Sorry, I couldn't finish this. I really found the writing style just wasn't for me at all.

... de-penised version of Radiohead’s “I’m a Creep”

Ugh, where to even begin


Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley and Aspen Press for allowing me the chance to read The dark continent by Scott Reardon. This is the 2nd book in the Prometheus man series. On an oil rig off the coast of Alaska, fifteen test subjects, all of them death-row inmates, have joined a gruesome experiment with unprecedented implications. Government researchers are attempting to enhance the human body, but they change the men into something else instead. While this book started off pretty good, it switched gears part of the way through and ended up just becoming one of those books you keep putting down. 2 1/2 stars

This was a fast-paced book and interesting but not a new plot (it reminded me of Justin Cronin’s The Passage as I was reading). It is a sequel to another book but definitely stand-alone. For the most part, I didn’t feel like I was missing anything by not having read the first book. I am not 100% sure of the motivation of the “bad guys” and if it was implied or if I am reading something into the plot that wasn’t meant to be so there. So that is leaving me a little deflated at the end.

This was a true thriller - fast paced, atmospheric, and intense. It's not an upbeat book (not that thrillers usually are) but the tone of the story takes a pretty depressing, moralistic viewpoint. There's also a lot of violence, and a epically bad bag-guy of Stephen King's THE STAND proportions. Reardon writes in a pretty cinematic manner and this would easily transfer to the screen (not that I need to see body parts torn off. Did I mention it's violent?)

I confess, I was not in the mood for this type of book after the first few pages. And I told myself "I'm not really in the right frame of mind for this book" most of the way through, because despite that, I wanted to see how it ended.

Struggled to finish this book, the pacing was slow and also felt rushed in places. the actual plot was interesting I just felt the characters didn't fit.

If I could review this book with one word, I think it would have to be: intense.

I started reading this book in the wintertime, but with the current pandemic, I had to put it down. The book is dark, violent, and heavy. The pacing can be glacial and then much too fast, and I didn’t care much for that. I felt like reading this book was like running down a steep hill, when you feel that your legs can’t keep up with the momentum.

So: I couldn’t read it for long periods of time, and I eventually just accepted that I’d read a chapter here and there when the mood struck.

I did enjoy the middle part where we got really involved with the test subjects; and the dystopian aspects of the second part of the book. I am sure that this will become someone’s favourite book, but it unfortunately was not mine.

I’d like to thank Aspen Press for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An incredible tale of an attempt to create the super soldier meets the Island of Dr. Moreau is an interesting read. The main characters are fully flawed, sympathetic saviors of humankind. Though the author lays out a save the world kind of trope, the story focuses on the US being attacked. I received this graphic, violent drama from NetGalley for an honest review, but NetGalley summaries don't inform reviewers if the book is part of a series.

Well, that quickly went off the rails. The blurb for this one looked so promising, but the reality wasn't at all what I was hoping for. It reached a point where I started wondering if the cliches could actually outnumber anything resembling an original story, and to be honest, I'm not sure which came out ahead. Then, to add insult to injury, character development is sorely lacking, and what I did learn about the characters, I didn't like. And just to round it all out, the second half ramps up the gore to the point that it kind of felt like a low budget horror flick. I did finish, mostly in hopes that it would improve. It did not, at least not for me, but I will say that unless I missed something, this one can be read as a standalone. The story is fast-paced, and I'm sure there's a market for it, but it clearly missed the mark for me.

i really wish i'd read the preceding novel, Prometheus Man, because i think a lot of the character development of 2 of the main characters must have happened there, since there wasn't much of it in this book. still, it was well paced and had some good dialog. it's definitely more cinematic than literary.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an e-ARC!

This is an explosive novel which grips you and doesn't let go until the final page! I really enjoyed this book. I really enjoyed reading about our two main characters; Tom and Carl. Their relationship developed over the course of this book and I was engaged throughout. The violence and action was fantastic, albeit a little graphic. Nonetheless, the writing really intensified the setting and I can't wait to read more from this author!

An intense second entry in a thrilling series, The Dark Continent will absolutely satisfy fans of Scott Reardon and convince newcomers to pick up the first title if they've somehow only stumbled across the second.

