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Descent
 
 

Descent (Paperback)

by Jeff Long (Author) "In the beginning was the word ..." (more)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (221 customer reviews)
Price: CDN$ 8.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over CDN$ 39. Details
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From Amazon.com

In a high Himalayan cave, among the death pits of Bosnia, in a newly excavated Java temple, Long's characters find out to their terror that humanity is not alone--that, as we have always really known, horned and vicious humanoids lurk in vast caverns beneath our feet. This audacious remaking of the old hollow-earth plot takes us, in no short order, to the new world regime that follows the genocidal harrowing of Hell by heavily armed, high-tech American forces. An ambitious tycoon sends an expedition of scientists, including a beautiful nun linguist and a hideously tattooed commando former prisoner of Hell, ever deeper into the unknown, among surviving, savage, horned tribes and the vast citadels of the civilizations that fell beneath the earth before ours arose. A conspiracy of scholars pursues the identity of the being known as Satan, coming up with unpalatable truths about the origins of human culture and the identity of the Turin Shroud, and are picked off one by bloody one. Long rehabilitates, madly, the novel of adventures among lost peoples--occasional clumsiness and promises of paranoid revelations on which he cannot entirely deliver fail to diminish the real achievement here; this feels like a story we have always known and dreaded. --Roz Kaveney, Amazon.co.uk --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

The premise of this millennial thriller is as audacious as it is problematic: "if there can be a historical Christ," one character hypothesizes, "why not a historic Satan?" Demystification of the ultimate Bad Guy is no easy feat, but Long (Angels of Light) brings it off, if just barely, in a dizzying synthesis of supernatural horror, lost-race fantasy and military SF. From the experiences of a varied cast of charactersAincluding Sister Ali, a Catholic nun serving in South Africa, and Elias Branch, a major with NATO forces in BosniaAa 21st-century think tank calling itself the Beowulf Circle distills a startling theory: The biblical Satan and his devils in Hell are mythic renderings of Homo hadalis, grotesquely malformed offshoots of Homo sapiens who for centuries have surfaced from underground hideouts to prey on human beings. With the help of Ike Crockett, an escapee from 10 years of "hadal" captivity, Beowulf infiltrates the Helios Corporation's mission to explore caverns honeycombing Earth's interior. Once beneath the Mariana Trench, Beowulf discovers that Helios intends to forcefully annex the world inside the earth's crust to further its business ambitions. Meanwhile, topside, Beowulf's theologians and metaphysicians surmise that the elusive "Satan" has evolved a human form to pass secretly among mankind. Like the subterranean trail blazed by its adventurers, the narrative twists, turns, dead-ends and backtracks. Inventive scenes of underground wonders alternate with talky stretches of scientific discourse and mawkish moments of romance between Ike and Ali. Though its devils prove disappointingly to be made in the image of humans, Long's novel brims with energy, ideas and excitement. 150,000 first printing; major ad/promo; film rights sold to Warner Bros. (July)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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In the beginning was the word. Read the first page
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Descent
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Descent 4.1 out of 5 stars (221)
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Customer Reviews

221 Reviews
5 star:
 (116)
4 star:
 (43)
3 star:
 (32)
2 star:
 (19)
1 star:
 (11)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (221 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most helpful customer reviews

 
5.0 out of 5 stars THIS BOOK HAS NO EQUAL !!!, Jun 2 2005
By Matt Gawelczyk (Calgary, Canada) - See all my reviews
What a amazing and indepth look at what is so crucial in all the religions and cultures around the world. The Hell depicted in The Descent, is as real as in the Bible or any other sacred book.
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5.0 out of 5 stars The most scary intro I ever read, Jun 30 2004
By Magnus Burman (Stockholm Sweden) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
The most scary intro I ever read.
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4.0 out of 5 stars I really enjoyed this book, Jun 27 2004
By Beamer (Duke University) - See all my reviews
I really enjoyed this book, though I admit I may have been seduced by the concept.

One of the opening chapters, the one in Bosnia, struck me as one of the creepiest I've ever read. From there is mention of a surprise attack taking out significant world forces as their guard was low. Again, an interesting idea that is well presented and really brought me into the book.

The characters, though, are definitely not entirely likable. Nor are they really there too like. They're heavily flawed people, outcasts mostly, and behave as such. I believe this to be intentional on the writer's part, and will not penalize him for it.

The adventure is mostly well done. The science may be wonky, but the writing is solid and intelligent. The latter point might truly be why I enjoyed this book, intelligence. All too often these wonky-science-adventure books completely lack any form of intelligence. Here you can see thought being put behind everything, which the author deserves great credit for.

The only flaw I found was that science was being used to explain everything, satisfyingly, then mysticism crept in from nowhere. Satan became a supernatural being, not a scientific one. A massive flaw, in my mind. Why go in that direction after spending so much time keeping it in the other? The mind-transfer effect was just pointless.

I read this book a long time ago, during a lonely week halfway across the world. It entranced me at the time, and I found it to be a very worthy read. Looking back I'm no longer as impressed, but still consider it worth the four stars. Similar books by similar authors have resulted in twists you knew would come and plot holes larger than the story itself.

This book is different. Absolutely worth reading.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars I really enjoyed this book
I really enjoyed this book, though I admit I may have been seduced by the concept.

One of the opening chapters, the one in Bosnia, struck me as one of the creepiest I've ever... Read more

Published on Jun 27 2004 by Beamer

5.0 out of 5 stars Awsome
This book is by far the best book I have ever read. I could not stop turning the pages....only hope that his next book is half as good !!!!
Published on Jun 25 2004 by Paul McHugh

2.0 out of 5 stars To Hell and back
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. Read more
Published on Jun 15 2004 by Noctem

3.0 out of 5 stars what could have been............
This was a good book. Yes, a very good book. I would have preferred he spend more time on the hadals' emergence from the subplanet, though. Read more
Published on May 30 2004 by Brian P. Kelder

5.0 out of 5 stars The Descent (Review)
This is a modern day Jules Verne with a twist! This is an excellent read...one you will not regret.
Published on May 25 2004 by Angela

1.0 out of 5 stars A pretty dumb book
The premise for this book is awesome--turns out "demons" are living at the center of the earth, torturing people and wreaking havoc in secret. Read more
Published on April 20 2004 by Mattman

3.0 out of 5 stars Congo + Indiana Jones + Esau + Dante's Inferno = The Descent
The book is sort of a mish-mash of ideas from Crichton's Congo, Kerr's Esau, Indiana Jones and Dante's Inferno with an interesting twist. Read more
Published on April 12 2004 by S. Shah

3.0 out of 5 stars Engaging, but Choppy
This book has an interesting premise - a real hell, with real demons - but the author threw the plot together loosely around this idea, and it shows. Read more
Published on Mar 23 2004 by Brooke Mealey

3.0 out of 5 stars Jules Verne + Clive Barker = falls a bit short of both
This tale of humanity's discovery of a savage subterranean race should appeal greatly to those who enjoy highly-researched military-scientific novels, in the vein of Crichton or... Read more
Published on Mar 23 2004 by Liz

5.0 out of 5 stars engrossing
Starting with a bunch of short exciting chapters that introduce the main characters and the fantastic story idea, The Descent hooked me immediately. Read more
Published on Mar 15 2004 by Patrick Carlin

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