The Descent: A Novel

by Jeff Long

Book Overview

We are not alone...In a cave in the Himalayas, a guide discovers a self-mutilated body with the warning--Satan exists. In the Kalahari Desert, a nun unearths evidence of a proto-human species and a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0609602934
• ISBN13: 9780609602935
• Release Date: July 1999
• Publisher: Crown
• Length: 464 Pages
• Weight: 1.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 1.5" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

Addictive

The twists and turns in this book kept me hooked. It was one of those books that created another world in my head. Definitely nothing like the movie.

Highly recommend

This story builds to a fascinating crescendo. I’m an avid reader and book collector and this book was gold. They discover a world within a world, another realm. The rotten remains of a once mighty civilization. This book and its companion will break your heart.

Cannot Understand the Hype!

I bought The Descent based on reviews that I had read here and on Amazon. I was really looking forward to reading it! I am an avid reader, reading almost a book a day. I have gotten to the point in my life where, if I am bored with a book, I will actually stop reading it. This is exactly what happened with The Descent. I descended into boredom. After about 100 pages of what should have been a thrilling story, I decided I was wasting my time and it went into my "Give Away" pile (but not to anyone I liked!). What a shame since the initial concept was so intriguing. I just don't understand how anyone can call this book exciting or thrilling. I started skimming through it after awhile because I was finding it so dull. As for character development, I can't even tell you who the characters were, other than the main guy who was horribly disfigured at the beginning of the book. Obviously, I don't recommend this book to anyone. If you have already purchased it, good luck. Maybe I was just having a bad day?

Great Book

I rarely re-read books; it kind of takes the fun out of it if you already know what's going to happen. When I finished this book, I flipped back to the front immediately and started again. The characters feel like real people (one of my favorite characters is the 'Butterfly Man.' He's awesome.) The story seems almost probable. Especially the way the "topside" reacts to what is found underground. At any rate, if you like a good thriller, this is definately worth picking up.

Carol

I couldn't put the book down! As a voracious reader, I haven't had read a book in a long time that so frightened and enthralled me in equal measures. What an adventure! What a concept! The naysayers to this book are probably the same ones I hear leaving the movie theatre after viewing a great movie, complaining that everything wasn't perfect. HELLO!, this is supposed to be entertainment, not give you the answer to the meaning of life! Just enjoy!

An "Other World" book at it's best

I love being sucked into new worlds created by great authors, and this is one of them. This is the first Jeff Long book I have read, and I will be reading Year Zero soon.Long's underground world and underground society are very well described in this book. The subterranean journey far beneath even the ocean floors is fantastic, scary, and interesting. The psychological changes the parties go through is true to form. He even had me looking over my shoulder for the Hadals.I won't give anything away, but there are some very startling moments in this book that just blew me away and kept me reading through the night.With a Himalayan mountain guide who goes into the abyss and returns scarred in every way, a beautiful nun teetering on the brink of faith, a group of Philosophers who begin to gather more frequently across the globe in search of Satan himself, an evil corporate head and his fiendish step son, a fanatical mercenary, an Army pilot who falls from grace through disfiguration, and of course the Hadals (underground tribes) all seeking their own prize from the sub planet, Mr. Long has brought a novel to us that you will be unable to put down until you finish it.I highly recommend this book as an "all-nighter".

Compelling and Imaginative Interpretation of Hell

I take the time to write a review only for those books that Ihave been significantly affected by, either positively or negatively.I just finished this book, and can truthfully say it was one of the most compelling and fascinating novels I have read in some time. I am the daughter of a Rabbi, married to a degreed philosopher, so theology and philosophy are topics near and dear to my heart. I started this book with an open mind as to its format. My husband had already listened to the Audio version and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you read this book hoping for unending adventure, an "Indiana Jones" type plot, you will be disappointed. While there are many instances of pure action and suspense, much of the book deals with archeological, theological and philosophical theories that are more difficult to breeze through. But those are the very things that held me captive all throughout the book. Do not assume this will be an easy read. It's not. But it is well worth the effort. Ending the book felt somewhat like emerging from the underworld - it was a little hard to return to mundane reality. Definitely a winner in my book.

The best adventure book I've read in twenty years.

What makes a great adventure book? Is it the plot? THE DESCENT is daringly plotted and full of surprises from start to finish. The twists and turns are audacious. But author Jeff Long pulls them off because he writes with clarity, authority and a great deal of vivid and specific detail. There's lots of science in this book; but instead of sounding like reader-feeder, the cool logic of facts makes an expedition to the center of the earth in search of Satan actually believable. Do great characters make great books? If so THE DESCENT is a winner. Ike and Ali are far from typical hero and heroine yet I found myself committed to the story of their survival thousands of fathoms below sea level, reading way after midnight several nights in a row. For the most part, the secondary characters are also strong though occasionally the villains come close to twirling their moustaches. These lapses are rare, however. Besides character and plot points, this book scores ten for writing style. It's popular fiction and there's no chance of THE DESCENT winning the New York Book Critics. But compared to most action adventure stories it is written with elegance and grace. This book deserves a spot high on the best seller list.