist and her Southerness to create a tale of terror that rivals anything recently produced by the Big Four (King, Koontz, Rice, and Barker). Unlike those more conventional authors, though, Kiernan combines her knack for the uncanny with a lyrical style (a note from the author on the indicia page tells us "This book is best read aloud" and it's the truth) that makes for an alost cinematic immediacy. Reading Kiernan's work is like watching a film made of words and every word is meant to be savored, not merely to move the story forward. She even manages to make Birmingham, Alabama interesting! All in all, Threshold is one of the finest and most honest things I've read in a long time and I can't wait for Caitlin Kiernan's next novel.
Rating:
Summary: Another Kiernan Triumph
Review: It's always good to see that an author I adore hasn't lost his or her touch. Threshold is proof that Caitlin Kiernan is only getting better, honing her already-considerable talents to a fine edge. I absolutely loved Silk and her short fiction, but Threshold goes one or two steps further in almost every respect. The characters are more sharply drawn, the prose is more accomplished, and the plotting is impeccable. Not to mention that this is a very, very scary book! This time out, Kiernan draws on her background as a paleontologist to weave a tale of timeless horrors that might lurk at the edges of what we believe to be a comprehensible universe, all the while keeping her characters front and center. This is not a book about monsters. It's a book about the effect that monsters might have upon the people who come into contact with them. If you still think Anne Rice, Stephen King, or Clive Barker are the masters of horror, you haven't read Caitlin Kiernan.
Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Darkness
Review: I really adored Caitlin Kiernan's novel THRESHOLD. From her lyrical prose to her perfect characterization to her grasp of what divides a great tale of terror from a silly exercise in gore and violence, Kiernan proves herself an author worthy of our attention. Her works ranks with the best in fantasy, from Bradbury and Lovecraft, to King and Barker, and I urge you to give her a try.
Rating:
Summary: My Favorite Author
Review: THRESHOLD proves again that Caitlin R. Kiernan is the most talented young writer of horror today. This book is a masterful reworking of the Beowulf tale, as well as a true weird tale in the tradition of Lovecraft and Blackwood, but updated for contemporary audiences. This novel has some of the most genuinely terrifying scenes I've read in years.
Rating:
Summary: Halloween came late this year
Review: This autumn has given us two spectacular horror novels. First Stephen King and Peter Straub's BLACK HOUSE and now, THRESHOLD by Caitlin R. Kiernan. As a devotee to both the genre and to Miss Kiernan's work (and to literature in general), I recommend THRESHOLD to anyone looking for a novel that's both frightening and intelligent. As she did in her first novel, SILK, Kiernan combines a stunning prose style with keen characterization, for a tale of creepy intensity. Unlike SILK, however, which was primarily concerned with inner demons, THRESHOLD turns its gaze outward and deals with horrors of a more cosmic scale. This novel will keep you turning pages and leave you wanting more.
Rating: 
Summary: incomplete novel
Review: Aside from the flowery and poetic prose this story can be summed up in one word,,,incomplete? It's only 256 pages but I got to page 200 feeling like I have another 2 or 3 hundred more pages left to read to complete the story. The storyline really doesn't have a climax it just develops to a "nothing" end. If this was the first 1/4 of a novel I would think that it's a excellent beginning to a sci-fi thriller. But it's not. The story begins with the main character and two of her friends experiencing something horrific in a tunnel. You never really find out what that is but none the less it leads up to a mystery of old archeoligical findings and some kind of supernatural connection to all of the main characters? 200 pages later you find out that there's some "MONSTERS" around???? With only 56 pages left you read about how they Kill the "MONSTERS". That's it!!!!I have to admit I did like the characters in the book and I thought the author did a good job of developing realistic characters with humanistic qualities, but they never really are aloud to do anything in this story. They aren't really involved at all with the story line because the story line is too incomplete for the characters to be effectively changed . The good part of this book is that it's only 256 pages.
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful book
Review: Not your usual style of horror, but, all the better a tale for that.
Filled with such wonderful characters, that you'll still think of them long after you've finished the novel.
Rating:
Summary: A Triumph for Kiernan
Review: If you enjoy anything that offers no resolution and leaves you to your own imagination to decide what's going on, you'll love this book. Seriously. This is a LARGE step for Kiernan since Silk. Silk was merely a prelude to the glory this writer was going to achieve. Even if you're not a fan of Kiernan's early work, Threshold will change your mind forever. Threshold is a fine blend of Kiernan's own imagination as well as her schooling in palentology. You'll never look at trilobite fossils or mine shafts in the same light ever again. In short, question everything.
Rating:
Summary: Kiernan triumphant
Review: In just five short years, Caitlin R. Kiernan has released a staggering amount of superb work, from both major NYC publishers and small press alike. She has published two critically-acclaimed, award winning novels (THRESHOLD being the latter of the two), two stunning collections of short fiction, a collaborative collection with Poppy Z. Brite, several chapbooks, and scores of marvelous comics from the DC/Vertigo imprint. She's recieved the Barnes and Noble Maiden Voyage Award (for SILK) and is a three-time recipient of the International Horror Guild Award (for SILK, THRESHOLD, and her short story "Onion"), and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, the British Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoker Award. She appears regularly in "Best of" anthologies. She has been hailed by such luminaries as Neil Gaiman, Clive Barker, Peter Straub, and Gahan Wilson. All in all, Kiernan is surely one of the horror genres shining stars. THRESHOLD is the latest notch in her literary belt. Exploring themes that dark fiction has largely abandoned for vampires and serial killers, this delicious novel of ancient secrets unfortunately uncovered and unfathomable cosmic mystery harks back to the works of Algernon Blackwood, H.P. Lovecraft, Arthur Machen, and Lord Dunsany. It is one of the few contemporary masterpieces of weird fiction. But rather than burden the book with anachronistic protagonists, ala Lovecraft, Kiernan's novel (as with SILk before it) is set firmly in the here and now, and her characters are drawn as expertly as those of any living horror author. A mismatched bunch, the people trapped within the events of THRESHOLD must overcome their own weaknesses and failures in the face of terrible things. Moreover, Kiernan's astounding voice - think equal parts Ray Bradbury, William Faulkner, and Kathe Koja - sets her apart as one of the few genre writers today with a style worth mentioning. Read THRESHOLD and discover the dreadful secrets of the water works tunnel, and the amazing talent of Caitlin R. Kiernan.
Rating:
Summary: 'Beowulf' meets 'Alice in Wonderland'
Review: What an amazing book! The writing is exquisite and powerful, and often poetic. The style is a little quirky -- just enough to make things interesting. The tie-ins and motifs work beautifully. The end sent chills down my spine. The characters are intense. There's enough background on them so you know what sort of people have been drawn into this horror. The story unfolds slowly; it's not a fast read. But the characters and writing are so incredible, you don't want it to be a fast read! I've read many thriller/horror stories, but this one beats them all in terms of the sheer terror it instills in the reader. And it's much more than just a horror story. Entralling and mesmerizing, I plan to read THRESHOLD again soon, as well as Ms. Kiernan's other books.
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