Enter the Darkness by Sarah Budd is tense, claustrophobic, and, you guessed, dark. We have four characters (two main while the other two are supportive). Each of them has motives/secrets for entering the caves during the Spring Solstice. However, the White Lady likes to nom-nom on human flesh (trigger warning: cannibalism) for her strength and survival, longstanding the lore associated with the area.

Before I jump into the yaays and nays, let's disclose all the trigger warnings.

Suicide, bereavement, implied parental abuse, domestic abuse, kidnap & murder.

The yaays: Sarah Budd lures you in with vivid, non-repetitive descriptions of the caves. This is commendable as most of the plot unfurls in this area. The chapter and the point-of-view placements are good, leaving you with a few breadcrumbs about each of them, ensuring the readers have a clear idea of their background. The build-up was excellent, and I couldn't wait to read what came next. The pacing was well-done, and I devoured the book in a few hours.

The nays: The ending. The minute twist at the end wasn't enough for me. "Huh." would be my one-word response to the conclusion; unfortunately, it felt underwhelming and rushed (in keeping up with the pacing). Additionally, it would be wonderful to understand the folklore behind the caves in greater detail.

Thank you, NetGalley & the publishers at Bridgids Gate Press, LLC, for giving me an ARC. This honest review is left voluntarily.

This was just ok for me. It took me quite a long time to really get into the book and to get to the climax. It felt a little bit dragged going over and over everyone’s back stories and I was only interested in one or two of the characters. I wish we’d have been introduced to the ghosts and the White Woman earlier as the descriptions of her were extremely creepy and being set underground in the darkness and caves made me feel claustrophobic. I was rooting for Cassie, hated Fiona and Sienna! Garth was slightly weird. He’d only just met this girl, said 4 words to each other and all of a sudden he was in love with her??!

Overall, I liked this book. The author did a great job creating a creepy, dark and claustrophobic atmosphere and there were definitely some disturbing scenes.

I would have loved it if the author had explored the lore a bit more as I felt something was missing from the story without this. I didn't find the ending very satisfying and didn't quite identify with one of the characters and the insta-love that is introduced. The other characters were great though.

The first chapter had me intrigued, set thousands of years ago with some kind of human sacrifice and then it jumps to the present day. I personally didn’t think the remainder held the initial thrill. I liked the claustrophobic atmosphere of the caves and it reminded of the movie As Above So Below. I liked the multiple POV’s, I think it really fit the story and added suspense to the plot. Overall the book was written well and the main two characters, Garth and Cassie were written very well and made you hope for happy ending for the two. On the downside, I personally feel it was a bit slow to get into the action, it didn’t really pick up till about 60% through and it just felt like something was missing.

Four people enter the twenty-two mile cave system in London separately on the day of the Summer Solstice but will any of this group who have their own reasons for going into the caves alone find their way back out alive? This cave system is a huge tourist attraction and has been in existence longer in time than anyone knows so there is much folklore and many ghost stories that are a big hit attraction. The caves have never lost a patron until this very day so it will be up to the manager (Bill) and the new tour guide (Garth) who feels completely responsible for the missing person on his watch, to go back into the caves try to find the unlucky individual who never came out with the rest of the tourist group. Bill and Garth both know certain things about the caves are true, especially Bill and he knows there is only a short amount of time left to find the person alive. Garth, on the other hand has hope as well as dread about finding the tourist since he has no idea what really lies in deep, dark blackness of the nightmare that awaits him yet it is nothing compared to what the lost person will experience and if they are found they may not be able to hold on to their sanity.

The fourth person in the caves? You will just have to read the book!

I found this book had very eerie, spooky and tense atmosphere. It had everything a horror story needs and I just couldn't stop reading to discover what would happen chapter after chapter. There are a few other essential creepy characters but I didn't want to give too much away. Garth was a terrific character to build the story around and his lack of self-confidence and timidity made me continually hope for the best outcome for someone so young and naive. 'Sarah Budd' wrote a really compelling story of horror with so much creativity especially with the creatures aand ghosts that I felt were extremely unique in their design. (Very Frightening). The only parts that that bothered me were too much repetition in the second half of the book and a little too much thought talk in emergency situations although it didn't alter the story. Enter The Darkness was Creepy Scary and Disturbingly Good! Most horror fans will enjoy this truly entertaining book..

Warnings: Graphic Violence, Abuse, Disturbing situations (cannibalism?), etc.

