Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review this novel.
Unfortunately this did not capture my attention though I have heard good things about it. I just don't think creature horror is for me, but it was nice to give it a try. I would probably recommend it to those who enjoy this genre especially because of the ocean-side of things. I know a lot of people are afraid of the ocean. and would enjoy the horror/ocean aspect of this novel.
I did DNF this around 40%.

From start to finish, you will be in the grip of the author as he takes you on a trip unlike any other! Jamie has traveled to Hawaii to visit his brother, Eric, hoping to gain some insight into his own life and their past. Suddenly, the brothers and Eric's friend, Mattie, are drawn into the horror of flaring tempers and death.

Mattie enlists his father's help in taking care of the problem and soon the four men find themselves out on the ocean at night. What happens next is by far the strangest terror filled encounter that I have read in a long time! The book is full of family dynamics, grief, and outright terror as the world is literally turned upside down. And, the ending makes the reader wonder if the world will ever be the same.

Tyler Jones is definitely an author that I will be following. This book is well-written, full of amazing details and tons of terrifying moments. I highly recommend this book to fans of cosmic horror or those wanting to begin enjoying this genre.

The perfect deep sea cosmic horror never existed...until now! If you don't already have a fear of the ocean, prepare to unlock one. This book is gripping, full of tension in all the right ways, and an all around nail biter! You will NOT want to put this down to prepare to settle in for a fast paced, terror fueled read. And for your sanity, don't put on an ocean soundtrack. It will not relax you.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily and all views expressed are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this review copy in exchange for an honest opinion. Review has been posted on Amazon.

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate the ocean. There's sharks, jellyfish, and God only knows what lurking in the deep. Then Tyler gives me a massive hole in the ocean where up is down and down is up....

This book made me dizzy. As soon as Jamie looked down and saw the sky, my head was spinning. Even thinking about the ocean hanging above me and the sky below gives me anxiety. At least with the ocean, there's a bottom somewhere....not the sky, though! Tyler really ramped up the atmosphere for such a short read, and I really have to give him props for that and for the sheer emotional response across the spectrum that I got from this book.

I did wish it was a bit longer, though, so it could really lean into that cosmic aspect. It did feel a little like an afterthought to me, and I wish that element would've been explored more. Weird ocean creatures are fascinating, especially when they come with weird mouth tentacles, and I'm super curious where they come from.

Heavy Oceans was a great read, though; I'm never disappointed with a DarkLit book!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This was my first time reading anything by Tyler Jones, and I was not disappointed. This book kicked off my current obsession with Lovecraftian horror/sci-fi in the best way possible. It was a bit slow in the beginning, but the ending was just WOW; the slow build is worth it for the payoff. The characters, the plot, everything was so good and detailed. Although this was my first book by the author, it certainly won't be my last.

This was the first book I've read by this author, and it won't be my last, This was a unique novel, from the characters to the plot.

4.5/5 Stars
8/10 WGB Score

I have never read this author before and found Jones' writing style to not only be well-written but also highly-readable. I found myself lost in the prose and zipping through pages without being aware I'd read dozens of pages in a short amount of time. This was my kind of cosmic horror with Lovecraftian vibes but set in a location (Hawaii) where I don't think i've ever read cosmic horror taking place in. This book deals with brothers who are connected through their past trauma of abuse. I could see this being turned into a film, easily.

Shout out to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and DarkLit Press for the advanced e-copy in exchange to an honest review.

I'll admit I wavered between a 3 to 4 stars until around mid book when the real horror commences. Not to say there wasn't horror in what happens before the midpoint but it was more... average human horror and I really picked the book up for the deep sea and cosmic horror aspects. And I think Tyler Jones delivered it.

This book starts with a chapter from a moment in the past with Eric and Jamie. The rest of the book follows the dreaded night the brothers, now adults and with their own personal demons, have when a tragic event led them to be in the ocean.

The story is perfectly sized for what it is and the whole main plot happens during one night. We follow Jamie's point of view, as he visits Eric in Hawaii that night, in third person present. We mostly get to see his thought process and descriptions that I would say are very straightforward and really shine through by the last third of the book.

All in all, solid read, definitely reached my deep sea cosmic horror expectations for the less than 150 pages it had.

Tyler Jones introduces a fresh voice to the cosmic horror genre, skillfully blending the incomprehensible with the mysticism of the deep sea.

Heavy Oceans" is a short, entertaining, and unsettling story that serves as a reminder of how some of the world's mysteries may also be its most profound horrors.

