Rolling in the Deep, Book 1
Synopsis:
Seven years ago, the Atargatis set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to film a “mockumentary” bringing to life ancient sea creatures of legend. It was lost at sea with all hands. Some have called it a hoax; others have called it a maritime tragedy.
Now, a new crew has been assembled. But this time they’re not out to entertain. Some seek to validate their life’s work. Some seek the greatest hunt of all. And some seek the truth. But for the ambitious young scientist Victoria Stewart this is a voyage to uncover the fate of the sister she lost.
Whatever the truth may be, it will only be found below the waves. But the secrets of the deep come with a price.
Edition:
Hardcover
My Thoughts:
Have you ever read a book well after its release and found yourself wondering, “How the absolute hell has this never been adapted into a movie?” Well, that’s what Into the Drowning Deep had me wondering from the get-go. In fact, remember a while back when there was talk about the Aquaman spin-off? A horror flick called The Trench? Promised to be a full-on monster movie? I think that would have (or at least could have) been remarkably similar to what Grant wrote here. Btw, according to John Squires’ article for Bloody Disgusting, that movie has been unceremoniously put out to sea. Sad face.
Anyone who has ever seen/heard of/read about the ocean is probably aware that it is fucking terrifying. Full of the most monstrous, nope-inducing shit our little pea-brains could possibly imagine. And a lot of stuff we couldn’t have even imagined before we saw it. You’re also probably aware then that there is a lot of ocean we have NEVER SEEN. Stuff so deep down that we are currently incapable of reaching it. If outer space is the Earth’s attic, then the ocean is most definitely our basement. Our possibly haunted, definitely creepy AF basement. According to this article from Oceana.org, we have not yet explored about 80% of the ocean, because we just can’t yet. We don’t have the technology to beat back simply physics.
But back to THE OCEAN IS SCARY.
The Mariana Trench is scary. It is the deepest ocean trench on the planet going down 11,034 meters (according to National Geographic). It is full of bizarre lifeforms. And in Into the Drowning Deep, at least, those bizarre lifeforms include what are believed to be mermaids. Or at least the creatures that the mythology is based on. And you know what? You can’t prove to me that something similar to these beasts actually exists because we just don’t know. I’m not trying to say I think this is a true story or anything, just that as the story posits, we do know that myths tend to have some basis in fact. And what if the fact is that the Challenger Deep (the southern end of the Mariana Trench and deepest known point of the seabed in the Earth’s hydrosphere) really does hold a roving pack of murmaiders?
But, uh…about the book
Sorry, I got a little off track. The real-life aspects of the Mariana Trench/Challenger Deep are FASCINATING. But so are the aspects presented in Into the Drowning Deep, so hold tight.
This is a tightly plotted story set in the very near future (2022). It starts out strong with the tragedy aboard the Atargatis, and it never, ever lets up. I mentioned wondering how this had yet to be adapted into a film, and this is why: the story plays out like a film. I didn’t read it so much as I experienced it. Grant’s writing reels you in and makes you feel like you’re standing just out of frame watching the action. And honestly, it’s fucking transcendent. But also terrifying.
I think it’s worth mentioning too that grant has managed to fit a fair amount of scathing social commentary in here as well. But not in a way that ever feels forced. I mean, when you’re dealing with a scary monster/scary monsters coming out of a very dark part part of the Earth we understand very little about, there’s bound to be some curiosity about what drove it into the light when it has never to our knowledge been there before. And it seems only natural to assume that we are in some way to blame for it’s change of circumstances.
“You know what I like about the ocean we do have? The part where we’ve dumped so much crap into it that it would be justified in becoming something out of a horror movie, and yet the horror it’s giving us isn’t related to any of those things. Not really.”
As yet another testament to the power of Grant’s writing, it wasn’t until the story was over that I realized the impact of what I had just read. You want diverse representation? You’ll find it here, but not in a way that ever makes it feel like tokenism. The characters just happen to be a diverse group of people, just like what happens in reality, you know?
About the Author:
Mira also writes as Seanan McGuire.
Born and raised in Northern California, Mira Grant has made a lifelong study of horror movies, horrible viruses, and the inevitable threat of the living dead. In college, she was voted Most Likely to Summon Something Horrible in the Cornfield, and was a founding member of the Horror Movie Sleep-Away Survival Camp, where her record for time survived in the Swamp Cannibals scenario remains unchallenged.
Mira lives in a crumbling farmhouse with an assortment of cats, horror movies, comics, and books about horrible diseases. When not writing, she splits her time between travel, auditing college virology courses, and watching more horror movies than is strictly good for you. Favorite vacation spots include Seattle, London, and a large haunted corn maze just outside of Huntsville, Alabama.
Mira sleeps with a machete under her bed, and highly suggests that you do the same.
Rating:
I promise you won’t regret reading and/or buying Into the Drowning Deep. There is also a novella which tells the story of the Atargatis called Rolling in the Deep which I immediately bought in e-book format (although new life goal: find it in hardcover at an affordable price).
Into the Drowning Deep Rolling in the Deep #1 By Mira Grant Orbit Published: November 14, 2017 ISBN: 9780316379403 Hardcover, Paperback, E-book, Audio 440 Pages Author's Website
