The Descent [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Stellen Sie sich vor, dass die Hypothese von einer hohlen Erde teilweise wahr ist. Stellen Sie sich vor, dass sich unter der Erde ein Tunnelnetzwerk über Millionen von Meilen spannt. Und stellen Sie sich vor, dass in diesen unvorstellbaren Tiefen schreckliche Kreaturen leben, für die Menschen nur Sklaven und Nahrungsquelle darstellen. Jeff Long hat es sich vorgestellt und einen erstklassigen Thriller geschrieben (den man leider bei der Deutschen Übersetzung verhunzt hat.) Die ersten Kapitel sind erschreckend, beunruhigend und sie haben eine phantastische Wirkung auf den Leser: es fällt schwer das Buch wegzulegen. Long hat auch ganze Arbeit bei der Zeichnung der Charakteren geleistet. Der interessanteste Charakter dürfte wohl Ike sein. Eine Hauptfigur die verschiedenste Emotionen beim Leser hervorruft: Mitleid, Bewunderung, Abschreckung. The Descent ist eine interessante Mischung aus Thriller, Sci-Fic und Mystery und rangiert unter meinen Lieblingsbüchern ganz weit oben. Jeder der dieses Buch lesen will, sollte sich aber die englische Ausgabe kaufen.

PLOT: Tibet, Bosnia, the Kalahari Desert - all over the world people learn about prehistoric passageways, network of tunnels and chambers around the globe - all well marked and constantly improved over several thousand years. Deep underneath humanity another species always existed: the Hadals, creatures resembling the devils and gargoyles of mankind's legends. Now that the path of human beings and Hadals finally cross war erupts deep inside the earth. Parallel to the war a global race ensues as nations, armies, religions and industries rush to colonize and exploit the subterranean frontier for resources and territories. And their scientists want to know how life could develop in the abyss. Even if the Hadals seem to be of very low intelligence quite the contrary is true and it becomes evident that humanity and the Hadals share a past. Are these creatures part of mankind's evolutionary family tree and could their leader be the legendary Satan? Only one thing is for sure: Miles inside the earth, evil is very much alive...

First of all this book has nothing to do with the horror movie "The Descent" that was released in 2007. It is not about the survival of some women lost in underground tunnels. Instead this is a story about world-wide war, adventures, scenes of underworld wonders, scientific discourses and romantic moments, narrative twists, turns, dead-ends and backtracks. Overall the book contains a lot of energy, ideas and excitement. And the book features an interesting wide variety of interacting main characters such as a Catholic nun, a major with the NATO forces, an escapee from years of Hadal captivity, theologians and metaphysicians from a (religious) 21st-century think tank etc.
Sounds promising? I am almost sorry to say that the story also has flaws.

Basically the book can be divided in 3 parts: 1) The first sightings and crossing paths, 2) the war and 3) the journey.
In the first part (almost a quarter of the book long) several characters stumble over caverns of the Hadals all over the world. This part is told in ample words and at the end one of the book's main characters is rescued after being held prisoner for over 10 years. Unfortunately the readers never learn what really happened to him during those years and nothing is said about the first weeks after his rescue. Instead there is a sudden time gap of 3 years. So the moment when the story becomes even more interesting the book is cut way too short.
As might be expected there are some holes in the logic of the book that kept bothering me: finding life forms and scenery as described up to 18 miles below ground is just utterly unbelievable! Also quite ridiculous is the idea that the Hadals have lived underground for over 15,000 years and represent the earliest human life form while also being highly intelligent. You wonder WHY anybody should live underground who is that skilled and intelligent. That does not make any sense at all and no explanation is offered.
Sometimes there are short chapters that only portray a quick scene of violence or sexual assaults of Hadals on humans. Here a lot of gore and ample gruesome descriptions might turn your stomach occasionally. These passages are out of context and contribute nothing to the main focus of the story (the expedition underneath the earth). Are these scenes really necessary? Are they used as a wake up call for the reader because the story is not as thrilling and fast paced as had to be expected?

Hell is an existent place with a quasi-human species living in it. This is a great basic thought. Also the idea of history mixed with religion is very interesting. If you can overcome the logical aspects the book is worth reading. In parts it might be regarded as a modern version of Jules Verne's "Journey to the Center of the Earth".
On the other hand there is a book called "Subterranean" by James Rolling which follows the similar idea of life forms underneath the earth. In comparison I would rate "Subterranean" higher because there is less gore but more adventure and it is more entertaining.
Nevertheless I plan to read other books from Jeff Long.

This book has been one of the best new fiction books I've read lately. It was a great adventure story that was though-provoking as well. I did not find it a good bone-chilling, can't-look-under-the-bed horror story the way some of Stephen King's early books are; I'd not have any second thoughts if friends asked me to go spelunking with them! But I doubt the author's goal was that in the first place. There were a few inconsistensies about hadals that the author did leave unexplained, maybe because they will be revealed in a sequel? I enjoyed the fact hadals were not portrayed as entirely "demonic" creatures, but more like products of their harsh environment. As the story continued, the line between humans and hadals continued to blur. Another annoying thing I noticed the author failed to explain was lack of drastic rise in temperature as the expedition got deeper and closer to the melting hot core of the Earth. I'm sure Hollywood will make a "Descent"-the movie one day. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed and hope they don't cast Dolf Lundgren and Alicia Silverstone in the lead roles!