Under the Surface was absolutely wild—in the best way. Urban always knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat, and this book was no exception. It starts with five teens going on a class trip into some caves, but things go wrong fast. Suddenly they're trapped underground, people start dying, and no one knows who to trust (a common theme in an Urban novel). The suspense is intense, with every chapter ending with cliffhangers—just when you think you know who’s behind it all, another twist is ready for you. I love how Urban writes characters that feel real, and how the interpersonal tension increases the stakes. Never do you feel like you're reading a thriller intended for 15 year olds; the scares are actually chilling. For fans of fast-paced, dark mysteries that mess with your head (in a good way), this is a must-read.

Aesthetic: 💀🌄🌒🦇🎒🕸🥾🕷🥖🌄📸🔦🥐⛓📰🔒

Review:

A girl who becomes trapped in the Paris Catacombs with no clear way out, and a boy who is determined to find her. The story is a perfect mix of thrilling summer romance and mystery that kept me on the edge of my seat. I was fortunate to have received an advance copy of the book, and I immediately delved into it. The romantic elements in the book were well-suited for the setting, and the suspenseful moments had me audibly gasping. Overall, I would give it 4 stars!

Troupes:

♡ Friends-to-Lovers
♡ He’s desperate to find her
♡ She’s desperate to get back to him
♡ Plot Twists

Thank you so much to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for access to an eARC in exchange for my honest review!!

what's it about? ⬇️

Ruby's trip to Paris already feels like enough of a mess when she has to spent the whole time either meeting eyes with her former best friend Selena or dodging the urge to admit to her feelings for her current best guy friend Sean. But when her friend Val sneaks out one night to go and meet up with strange boy she'd met earlier that day, risking enough trouble that she could be sent home, Ruby knows she has to go and find her before it's too late. She doesn't expect to run into others on her on her late night expedition, but when she runs into both Selena and their valedictorian Olivia in the elevator and they're almost caught, suddenly the three of them are in this together.

Chasing after Val, they find her and her new friend Julien talking about a party down in the Paris Catacombs, and after proving unsuccessful in talking Val out of it, they all venture down into the catacombs beneath the city in the hopes that strength in numbers will hold true. But an unexpected injury early on leaves them at an immediate disadvantage as they are suddenly lost beneath the city in an unmapped section of the catacombs...and that's only the beginning of the horrors they'll face in their time beneath Paris. Can they make it out alive, or will they become just another story for the news of teens going missing in the catacombs?

my thoughts? ⬇️

This book was so much fun, I literally can't stop thinking about it in my day-to-day life. The characters were all so well written and their troubles, while the silly troubles of teenagers, were also so relatable for the same reason. And the twist of what else is waiting for them down in the catacombs was so crazy and added so many fun layers to the story. This made me a huge Diana Urban fan without having ever read her work before, and I've already read and loved one more of her books since finishing this one.

Genuinely, I wasn't expecting to go into a book about getting lost in the Paris Catacombs and to come out of it crying multiple times, but that's exactly what happened. *Please* read it.

trigger warnings ⬇️

death, murder, violence, gun violence, stalking, injury/injury detail, blood, gore, grief, death of a parent (mentioned), confinement, panic attacks, asthma attacks, kidnapping, toxic friendship, vomit, gaslighting, cult activity.

Fantastic! Amazing wonderful! Such a good read! The characters are loveable and the story is so real! Both in the sense of the story line and the fear of not being able to save everyone. Truly if you're looking for a dark, suspenseful read it's a 10/10 all the way!

Under The Surface is full of heart racing and adrenaline pumping moments! I flew through this book so fast. My only regret? Not reading this when I first got this book and I am so sorry Diana! This book has so much action and twists along the way. Ruby is using her class trip to get away from her dad who is engulfed in his heartbreak of losing the love of his life in child birth. Sam is secretly in love with Ruby so he follows her to Paris.

When Ruby's friend runs off to met a boy at a secret party, Ruby has already lost one friend and didn't want to lose another so she chases after her. The only problem is that this boy convinces Ruby and two other girls who also get wrapped up in everything to follow. How can Ruby turn down an adventure down the Paris catacombs? She knows she shouldn't, but it's the catacombs.

The tunnels hold more secrets then any of the girls thought. Nothing is what it seems and soon they realize just how lost they all are and they are not the only ones down there. It's a race against the clock as the tunnels are filling with water and no one knows where they went. Sam is the only one determined to find them and won't stop until he finds Ruby. Secrets are unsurfacing everywhere and as things start tightening around them and creepy things start happening I just couldn't put this book down. I love the adrenaline that this book leaks and intense moments.

*** This is a true teen book that is completely clean and only mentions one of the girls saying that she could use a drink from the stress of losing her friends in Paris. It's more of in a joking way.

I loved the pacing of this book!!! Keeps you engaged and wanting to continue to read!

This was a great YA Thriller

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review

This book was fast paced and kept me on my toes the whole time—I’ve always thought the Paris catacombs were interesting but I don’t think I’d ever willingly sneak down there. Some of the conversations between the characters were a little cheesy but overall a good YA thriller.

This book had me hooked from the very first page and it did not disappoint,
We follow the 2 different POV's first Ruby who is lost in the catacombs under Paris with 3 fellow students and a random guy who was meant to be taking them to a party in said catacombs. The other POV Sean's who is Ruby's best friend and is completely in love with her. He's trying to work out where she and the other 3 girls are since he doesn't believe what the police are saying and they that they didn't run away.
While the girls and Julien are lost somewhere in the hundreds of miles of tunnels it's a matter of finding a way out before starvation and dehydration start to kick in but that's not the only thing they have to worry about. It turns out something might be hunting them in the dark.