The Dark Continent (book 2 in The Prometheus Man series) by Scott Reardon was given to me thru Netgalley for an honest review. The Dark Continent is the first book that I ever read by Scott Reardon and I had no idea this book was part of a series. I did not feel lost, or unknowable without reading The Prometheus Man book 1.
The Dark Continent is a very interesting read. A great thrill ride that goes into the tunnel as it goes upside down, out of the tunnel, back into another tunnel, while going under water. The description hardly can describe of how much I loved this book. Fifteen test subjects are housed in an oil rig off of the coast of Alaska, being experimented on by scientists to make the ultimate killing machine, and what possibly could go wrong? Take in consideration that the 15 test subjects are death row inmates for doing and found 100% guilty of horrible, horrible crimes. Even that the darkest branch of the goverment, C.I.A. has no clue of what is going on, nor who is charge of the dark project.
When the 15 escape from the oil rig, plus a hostage, their plan is slowly coming to light. After the 15 make the Eastern side of the United States plunging in complete chaos, and it slowly carries westward. People start to travel up to Canada and down south to Mexico. As the more influx of people to Mexico, they close their borders, and soon after Canada does the same thing.
The Dark Continent is a very dark, somewhat graphic, but to the point, and honest story. You may think these men who are on death row due what they did, and so they would never be missed by others. So how do they deserve of how they are treated, or made over? The real question is how are they made over, for the inmates are not the only ones suffereing. They are being subject to stem cell research. Where do they get the stem cells from? The homeless, runaways, people who have no family are brought in for training or stem cell resesrch. Their blood is not the only thing being havested, but everything, and I mean EVERYTHING.
Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this ARC by Scott Reardon. This book gave me lots to think about, and I cannot wait for the third book to come out.

“the Dark Continent” is certainly dark. Dark in content, for the book is extremely violent, with blood, gore, and brutal violence on nearly every page .
The first chapter begins with the main character , Tom Reese, as a lumberjack topping a Massive Douglas fir. It is a dangerous enough job, even without one having mental lapses, spasms and flashes. Of paranoia., wall of which Reese has. In fact, , he collapses during his lunch break,and is found by the foreman dazed and withdrawn. That costs hi his job, for his own safety.
The second chapter introduces the reader to a lone CIA op, speeding I
His car into the remote fa4 western reaches of CPR,. As the pony westerner among a sea of orientals he stands out, a bad thing if one is a secret agent. He is looking for a hidden lab, in a hidden city, in a forbidden part of China. He finds it, and the police find his a smash-bang car chase ensues. But he is capturd, beaten nd thrown into a cell.
The third character a woman MD researcher is called back to a CIA. run establishment where mad scientists are trying to turn. Men into super warriors by injecting stem cells into them and messing around with their brains.most of the subjects are cons, serial killers, perverted molesters and rapist.Or all three.
Ok got the idea.? Alternating chapters , alternating character.. An extreme plot carried along by car chases ( two in the first three chapters) mad scientists and killer flu, wandering zombies, All the book requires of the reader is that he/ or she has a strong stomach, is able to suspend credulity, does not mind crudity, vulgarity, the liberal use of descriptions of torture, cruelty and scientific mental manipulation.
“ The Dark Continent” book , when described On the offering blurb, did not hint at the content or I would not have requested it. I suggest you do not either.

One star only because no lower rating is possible.

The Dark Continent is an incredibly high octane thrill ride from beginning to end.

The author has an uncanny ability to take what on the surface appears to be an unbelievable plot and make it seem like it could be a plausible reality...

It gives the reader reasons to really think about this story-line. For me thats the hallmark of excellent horror.... If you can ponder the What If's Than this is gonna keep you awake lol.

The dark world building and gruesome characters were incredibly well done and the depths of their evil was fascinating! As for our heroes nothing is simply black and white and as they fall deeper and deeper into the Chaos it truly opens the debate of good versus evil and all the gray areas inbetween.

This was action packed from start to finish with plenty of psychological elements that kept you thinking... What just happened??? A fascinating story I highly recommend this book!!

I received this book from NetGalley and Aspen Press for an honest review.

Wow! I am going to need some time to process this one. Scott Reardon has written a novel that is equal parts science fiction, horror, thriller and apocalyptic fiction - and truly terrifying!

From the publisher: On an oil rig off the coast of Alaska, fifteen test subjects, all of them death-row inmates, have joined a gruesome experiment with unprecedented implications. Government researchers are attempting to enhance the human body, but they change the men into something else instead. Led by a mysterious figure who evokes Colonel Kurtz and Satan from Paradise Lost, the subjects escape and bring the United States to its knees. Only two men can stop them, Tom Reese and Karl Lyons. Tom and Karl will have to cross an America on the brink of collapse. And at the end they’ll experience the horror of the dark continent.

This is the second book a series, but you do not need to read Prometheus Man to understand the events of Dark Continent. This is almost two books in one. The first half a science fiction thriller, while the second half takes a turn toward horror/apocalyptic fiction. There were definitely parallels to Justin Cronin's The Passage series if you are interested in something similar - an experiment on human beings goes terribly wrong, resulting in a form of evil no one could have anticipated.