I've had to sit on this one for several days before I could write my review. This is a very Lovecraftian-style story, very cosmic and atmospheric. There were a few places I got confused and had to go back and reread, but overall I feel it was a decent story if you like this subgenre.

“Heavy Oceans” by Tyler Jones is an interesting sci-fi Lovecraftian novella with a nice ocean-related cosmic horror twist. Wow, try saying that opening sentence three times in a row and not mess up, eh? I’m teasing, anywho, I was very excited to read this novella as the cover is great and the description immediately caught my attention.

Now, before I begin my review, I found a few trigger warnings while reading which were…

- Domestic abuse
- Child abuse
- Drugs

If any of these trigger you, please do not read this novella. Moving along, I enjoyed the creepy prologue to set the tone for what would end up being a solid horror story. I wasn’t sure what to expect after such a wild start and I enjoyed this rollercoaster ride into oceanic horror done right.

Don’t worry, I won’t ruin anything for you but I enjoyed Jones’s writing style regarding all the gore, violence, and atmospheric horror. I also loved the horror mystery aspect of this novella and considering this was the first time I’ve ever read his work, he’s a great author. The plot twists and turns in this novella were good and I never saw them coming.

This novella has good characters and character development but the only thing I didn’t like was it was a slow burn up until the second half. It wasn’t terrible but the slow burn was worth it and once the horror hit, my goodness, it was so damn good. I made many weird faces while reading since I could not believe the creativity Jones had when it came to all the creepy horror that transpired. The descriptions, terror, and madness were all very well written leading right to the ending.

Now, when it came to the ending, I was hoping for more or at least some kind of final explanation to wrap things up nicely. It does end in a very creepy way which I thought was clever but I wanted some kind of closure to a degree. Besides that, this was a fun read with several unique horror moments that I will never forget. Seriously, I will never look at fish the same ever again.

I give “Heavy Oceans” by Tyler Jones a 4/5 for being a horror novella that checks a lot of boxes in all the right ways. If you’re looking for a quick book that hits you with major sci-fi Lovecraftian vibes and some of the most horrifying oceanic horror I’ve ever read, give this a shot. Aside from a few parts dragging on while reading, this delivered nicely and I look forward to reading more of his work. I want to thank NetGalley, DarkLit Press, and Tyler Jones for an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of this novella in exchange for an honest review.

I was chatting with a friend who was curious about my experiences reading indie horror - her thought being that small, independent presses put out inherently lesser quality books. I assured her, most emphatically that my experience has been the opposite. I’ve read SO MANY indie authors who are KILLING IT without the juggernaut machinery of a big publishing house, and in that category, I would put any of Tyler Jones’ books up against the best out there.

Tyler Jones is an incredible, absolutely MUST READ author in as much as SK is, or Ronald Malfi is, or Robert McCammon is. He has the gift.

Heavy Oceans is a slow-burning masterpiece of cosmic horror. It made me feel like I did reading the horror books I snuck off of my mom and dad’s shelves in the 70’s and 80’s before things got slick and polished and repetitive. It is truly terrifying when the familiar shifts to almost familiar, but not quite right, and shit gets weird and dangerous, but we don’t know how or why or what happens next. Jones creates this incredibly bewildering and oppressive atmosphere and then drowns the reader in unsettling and terrifying hit after hit. There is no rest for the wicked in this tale.

Jamie escapes to Hawaii to visit his older brother, Eric, only to encounter another set of problems — ones that drag you to a strange abyss, literally. The novel for the most part explores Jamie and Eric's relationship, and how their traumatizing childhood shapes them as adults. In Eric, this trauma manifests by sleepwalking. However, that eventually translates to aggression and recklessness, traits that the brothers are afraid are inherited from their father.

The eerie cosmic oceanic terror happens halfway through the book, and while I understand the significance of the brothers' relationship, I expected the horrors of the ocean to be a more conspicuous element. Whatever mystery plagues the ocean seems to only scratch the surface of the truly terrifying consequences of being plunged in the depths of the unknown. And I wish the author explored that more, or at least make the ocean a more active role in reflecting the characters' conflict. Instead, they almost feel like unrelated side quests where the ocean subplot is kind of shoehorned in the main narrative.

I did think the second half was well written, especially once we got to the creepy threads — it's just not enough to fully immerse myself into the plot, with its short length in particular. That last bit regarding the official reports of the ocean changes really hooked me in and was probably my favorite part of the book, and that's what I thought it would be like for the majority of the story. For it being called Heavy Oceans it's just not very heavy on the ocean, but that's just my personal preference too.

