A Dark and Endless Sea: A Novel
by Blaine Daigle
ARC Copy

Combine a little Stephen King and a little H.P. Lovecraft and you have an excellent nautical horror.

Whitt has almost no memories. He vaguely remembers traveling across the country following a voice that calls to him. Eventually he finds himself in a small fishing town where the Sonia, a small fishing ship awaits him. Is this where he will find the answers he has been searching for? Or has he found his own nautical hell?

I never heard of Blaine Daigle before requesting to read and review A Dark and Endless Sea. I now have all of his books on my "to be read" list. This was one of the most enjoyable books I have read in a long time. I was on vacation when I started this book and to be honest it took over the trip. Reading it in the evening before bed wasn't enough, I was looking for any spare time I had to dive back into the creepy mystery.

Daigle does an excellent job at setting the mood as you read about Whitt and the rest of the crew on a trip to who knows where in the middle of the vast uncaring Ocean. The small cast of characters makes it easy to remember who is who and brings you closer to all of them. I absolutely loved the character of O'Halloran, the captain of the Sonia. The mystery behind him and the iron will he shows to reach his goals made him the most interesting character to me.

The book's story of facing the unknown, questioning your sanity, and being led around by forces you don't know, understand, or trust was the perfect amount of horror and mystery. I cared what happened to the characters and felt invested in their well being. This is a very well thought out story and it did a fantastic job of keeping my attention. I didn't find myself questioning the events or actions that took place, and I never felt that the book was dragging or filled with needless pages of fluff. Everything added well to the story and kept the pages turning.

I was very satisfied when I finished the book in almost every way. The one disappointment was that it ended. I can't wait to read another book by Daigle and I absolutely recommend this book to fans of horror and mystery. Be sure to pick it up when it releases on June 7, 2024.

What!!! This book was the best and most creepy filled, dread inducing ride!! This is my first foray into this author's work and it certainly won't be my last!

The story follows the protagonist as he tries to grapple with constant nightmares and loss of memory. He finds himself led to a crab fishing trawler where strange and eerie things take place on the open ocean. This book was claustrophobic with some stomach churning moments!

A really great horror novel that you shouldn't pass by!

Imagine waking up every day with no memory of who you are, haunted by the same intense and horrifying nightmare night after night. This is the reality for Whitt, the protagonist of Blaine Daigle's A Dark and Endless Sea. Whitt's journey is a mysterious and chilling one, as he finds himself inexorably drawn to the source of his nightmares: a crabber about to set sail for the open ocean. As Whitt delves deeper into the heart of his nightmares, he uncovers dark secrets and unimaginable horrors lurking within the ship's confines. In many ways, A Dark and Endless Sea feels like a gripping blend of the psychological horror of Dredge (the game) and the claustrophobic terror of Event Horizon (the movie).

Blaine Daigle's latest horror novel, A Dark and Endless Sea, is a pretty gripping read. This is my second book from Daigle, and I can say that he really knows how to suck you into his world. The way he creates these isolated, claustrophobic atmospheres is seriously impressive. Even though the story takes place on a boat out in the middle of nowhere, you can practically feel the tension and confinement seeping through the pages.

And let me tell you, he doesn't hold back on the chill factor. The setting is freezing cold, isolated, and dangerous -a perfect recipe for some serious spine-tingling moments. You can't help but feel a sense of dread creeping as you read, like you're right there alongside the characters battling the elements and whatever else lurks beneath the surface. And man, he doesn't sugarcoat anything. This book is dark, cold, and definitely not for the faint of heart. I am talking blood, guts, and plenty of terror. It is full on in-your-face horror that doesn't pull any punches.

Alright, let's talk about the flip side.

While the beginning of the novel grips you with its intense atmosphere and relentless suspense, there comes a point after the middle where things start to feel a bit repetitive. It's not that the events themselves aren't intriguing, but rather that the pacing begins to drag, leaving you itching to uncover the mysteries that lie ahead. At this juncture, the narrative could benefit from a bit more momentum to keep the reader fully engaged.

And as the story heads towards the end, it starts to feel a bit worn out, almost as if it is running on fumes. While tension should be building, it sometimes feels like the story is just dragging its feet. You might find yourself wishing things would pick up a bit and get to the point already, instead of lingering on and on.

Another aspect that detracts from the overall experience is the side characters. Apart from the captain and his second hand, the supporting cast feels somewhat indistinguishable. Over time, these characters blend together, making it difficult to differentiate between them and ultimately diminishing their impact on the story. This lack of distinctiveness in the supporting cast detracts from the depth and complexity of the narrative, leaving some of the story feeling underdeveloped.

To sum it up, A Dark and Endless Sea by Blaine Daigle delivers a gripping horror experience. Daigle creates an intense atmosphere of isolation and confinement, plunging readers into a chilling tale set on the open ocean. While the book excels at delivering scares, it does stumble with pacing issues. Nevertheless, A Dark and Endless Sea remains an engaging read, showcasing Daigle's talent for horror storytelling. Despite its flaws, this 4-star book offers plenty of thrills for horror fans, making it a journey worth taking for those who dare to brave its dark depths.

Huge thanks to Wicked House Publishing and Netgalley for granting me early digital access in exchange for my honest review!

this uses the sea perfectly and glad it worked with the horror element to it. The characters were everything that I wanted from this type of book and loved the feel of this. It uses the memory perfectly and thought that it uses the madness of memory perfectly. Blaine Daigle writes a strong story and enjoyed the way this was written.

New author for me. I absolutely love the cover. Well written story, will definitely read more by this author. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

This book has such good atmosphere and it truly is a haunting read. I enjoyed this so much. I would love to see this play out as a movie.