Non-stop action, over-the-top brutality and unprecedented evil, this one was hard to put down, in spite of the immense gore. The Dark Continent is fast paced with plenty of action. The characters are complex, well developed, and the plot is scarily plausible.

This book started as a solid 5 star read for me! I felt some details could have been added to the first 50% of the book and this would have been a compelling thriller - a twist between the elaborate The Passage and strange abruptness of Station Eleven.

As I realized the full meaning behind the title, the plot veered in a very different direction. Not bad... just not the path I would have chose. Of course, that's why I'm not an author and there are so many wonderful choices for us readers! I was interested in spending more time on the oil rig or with the doctor, as the subjects traveled the country, leaving chaos in their wake.

Even though this is the second book in this series, I didn't have any trouble following the story and characters. I'm looking forward to reading the initial book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I can see the appeal of this book, but in this instance it just wasn’t for me. I’m very much a character person. To me, the greatest plot in the world won’t do much for my enjoyment if I can’t connect to the characters. I found there to be little character development in The Dark Continent, and for a fairly long book it moved fast, barely giving time to characters before we were racing off to the next setting.

The Dark Continent is the follow-up to Reardon’s Prometheus Man, but can be read as a standalone. On an oil rig off the coast of Alaska, government researchers experiment on death row inmates, trying to ‘enhance’ them. When these men escape, they cause havoc in the United States, bringing it to its knees. Karl, a CIA agent, gets roped into the plan to stop these men, and he brings with him Tom Reese, the only man who has successfully been enhanced until now.

The book moves like an action film. The first part is essentially setting things up, but the set-up drags on a little too long. There are three POVs here. Karl is on a mission in China, Tom is on the run in Canada, and Doctor Azamor works on an oil rig off the coast of Alaska. Azamor is the only female character we get to really know anything about, and even then it’s mainly about her relation to men in her life. She is defined by them, whether it is her family and the death of her son, or the inmates she ends up with when they escape. Despite her presence in the novel, she doesn’t even get a mention in the blurbs.

Doctor Azamor also feels very much like she was copied from Silence of the Lamb’s Clarice Starling, with the man leading the escapee’s reminiscent of Hannibal Lector, minus (I think) the cannibalism.

For the first part of the book, all we get from Tom is him running away from the police with his girlfriend, who again, we find out little about. This part I found really repetitive, a series of car chases which don’t always translate well to paper. They run, the police catch up, they run again, police catch up, etc.

Karl, meanwhile, is stuck in China, in a prison apparently right by a Disney park. Some of his experiences are related to the main plot, but again a lot of it felt a little unnecessary, and there’s no real consequences to what happens here.

Once the inmates escape, the real action picks up as they set out to destroy America. The book is titled The Dark Continent, but in reality, it’s a number of North American states that have their power turned off. And what follows is a post-apocalyptic scenario, as people flee, riot, and loot, and the escapees cause more mayhem.

Thing is, this all happens within days of the power going out. The world turns to shit almost instantly, which with the current situation, feels really out of line with what humans actually do when faced with something unprecedented. And that is totally not the author’s fault. But these kinds of instant violent scenarios feel more and more like demonstrations of masculine toxicity taken to the extreme. And it is all men who partake in the novel, with women once again placed as victims.

Like I said at the start of the review, I feel strongly that this book just wasn’t for me. Others who prefer action thriller type novels would likely get a kick out of The Dark Continent, but for me it was a little shallow and too long for the story it was trying to tell.

This is the second book in a series which wasn't highlighted when I requested this - recommend this information is added! Also, I recommend people read the first novel as, despite their being text at the beginning advising you don't need to have read the first, I think I would have found this novel a lot more interesting than I did.

The premise makes this sound like a experimental horror, with some spy overtones, however, I actually found this to be more of a thriller mixed with an apocalyptic ending. I enjoyed the build-up at the beginning of the novel, with some fast paced Jason Bourne type scenarios, however, around halfway through this turned into an apocalyptic nightmare and a struggle to finish. All in all, an okay book that may be better marketed as 'the next in the Prometheus Man' series!

This is a great book. The writing is very good. The storyline is great. It kept my interest throughout. Man made monsters are out to destroy the United States. Which causes other problems for the states. The good guys are usually one step behind.

In an era where being prepared for a major disaster is considered a "must", enter THE DARK CONTINENT.
The CIA has been experimenting on humans, specifically to create formidable soldiers who would be a super weapon against our enemies. Stem cell procedures have been conducted on those men who have nothing to lose, death row killers, men without principles or scruples. These stem cells have indeed turned them into men with greatly enhanced abilities. But, when you work with monsters, they become super monsters. As the story progresses, the hunt for these men becomes a race for the survival of the United States. A VERY good ultimate adventure/ thriller/ end of the world that does not have a happy ending. 5 stars!!!