The Black
By Paul E. Cooley
I sometimes get in the mood for a B movie but rather have a book version. The trouble with books is some are really good and really scary. But this worked for me even though it was suspenseful, good plot, unique creatures, interesting characters. I would say it wasn't a B movie but an A- ! Enjoyed it enough to get the next book.
Great narration! ( )

Great thriller

Very edge of the seat story.
Didn't want to put down once started.
Highly recommended for pretty much anyone.
Fascinating ( )

I like that this was released in podcast form. The story was OK. The narration sorta took me out of it at times. ( )

First, the negatives, just to get them out of the way.

The characters are bland and unlikable. They all feel like cookie cutter stereotypes; with no real personality. The hard working immigrant foreman. The money driven businessman. The antisocial IT guy. The beautiful but nerdy female lead. And so on. It actually made it a bit difficult to follow the story at times, as you'd confuse characters with one another.

Enough about the negatives though, let's focus on the positives.

The author did an amazing job of setting the atmosphere. You could feel the claustrophobic emptiness of the ocean whenever he did a deep water scene. The stark terror of the characters when they were terrified. The ragged determination of the survivors to defeat the horror and survive.

And the monster? He took Lovecraftian horror in an entirely new direction. I absolutely loved it, and want to see a movie made out of this book. ( )

If you've ever felt like your survival horror novel wasn't educational enough, let me introduce you to The Black which gives a crash course on oil rig operations during the first half of the novel. Whilst some people have said they found this part dry and boring I didn't, rather I felt it gave a good background for the circumstances that lead to the later events - that certain unexplained anomalies were spotted and despite the lip service given to safety when it came down to it the company was willing to put money first in front of safety because the oil they found looked so valuable.

As the novel progresses the story heats up and things start to unravel for the crew on the oil rig and disaster strikes in the form of a nightmarish piece of cryptozoology from the past emerges from the ocean floor and begins to reek havoc after they accidentally disturb it and bring it to the surface.

A vivid and enjoyable survival horror novel. ( )