I want to thank the publisher "Bridgids Gate Press, LLC." and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this creative novella and any thoughts or or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given this horror book a rating of 4 DISTURBING HORROR-FILLED STARS!!

It's a pretty good story, but I guess I just kept expecting more. I can't put my finger on it, but I just wasn't satisfied when I finished reading. There's nothing wrong with it exactly, maybe it was missing deeper connections to the specific characters.

Four people enter the caves underneath London during the Spring Solstice. Each for a separate reason. Each must battle their own demons before facing the White Lady, a malicious spirit who intends only to feed on them. Who will get out alive?

This was my first experience with Sarah Budd's writing and I immediately want more. The story is compelling, claustrophobic and filled with vivid horror scenes. The multiple POV makes sense as it's four separate characters but each character adds so much to the suspense and the plot. Definitely not for the faint of heart and read with the lights on.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Budd and the publishers for the free ARC copy. All opinions are my own.

This was such an interesting sounding premise! Dark and disturbing, set in a claustrophobic cave system.

The first chapter (set in the past) was excellent and tense, I was absolutely hooked!

However the following chapters didn’t hold up to the initial thrill. In the present day sections I was a little confused with the changing POVs and Garth’s timeframes, it felt like these areas could be a bit more polished.

Overall wasn’t a huge hit with me.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, & Brigids Gate Press for a copy.

This book starts in such a mysterious tone, in the dawn of time, some sort of human sacrifice, and then we jump to modern times and how the lives of the people who tells this story come together and tell us this story of horror and tragedy, that takes place in the same place…

Through the chapters we get to know better the characters and we also learn that every one of these characters feel or do know that they did things that they weren’t supposed to do… I really don’t want to spoil the story, this is a book that makes the reader to feel oppressed, scary in a psychological way, its a short read, but the way that is written(the psychological way) made me read it slowly and procrastinate a bit because some times it felt a bit too much, I was scared with what was happening with the characters I did like, or with I didn’t know that was happening with them, to know what I mean, please grab a copy and read for yourself.

Is a good book and it is well written, it was just a bit too much for my small lorry hahah, this is a horror story that will stay with you, and don’t do like I did, don’t read it at night with the lights turned off.

Thank you NetGalley and Brigids Gate Press, LLC., for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

Garth has loved the mysterious tunnels and caves since he was a very young boy. Life above ground was one of bullies at school and a bully of a father at home. He took the tunnel tours every chance he got, finding a mentor in the senior guide Bill. Garth was one of the very few who could actually see the many tortured faced that were carved into the tunnel walls. Other tourists, for some reason, didn’t see them. As Garth learned more about the tunnel system (his ambition to be a guide) he also learned by experience why he’d been told to never, never ever stray from the path. The passageways spiral endlessly and there are other things down there that avoid the lighted path. Horrific things. When Garth finally leads his first tour on his own he instantly feels a strong attraction to Cassie, and she feels the same. However Cassie has come to the tunnels for her own dark reasons. As the tour ends 17 comes out, 18 had gone in. How many more will be lost to the tunnels before the night is over in the search for the missing one? What horrific end meets those lost and will their faces also end up on those tunnel walls screaming for all eternity?
I really got into this book and wanted that happy ending for Garth and Cassie. You’ll have to read it to see how it works out for them.
Thank you to #netgalley for this ARC of #EnterTheDarkness

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘚𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘩 𝘉𝘶𝘥𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘤, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 :)

Wow what a ride!!!! It’s a great horror book with a very creepy and claustrophobic atmospheric setting.
Cassie, Garth and Sienna all have something in common, trauma. Their reasons are different but both Cassie and Garth feel the need to enter the caves, instead of being afraid (like everyone else), they feel the need to be in the dark.
I’ve always been a horror fan and recently I’ve been trying to get into horror books as well, this book was a great experience!! It has everything!! It makes you uncomfortable, it makes you question things, it shocks you.

"𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐦, 𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐩 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭."
"𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐨 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞. 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠."

TW: SUICIDE, MUDER, KIDNAPPING

A creepy and atmospheric modern-day folk horror, set underneath southeast London within the Chislehurst cave system.

'When darkness came forth, it took all souls within reach. wrapping their tendrils tight, its flock was bought into a reality no mortal could comprehend, one that made most people afraid.'

This story is written from the perspective of a number of main protagonists, with each chapter dedicated to events from that particular character's point of view. I found this an interesting way to present things and occasionally show how we experience event differently to each other.

