Deep Down There by Oli Jacobs

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

In the gated community of Anton Court, everything is normal enough. The five families living there get on, and the assigned caretaker makes sure that nothing is out of sorts. All is well and everyone is happy.

Until the hole appears.

Perfectly round and 6-feet wide, the hole inspires many feelings in the residents. Wealthy app developer Rich Davis wants to investigate it. Elderly army veteran James Stanley (known as The Colonel) wants it removed. While widowed single mother Hannah Suggs is just unnerved by the hole.

Soon enough, obsessions take over and the peace of Anton Court is horribly corrupted.

From the dark mind of Oli Jacobs, author of The Station 17 Chronicles, The Children of Little Thwopping, and Book Bloggers Novel of the Year Award 2021 finalist Wilthaven, Deep Down There is a story of obsession, secrets, and the fragile nature of fate and reality. As always, he hopes you enjoy.

Deep Down There. Nothing good ever comes from big black holes, whether it’s from the horrific type in space or massive sinkholes that wreak their havoc on earth, nothing. good. ever. happens.

Order this book right now. I started reading at approximately 1 pm and by 4 pm I had finished, like a marathon runner trying to outdo their personal best, I needed to find out the why, the where, and the how. DO IT!

Oli Jacobs can’t write a bad story, like seriously, everything I have read I have loved. He can shut me up with his sharp, witty, and alluring stories of the human condition and terrifying situations, however, I am mad at you, so crazy mad with you for leaving me with the worst kind of book hangover. I was like an overzealous customer in a bakery, I wanted it all but now I feel sick from the overindulgence. I closed the final page and felt like time had stood still – my eyes were frozen, my brain had seized up, and didn’t think I would be able to write any justifiable words that could do this book justice.

“The hole in Anton Court wasn’t just a hole. It was darkness, a void that was cruel and apathetic to the ways of the residents. It just wanted to consume, to devour, until there was nothing else left to eat.”

There are many horror writers that I admire but none seem to have the right combination of wit and bone-chilling horror such as Mr. Jacobs. I’d love to examine your brain but of course, I’d be terrified of what I might find.

So Deep Down There, just how do I summarise it effectively? A gated community. A mysterious dark hole. The purveyor of dark dreams and even darker voices.  Single widowed mother, Hannah has recently suffered the worst kind of bereavement, that of her partner, Greg. She lives in her house on Ashton Court, a very luxurious and privileged gated community that Greg acquired on their behalf. She is now left to raise their two boys. Life is hard but she is determined to make the most of a bad situation.

One day everything changes. A huge black hole appears on the grounds of Ashton Court. It’s no sinkhole, this thing is sheer and perfectly shaped that it could never have been created by nature or by a man for that matter. It puts everyone that lives in the community on edge, the owner’s HP Properties are acting cagier than a tiger locked up with no food. They want no police and no council involvement. The reasoning behind this was never going to be pretty. You can feel the effects of Jacobs’s writing from the very first line. It’s sharper than a tack and immediately has you hooked.

So, what exactly is the hole? Why is it there? What impact will it have upon the residents of Ashton Court? Well, if you want those questions answered then you are going to have to read Deep Down There…

Deep Down There is viscerally intimate. Jacobs proves he has his finger on the pulse of cosmic horror. He is a fierce talent that knows no boundaries or limits.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Oli Jacobs is a bearded chap who enjoys spinning a yarn or two. While now a hermit, he has been rumoured to be seen drinking beer and enjoying chicken in the wilds of Southampton. If seen, please approach gently as he has severe anxiety and may cry.

As well as Wilthaven, Oli has also wrote other Horror (The Children of Little Thwopping, The Station 17 Chronicles), Comedy (the Kirk Sandblaster series), Thriller (the Mr Blank series), and short stories (the Filmic Cuts series).

As always, he hopes you enjoy.

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