Everything was perfect about this book. I found it very hard to put down and when I though I had it all figure out and I thought I knew how it was going to end. I didn't the end was a complete shock and not what I thought was going to happen. I would 100% recommend this book to everyone.

This book feels very young adult, with teen drama, parties, and sneaking out. I really enjoyed the setting in the Paris catacombs, and the story is full of surprises. Overall, it was an exciting read with a fast pace and lots of intensity. Quick and fun!

A heart pounding thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat desperate to know what happens next, with twists and reveals that will keep you guessing until the end.

This book starts off with a bang and doesn’t let up until the end. Told with dual perspectives - Ruby, an aspiring travel vlogger whose aspirations lead her to getting lost in the Paris catacombs, and Sean, her almost-boyfriend doing everything he can from the surface to find where Ruby has gone missing. With the timeline ticking down on being able to find Ruby and the others, we don’t know who - if any - will survive to the surface.

This is a perfect read for anyone who is a fan of YA thrillers - filled with drama, romance, betrayals and a shocking twist I didn’t see coming - I was on the edge of my seat until I finished reading.

A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Penguin Young Readers Group for providing this e-ARC.

I recently went to Paris and knew this was the book to read to hype me up for that trip. I enjoyed following along the journey of our four teens as they’re in Paris. I saw myself in Ruby as I read and really liked her voice within the book. Sean was the hero I didn’t know I needed to see in a book but he was the best. Really enjoyed this book!

I picked this up after visiting the catacombs in Paris last summer, and this is a perfect fast-paced thrill ride to hand to teens! Recommended!

I liked this book and thought it was well written. I thought it was well written and would recommend but it wasn’t my favorite book or anything.

Under the Surface is a thriller that centers on the mysterious Paris catacombs. I've been fascinated by the whole idea of catacombs since I was in middle school (because of Monster High) so naturally I was really excited for this one and it did not disappoint. It follows high school friends Ruby and Sean on their French class field trip to Paris. When Ruby's friend Val sneaks out on the first night to meet a boy, she and a few other girls follow with the intent of bringing her back, but they end up trusting the wrong people and get lost in the labyrinthine catacombs.

I liked the nuanced view on friendship that is explored in the context of this story. Urban doesn't shy away from emphasizing how this whole situation was Val's fault, nor from exploring Sean's dislike of Val. Ruby also ends up reevaluating her friendship with Val in light of this. I thought that Ruby and Sean's relationship was done really well too. We see how they're mutually attracted to each other, but don't know how to tell the other. Sean's feelings for Ruby is also what leads him to push so hard for the investigation into her disappearance, which was really sweet in an unconventional way.

Of course, the descriptions of the catacombs are harrowing. I've seen pictures of the Paris Catacombs and knew that there were rows on rows of skulls, but I never really considered how being amongst that could impact you psychologically. The way that Urban weaves in the history of the catacombs was really interesting too, and contributed nicely to an absolutely insane plot twist.

I absolutely loved this book! It was a fast-paced thriller. And I really enjoyed the characters. I would truly recommend it!

I really ejjoyed this book. Being beneath Paris and seeing what lurked beneath was something I' haven't seen done before. The conspirarcy as believable. and the terror felt palpable. There was a moment or two that got me kind of anxious. I couldn't believe what I was reading on page.

This was a new author for me & I will be reading all the things from her! I LOVED this book so much! All the stars! It had to be on my favorite list for sure! The thrill, emotions, and being at the edge of your seat! It’s such a page turner! I can’t say enough about my love for this one!!

Due to personal reasons i have not read this, but will purchase and read someday! I am giving it 5 stars because between the cover art and premise, i know ill love it!

Ruby and her classmates think they’re heading to an exclusive underground party, but they soon find themselves lost in the dark, winding tunnels beneath the city with no way out. And they're not alone. Something dark lurks beneath the city. Under the Surface is a gripping YA thriller that keeps the pace and tension high. For fans of locked-room thrillers with gripping plots and high stakes. This one’s definitely worth picking up!

Title: Under the Surface
Author: Diana Urban
Genre: YA Horror
Format: eARC
Series: NA
Star Rating: 4.5 stars

tw: theft, parental death, blood, injury, night terrors, death, near drowning, bugs, assault, murder

A special thank you goes to Netgalley and Penguin Group for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.

One of my favorite horror movies is As Above So Below, which is about a group of young adults who go into the Paris catacombs and bad things start to happen. When I discovered that there was a YA book about a group of teens going into the catacombs, I knew I had to get my hands on this book by any means necessary. Luckily, NetGalley approved my request so I didn’t have to do anything too crazy. But just so you know, Diana, I would have done a lot of things to get my hands on the book. A lot.

One of the best things about this book was how the teenagers behaved like teenagers. Ruby, the main character, had a huge fight with one of her friends. The reason why was so silly to me and I was starting to get annoyed about it. But one of my friends, who I buddy read this with, reminded me that they are teens. Of course, what we (as adults) think is silly is a big deal to teens. That put things in perspective for me and I enjoyed the book a lot more.

The setting is so well done. The Paris catacombs are so creepy and I can tell that Diana Urban did her research about this place. There is so much history about the catacombs and I learned quite a bit about how vast the catacombs are. It made me really to visit the catacombs and also never want to visit them ever.

I think I will end the review here. This is one of those books where you need to experience it with as little information as possible. Just know you will experience a lot of dread. It pervades the entire book and it will never leave you, even at the very end. I highly recommend this book! Especially if you enjoyed the movie, As Above So Below.