Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Deeper delivers - Sensational sequel to Tunnels, 7 Jun 2008
This sequel finds 14 year old Will Burrows, his younger brother Cal and friend Chester journey further underground into The Deeps; a place where those banished from the Colony are not expected to survive. They try to find Will's stepfather Dr Burrows, who wanders alone compiling a journal of it's hidden depths and seeking clues to a lost civilisation - quite oblivious to any danger, even when a large arachnid takes a liking to him!
The boys struggle with the many adversities they face, in a world of everlasting darkness, exhausting heat, prehistoric creatures, deadly caves and vast expanses of desert, lava tubes and sea - to name but a few! They are befriended by renegades Blake and Elliott (girl), who are resilient and inventive in surviving the dangerous and difficult conditions. However, when they find that a small army of Styx is closing in on them, pursuing them day and night, they soon realise that it is `Will' who they are hunting - but why and by whom takes them by surprise.
In The Deeps the Styx have been devising a weapon that will cleanse the world of the sinners who live above ground (Topsoilers - us!), enabling them to return to the surface and regain what they see is rightfully theirs. Will eventually comes face to face with his adoptive sister Rebecca and realises that she is at the heart of the plan, but - she is not alone!!
I would say this sequel is suited to ages 11+ (fluent readers). I see it appealing to children, teens and adults who enjoy a fast paced, action-packed `dark' adventure, nail biting suspense and a few surprises along the way - some more grisly than others! Deeper gets off to a flying start and retains it's momentum with three contrasting stories of Will, Sarah Jerome and Dr Burrows. After the frantic journeys to exotic places in the far reaches of the Deeps, I was ready for the dramatic finale at The Pore. A thrilling end, not without death and sorrow (will say no more!), with also a flavour of what may follow.
The characters are believable and compelling, pushed to extremes their insecurities are heightened and their courage and friendship tested. I particularly enjoyed the stories of Sarah and Cal, who both faced such diverse emotions. Sarah with her strength and survival instincts, but what a contrast when she opens up about losing her baby - a mother and a heroine for me. The early exuberance of Cal was soon eroded by his time in The Deeps, despite Will's best efforts to protect his young brother, and I found myself wanting to rescue him from the physical and emotional pain he endured.
The fluent and descriptive writing made this menacing and oppressive subterranean world below the streets of London, come alive for me. The attention to detail and vivid imagery so meticulously formed in Tunnels has paid off, making this sequel a sensational and rewarding read.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bring on free fall!!!, 6 Jul 2008
Just finished this book and it gripped me completely!! I can't wait for the next book a real good read!!!
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11 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Better than Tunnels, 13 May 2008
Let's get to the point from the off: Deeper is better than Tunnels. I guess the next question is: how is it better?
First up there is the pacing. Deeper begins where Tunnels left off, with unlikely protagonist Will Burrows still on the trail of his lost, curator father, and finding his friend Chester on board the train that is transferring him to the subterranean hell-hole that is The Deeps. The authors have pulled out the stops in grabbing - and maintaining - the reader's interest; something sorely lacking in the first book.
Secondly there is more depth given to some of the main characters, the relationship between Will and Chester moves from the one dimensional, making the reader care a little more for these two guys. Will's estranged birth-mother is also given some airtime; her personality - feral - based upon her fugitive lifestyle as she keeps one step ahead of the relentless Styx.
To discuss plotline so soon after release would not be fair on those who have not had opportunity to read the tome. Lest to say that I found it an entertaining, albeit mirthless, affair.
So why three stars? Well, for this reader, some issues remain. The narrative remains clunky in places and it is becoming increasingly clear that one of the authors is adept and the other, quite possibly, isn't. The book also comes in at 675 pages and is still in need of a good edit. It has the `well proof-read, but poor copy edited' feel of a self-published book, and the publisher - not the authors - must take responsibility for this.
Gordon's and William's subterranean opus continues. No-one doubts that the world they are creating is inventive and, in this post-Potter hiatus, refreshingly different. I will stay with these guys in the hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel - heck, I'm intrigued enough.
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