This book was tense as Whitt is trying to regain his memories while out at sea. It started off with a little mystery that just continued to build. As they ventured further, I was trying to read faster to learn what was going to happen next as quickly as possible. I was sucked in as Whitt and the other sailors all spiraled in their search for answers.

Atmospheric, haunting, dark and original. If you are not already intimidated by the sea before reading this book- you will be. There is more to be afraid of than the ocean itself. Exceedingly descriptive and imaginative. You feel feel like you are on the boat with the crew. This would make a great movie.
Thank you Wicked House Publishing, Blaine Daigle and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy.

First off, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This is the first book I’ve read in a long while that actually gave me chills. Thalassophobia: triggered. The visualizations I got from the underwater descriptions made me shiver.

Whitt Rogers dreams when he sleeps. It doesn’t sound unusual but his dreams aren’t normal. He boards a crab ship in search of relief and weird things happen very quickly.

This book was so descriptive and well-written. I was able to feel like I was on the ship with the crew. I’d definitely read another book from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley,Blaine Dangle and Wicked House publishing for the arc of A Dark and Endless Sea

There is something absolutely nightmarish at the thought of being out to sea. No where to run, no where to hide from those voices, the haunting songs of the sea. Blaine paints a wonderfully claustrophobic atmosphere where Whitt Rogers boards a boat to fish for crabs after suffering from nightmares of an underwater town and a lighthouse. It becomes very apparent that all is not as it seems on this boat, something is amiss with the Captain and what is that green glowing light all about?

I loved how this book played out, from beginning to end. How it ties up and wraps around itself, squeezing you tighter into the story. The characters were well fleshed out and all had different voices, even though they were suffering from the same affliction.

A great oceanic horror, 4 stars

This book is a must-read for fans of dark, atmospheric, suspenseful tales. It's a haunting journey that will leave you with lingering nightmares (the crabs!) If you don't already have a deep appreciation for this author's ability to craft a memorable narrative, this Lovecraftian fever dream of a story will do it.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

I thought the idea of this book was really interesting! The horror aspects of this book were really good, I just think the story itself was a little underwhelming. I feel like for a good chunk of the story we just kept going in circles without making any real progress. Towards the end of the book things picked up and we finally started getting somewhere. All in all I feel like if some of the middle was taken out and went into explaining and wrapping up the end a little more it would’ve helped the story a lot!

This book was creepy for me because I'm not a huge fan of boats and water, and the author's depiction of a tense atmosphere really added to the horror of the story. I loved the writing and looking forward to the author's other work.

This author is quick becoming one of my all time favorites. I have read all his books, to date, and he keeps getting better.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC of A Dark and Endless Sea by Blaine Daigle. This is the second book I’ve read by him and it was equally as good as the first. This was creepy and edgy. I find boats and the sea to be scary in itself and the horrors in the book added to it. I can’t wait to read the next book by Daigle

This novel was one of my NetGalley reads. This novel uses the vast and endless sea in such a way that can cause you to be scared of the sea and scared for Whitt and his shipmates. The author conveys the insanity of the crew mates on the ship as they too deal with nightmares and memory lapses like our main character, Whitt. If you're into ocean based horror, this book is for you

Blaine Daigle has become one of my favorite horror writers, up there with Stephen King and Ronald Malfi. This latest novel is no exception. The premise is unique, the writing is impeccable. The tense atmosphere that Daigle has created made this book truly terrifying, and I doubt I’ll look at the ocean the same. Every book I’ve read by this author brought something different to the horror genre, and I’ve read thousands of horror books. As always, I’ll happily recommend on publication day. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read!

A Dark and Endless Sea by Blaine Daigle was a harsh slap to my face. After a series of books failed to catch my attention - I did try. I read each for about an hour - this book captured me from the first sentence. It had everything going that checked my boxes. I would describe it as Nautical Horror but that doesn't do it justice. For once I was also not trying to solve the mystery and have all the answers. I settled in and read it front to back in one go. The spookiness turning into chaos turning into madness was so damn rewarding. My wife is not a reader but I couldn't help but tell her all about the book when I finished which is something I rarely do. A story meant to be shared. A 10/10 for sure.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wicked House for the ARC of this book!
The writing? Phenomenal
The story? Wicked good
Your TBR? This should absolutely be on it.
Such a breathtaking story and I feel like I went a little mad myself out there on the open sea.

Blaine Daigle has become a force to be reckoned with. I have read his three books (The Broken Places, A Dark Roux and now A Dark and Endless Sea and he has transported me to some dark, eerie, and scary places which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Whitt Rogers has horrific dreams. When he wakes, he has no memories and no idea who he is, except for the name he keeps rewriting on his hand. His wandering brings him to a crab fishing ship heading to the Bering Sea. As he becomes a member of the crew, he learns he is not the only one having horrible, horrible dreams...

WOWZA! This book was atmospheric, dark, chilling, creepy, tense, and full of danger. I loved the vivid descriptions, the eerie damp vibe of the book, and the pulse pounding scenes. What is going onboard the ship? What is going on in the water? What indeed!!!! I think it is pretty safe to say, I won’t be going on any crab fishing or any fishing ships in the near future (lets me real, that was never going to happen but still)!

If you enjoy books in the horror genre and have not read a book by Blaine Daigle before, what are you waiting for? His books are original, well thought out, well written, full of vivid descriptions, great dialogue, and imagery. I felt as if I was a silent observer on the ship, stepping over the crabs, and covering my ears the entire time!

Atmospheric, tense, eerie and hard to put down!


Thank you to Wicked House Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.