As a whole this was written well and the main two characters, Garth and Cassie were really well drawn, with a solid back story. Scenes within the caves felt claustrophobic, unsettling at times and accurate to what I have experienced on my own personal visits there.
On the downside there was a fair amount of repetition as I progressed through the story and I also had slight issues with how Fiona fit into the storyline, but this didn't stop me enjoying reading this novel.
This was my very first time reading anything by the author which turned out to be a good experience.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Overall, I liked this book a great deal. I enjoyed the premise, the spooky underground sequences, and those creatures hanging upside down in the tunnels are surely nightmare fuel. There's a lot to like here and, as stated, I mostly enjoyed it.

It's just my personal opinion but the reason I deducted a star was because of an issue throughout the book, repetition. We are told the same things over and over again until they have no more impact on the story. From Garth's loneliness to Cassie's relationship with her twin sister, to just how dark the tunnels are. Almost every time these characters were on the page these same things were said yet again.

I feel this book could have been shorter, but ultimately more tight and effective, had there not been so much repetition.

But, the actual meat of this book, the story itself, is creepy and frightening and claustrophobic. And I would recommend it overall.

Enter the Darkness by Sarah Budd.
During the Spring Solstice, four people enter the caves underneath London.
Garth: a shy young man, who seeks to save the girl of his dreams. Cassie: a beautiful young woman, who seeks to use the dark magic of the caves for her own purposes. Bill: an older man with a terrible secret, who seeks to find Garth and Cassie before it’s too late. Sienna: a con artist with a dark past, who seeks to escape her fate as a chosen sacrifice. Four people enter. Each of them must battle their personal demons before facing the White Lady, who rises each year during the Spring Solstice with a hunger for human flesh. Only one of them will survive. Who will it be?
A good read. Gripping. 4*.

Boy was this good! A rollercoaster but great nonetheless. I really enjoyed getting into this. My heart was pounding and I felt almost claustrophobic, I don’t know if that’s the best way to describe it but trust me - pick this up, you won’t regret it’

Firstly – huge thanks to Netgalley and Brigids Gate Press for getting me a digital ARC of this one!

I’ve been a huge fan of Sarah Budd (or S.J. Budd) for a while now. She has such a devious way of crafting her stories. If you want proof, check out her pieces ‘Crowded House’ or even ‘A Bubble of Friendship Will Keep Us’ from her 2020 Demain Publishing release. Her short stories always grab you and pull you into a darkness you’d not expected.

So, when this one was announced – a full-length work – I was super excited to see what she’d created and just how dark she’d take the readers.

What I liked: The story follows four different people all going into the depths of a cave system under London during the Solstice. Each person has a ‘connection’ to the darkness that resides within, and it’s this aspect that Budd really dances with throughout as we see more layers revealed and the impact of these connections come to light.

This one reads a lot like how ‘As Above So Below’ felt. That movie was chaotic, claustrophobic and anxiety-driven, and Budd does this on each and every page. I think each reader will connect with one of the characters more than the others, but each one is done well and has their own storyline to follow, which works to give us solid POV shifts and different angles of the same events.

The action in the latter quarter was really well done and ratchetted things up another notch. Garth just might’ve been the character who goes through the biggest change from the beginning, but Cassie is a close second, especially considering the reason why she was going down below to begin with.

What I didn’t like: While I enjoyed the Folklore aspect and how Fiona played into it and all the extra bits that came with it, a part of me almost wished this was purely a story of them going into the tunnels and getting lost and having to survive.

As well, while a lot of the POV shifts work, there were a few that seemed a bit unnecessary as it does just replicate the events that immediately occurred.

Why you should buy this: Budd is such a solid and phenomenal writer. She does a wonderful job of creating characters you want to root for and have them thrown into a scenario that allowed her to tease bits and pieces before completely launching into craziness.

This one was a ton of fun and I think it’ll make a lot of folks happy!

**This review has been posted to Goodreads as well as Twitter/IG/FB and is hosted here; https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/11/03/book-review-enter-the-darkness-by-sarah-budd/**

this was such a great horror novel, it was written in a way that was different and did everything that I hoped it would. The characters were what I wanted them to and they felt like real people. I enjoyed the way Sarah Budd wrote this and look forward to more.

"Would flowers and chocolate be inappropriate? Paltry and meagre against their history. A long honest chat was what was needed. He just hoped she would answer the door to him. But first he had to find Cassie and get out of here. He just needed Sandra to know it had always been her. He’d never married. Never met anyone else. There wasn’t space in his heart for another woman."