The men on board the HMS Terror - part of the 1845 Franklin Expedition, the first steam-powered vessels ever to search for the legendary Northwest Passage - are entering a second summer in the Arctic Circle without a thaw, stranded in a nightmarish lansdscape of encroaching ice and darkness. Endlessly cold, they struggle to survive with poisonous rations, a dwindling coal supply, and ships buckling in the grip of crushing ice. But their real enemy is even more terrifying. There is something out there in the frigid darkness: an unseen predator stalking their ship, a monstrous terror clawing to get in.
The word I would use to describe this book is chilling (
This was another whim book I bought at the same time I bought The Ballroom a few weeks back.
The title of this novel could refer to a number of different things. Is it referring to the name of the ship? Is it referring to the unseen predator? Is it referring to the nightmarish conditions the crew has to endure such as scurvy, harsh conditions, and the promise of not moving forward with their expedition? I personally think it's the latter, because the Arctic Circle is pretty dang terrifying.
It was odd reading this book, knowing more about the failed Franklin expedition now, than what was known when the book was written and published. For reasons beyond my knowledge, this type of history speaks to me, so I was really intrigued by the description. It is also one of the oddest hybrids I think I've ever come across - historical fiction and horror/supernatural. But it works. Mostly it's historical, but man is there tension even when the supernatural elements are absent. It's very clear that the author did his homework because the research done for this novel is intensive and it shows. It pays off really well.
While I did enjoy the supernatural elements of this book, the most suspenseful parts were the survival bits. As I mentioned, the Arctic Circle is not a place I'd like to be. Simmons' writing style is unique and works for this type of novel; it changes with perspectives. The more tense scenes had me looking over my shoulder and wondering if I was being watched, which is proof that a horror author is doing their job correctly. As one of the reviews that the book boasts, this book is unusual which is a good way to describe it. I've never read a book quite like this. Of course there have been other survival stories, enduring harsh conditions and the like, but none quite like this. I'm giving Dan Simmons' The Terror a 4.25/5
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