"Before we go any further, I need to make one thing clear," Ed says. "What we're doing here is fixing a problem. Sometimes, you gotta do something that don't feel right because everything else is wrong."

This book was f.....g good. I'm not sure how else to put it. It's fast paced and gritty, starting with [an emotional, gut wrenching overdose scene that reminded me of some of the nastiness of the movie "Trainspotting." From there, the story quickly moved to a messed up plan to dispose of the body, involving a fishing boat and a hacksaw. And then, insanely enough, a hole appears in the ocean. One that completely changes the game, including the laws of physics. (hide spoiler)]

What I really enjoyed about this story was the non-stop insanity that seemed almost tongue-in-cheek in places. The dead-man shuffle as the brothers try to move the body of their friend. The scene where the arm ominously flops out of the truck bed. The idea to make chum of AJ. And all of this before the real horror in the ocean actually begins.

I really enjoyed this story. It's relentlessly fast paced, gritty, bloody, with a touch of emotional family love. Kudos to author Tyler Jones! You made an instant fan and reader out of me!

Thank you Netgalley, Dark lite Press and Tyler Jones for the eARC of Heavy Ocean. This is the first book Ive read of Tyler's and it won't be the last. Heavy Ocean starts out with estranged brothers, Eric and Jamie who try and reconnect in a bar in Hawaii. Things go awry after a shocking act of violence which sends 4 men, including the brothers into a fishing boat and sail offshore to figure out what to do next. What's to follow, they encounter things that should not exist, Turning their world, their beliefs upside down.

Giving that Heavy Ocean is a fairly short read, it's packed with a rolling build up of dread. It doesn't stop either, The writing style was descriptive with a great use of vocabulary to create that existential dread. The change in the characters while the story unfolds is palpable and the pay off at the end will make you sit and try and digest what you have read.

4.5 stars for me rounded to 5 on Netgalley.

This is the second book I have read by Tyler Jones and it certainly won’t be the last. Heavy Ocean is a terrific read and one that does not go where you think it will! The book is a crime story, a story about family and the underlying emotions that are buried over time in family dynamics. And then….. it veers into a totally different direction. If you were to actually place this in a category for readers to find it, we’ll that would ruin the turn that occurs three quarters through the story. I won’t categorize it because it would pigeonhole the book and that would be a shame. Tyler is an extremely talented writer and though I’ve only read two of his books so far, they were both exciting,,gripping reads that will thrill and entertain many readers.

One man takes off to Hawaii to see his brother that he hasn’t seen in years. The brothers have always been very different from each other but they are brothers and will do for each other whatever is needed to protect each other . After a night of drinking something terrible happens and a man is dead. But the brothers know they have to help one another. They enlist the help of the boats owner, a man that knows what needs to be done and how they can bury the problem. They make a plan, take the boat out on the ocean, and then……… we’ll I’ll leave this here so you can find out what happens on your own. Think Stephen King meets Stephen Spielberg.

If you like mysteries that take you away from the norm then you will enjoy this book. I highly recommend that if you see this authors name on a book that you read it.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. Jamie and his brother Eric are in Hawaii hoping for a reconciliation when they get into a drunken bar brawl, resulting in death. While trying to get rid of the body, the brothers are sucked upside down in a whirlpool where everything is upside down. The waves are the clouds, it rains never before seen fish and parasites. It's like a modern day Lovecraft tale.

I never thought the beautiful oceans of Hawaii could be terrifying until I read this book. It is full of cosmic, deep sea horror. The creatures are out of nightmares! I felt the characters' confusion as their realities are distorted. This book truly dives into dark terrories . After violent events, two brothers (who both have shared childhood trauma) go on a boat ride that changes everything. The plotline is strong and everything ties back to the mystery introduced in the prologue. I highly recommend Heavy Oceans!

TW: gore, monsters, abuse, drug use, death

I could vividly see every scene that happened in this book - it was as if I was watching a film. The characters felt real to me. I believe there’s a deeper meaning to it than the surface Sci-Fi angle but I’m not sure how to explain it because the descriptions themselves floored me and overshadowed everything else.

If you enjoy Sci Fi or ocean themed books at all, I highly highly highly recommend this.

“How many times did we see Dad beat up Mom?” Jamie shakes his head, blinks hard and wipes his eyes. Too many, he thinks. And what does that do to a kid? It was like a bony hand with strips of rotted flesh reaching into his brain, grabbing wires, important ones, ones that matter, and plugging them into all the wrong places. Everyone says what you’re not supposed to do, but no one ever tells you how not to do it. Especially when it’s the only thing you know. The only example you’ve ever seen.”