The Night Diver

Tension is the cornerstone of Horror as a genre, and it is an experience shared by readers and writers alike. When I am reading a particularly enthralling work, I have felt my heart pound, my guts recoil in terror, and it is a feeling that can’t be matched. Then I think about the tension that authors have, threading the needle between just enough detail to terrify the reader, but obscuring enough for the brain itself to fill in with the deepest darkest fears one can have. It is an art form that I can never get enough of, and ‘All the Fiends of Hell’ is a very effective example of pure tension, ratcheted up to purely Cosmic levels.

The story follows Karl, an older man that escaped a rapture-like event due to a rather perfectly-timed illness that made him unable to move. Soon, he finds himself in a near abandoned-world, hunted by alien creatures that seem to delight in brutally killing whatever is left of the human race. The scenario is almost familiar, feeling almost biblical in nature, but suffused with pure cosmic horror that shakes anyone to the core. I will admit, this was one of the few books that gave me a nightmare. The sheer amount of terror and suspense did a number on my mind, and Nevill’s writing truly brought that atmosphere to life.

In addition to the terrifying world and creatures, Nevill also creates a very relatable, human storyline that binds you to the narrative. Karl is a very relatable protagonist, with little special ability aside from some quick thinking that just barely ekes him out of dangerous situations. He also has a very relatable backstory, as a person who didn’t really shine in the world before the apocalypse. But he also uses this moment to maybe take some more ownership his life, as it has been freed from the failures and regrets from before. It is a very relatable idea, and it is explored in an interesting way through Nevill’s writing. Even with the mind-bending scenario at hand, the characters are written in a very realistic way, and creating a clearer picture in the mind that bites hard when the horrors show themselves. There is a conflict within the story between another survivor that really drove me to finish the book, fueled by anger and despair to see justice meted out for the events that unfolded. Overall, this book has a solid emotional core and a very relatable protagonist that makes the story a very enjoyable read.

The only downside I really had with the book was that it ended a bit too early for me. Personally, I would have liked to see more of this twisted world, with the hunting horrors, surviving humans, and time-displaced apparitions, exploring what all of this meant, and how humanity would operate in the future. But I could also see the intended horror element of this obscuring of details. No one can really tell why such creatures exist, and why they choose to carry out the horrors shown in the novel. Instead, there is an expansive void that fills itself with twisted possibilities and dark, unfathomable deities that can dwarf the spark of humanity before you could piece together an idea. It is this realization that chilled me to the core, and why I consider this novel a true masterwork of cosmic terror. If apocalypses and cosmic horror are things you enjoy, this is definitely worth picking up.

My final rating for this book is: 4.5/5 stars