Reviews with content warning for Murder - Ascension

a quick fun read. I enjoyed the sense of confusion and urgency, and loved the format of the narrative. it wasn't particularly scary or as tense as I was hoping, but still definitely enjoyable

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lizziaha's review against another edition

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3.5

Had to suspend my disbelief a bit to consider this epistolary. No one is writing letters like this, especially in life or death situations. The plot was entertaining enough and i appreciated the character relationships, but ended it thinking “what was the point?”
And yeah, the reveal was…a bit cheesy.

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ceredonia's review against another edition

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mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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torismazarine's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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misshelenjunereads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I'm really not sure how to rate this book. I went into it looking for an adventure/mountain climbing novel with elements of weird, and found one of the most complex and challenging (on a scientific level) books I've ever read. I even wondered a few times if I just wasn't smart enough to be reading it, but I persisted.

The premise lulls you into a false sense of preparedness by being so simple. A mountain appears out of nowhere and a team of various scientists are gathered to investigate it - after only two members of the previous team come back alive but very changed. One of these survivors is the ex-wife of our protagonist - Harold - and the story is largely told in the form of letters written to his estranged niece, which have been discovered after his death and his surviving family is now trying to make sense of.

The book does not shy away from the realities of mountaineering in extreme weather conditions, but as well as that the team soon begin to realise that the fabric of reality works differently in this place. There are questions about time, about the place of humanity in the universe, and our scientific understanding of how our planet works and why. I found these questions fascinating, as well as the slow reveal of Harold's own past, and the tragedies therein.

This story is far more sci-fi than horror, but there are deaths, injuries, and other moments of unease, with a pleasing Lovecraftian edge to the goings on. Like the characters you will find yourself questioning everyone and everything as the situation deteriorates and paranoia increases. It is not a story I think anyone could rush - but I think how slowly you'll engage with it depends on how well you can follow the ideas.

For all this - and all my admiration for it - I struggle to give this 4 stars. There is a reveal at about 84% that's so silly, and honestly felt so juvenile, I felt it took the wind out of the sails. I understand what the author was going for with it, but looking at those words on paper I burst out laughing instead of feeling horror, which is a huge shame.

I feel this is a book that won't appeal to everyone - or possibly not many at all because of how heavy the science and thought experiments are - but I do think it's worth the effort. If you're looking for a challenge, this is it.

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ambert's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book made me contemplate death and the afterlife in the exact same way The Iron Giant did as a kid.

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maddie_can_read's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Feel conflicted about the book.
First part grabbed my attention with the setting up of the mystery but I felt like the second half really dragged and the payoff wasn't as satisfying as the build-up made it seem like it would be.

I wish more time had been spent at the end of the novel explaining the aliens/ the seeds/ the leviathans/the death and afterlife/ why the last characters killed themselves etc

I probably would not have finished it if I hadn't been hooked by the mystery. Think there were a bit too many themes to do them all justice

(religion, grief, death/loss, regret, all the science stuff, mountain-climbing, people going mad )

. I liked the writing style and found it easy to read. Personally I didn't enjoy the extended descriptions of

people losing their minds descending into madness.

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pkc's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I r njoyed the plot here. So much going on, all of it resolved to some extent which I loved. Questions about humanity are explored using this metaphor and while there can never be answers, it was intriguing to ponder them within the setting. If you’re looking for a book with likeable protagonists, personally, I’d swerve this one. You may like Harold but I found him reasonably ineffectual and awful. That being said, I thought the plot was super inventive, adventurous and wild. The mountain as a character was intriguing and made for some epic set pieces

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