Member Reviews

If you like suspenseful thrillers with unique settings, you'll love The Chamber. Will Dean creates a truly claustrophobic and terrifying atmosphere as he traps his characters in an underwater diving chamber. Just be aware that the story takes a little while to get going, and there's some technical jargon that might slow you down.

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This was only my second book by this author, but I've quickly learned that Will Dean loves to write a heart-pounding thriller that leaves you on the edge of your seat.

THE CHAMBER is a locked-room thriller that takes place inside a hyperbaric chamber. The characters are experienced saturation divers and find themselves locked in a chamber. When one of them is found dead, they find themselves trapped with no safe way to escape until decompression happens.

I love reading books in the vein of AND THEN THERE WERE NONE by Agatha Christie. However, I feel like I've read so many locked-room thrillers that I have high expectations. I loved learning about saturation divers and what their jobs entail. I found myself more interested in that part of the story than the rest. The suspense was fantastic, but towards the end it struggled to hold my interest and I didn't really care enough about the characters.

I'm excited to see what wild story Will Dean throws our way next!

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Definitely not my favorite from Will Dean. Very confusing atmosphere and terminology. Did not live up to the hype, in my opinion....unless you work on the water, or in a submarine??

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Thank you, Atria Books, for the gifted copy of The Chamber by Will Dean.

Why did I sign up to read a book about a group of divers locked in a hyperbaric chamber underwater when I have extreme claustrophobia? I honestly have no idea, but I did, and here we are, a thousand nightmares later.

This is my second book from this author, and unfortunately, it was not for me.

Dean is a master at creating the perfect, eerie, atmospheric setting and continuing to increase tension in the storyline - making it almost impossible to put down. But there is just something about how he executes the final pieces of the story that left me wanting.

Then, I was left in complete confusion on several occasions because I had no idea what was happening or what the characters were talking about, and maybe that's why the ending left me wanting. But either way, The Chamber was just not for me.

I will give the author another chance as there is potential there.

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This unique plot had me hooked from the beginning. I will say the second half dragged a bit but the ending made up for it. The concept was so fascinating to me and I thought this book was another Will Dean hit!

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After reading and enjoying "The Last One" I knew that I needed to pick this one up and overall, I wasn't disappointed. I’m sure I’ll keep picking up this author’s books in the future, because his unique settings and initial plots are intriguing enough to give a try, but this one definitely was not as much of a favorite as The Last One was.

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This one didn’t work for me at all and was a disappointment as I’m a huge fan of the author. I made it over halfway but the technical talk about diving was too dense and drawn out. I’m used to fast paced and incredibly engaging from the author and this wasn’t that for me.

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This was a five star read for me up until I got to the end and the resolution was kind of vague. I like a finite conclusion with my thrillers, BUT this was so well written and still so good, that I’m settling at 4.5.

Also my fear of deep water grew exponentially reading this and I think I’m more claustrophobic now. I could NEVER do what these people do. Aquanauts deserve more hype! The story exceled at making you feel like you were trapped in the chamber along with the crew. The constant reminder of how small the square footage was, the lack of real oxygen, and how the only escape was the constant pressure of the sea floor— it created a really good image of just how trapped they were. Also when they start dying off one by one, and you’re trapped in what’s basically the size of an SUV with a potential killer. You just want to escape but opening any escape hatch would turn you to literal jelly. The pressure cannot be changed that quick so they have to endure the slow rise up to surface while slowly dying off.
As the list of potential suspects dies down (literally), even when you get to the last 3, you don’t really know who the killer is. And I think it’s because maybe the author doesn’t really know either, which makes it even more of a mindblowing whodunnit. It was such a great lead up and that’s why I think the ambiguous ending left me like AHHH.

Thank you Atria Books for the amazing read!

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Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book follows a group of divers who are stuck together in a chamber way deep in the sea. When one of them is killed, they have four days before they can safely reemerge, and the main character is trying to find the killer before she is the next target.

I thought this book was just ok. I will first start with the positives. I think the idea of this one was great. You really can't get more locked-room and isolated than the bottom of the sea where no one can go anywhere.

This one read like sci-fi since there was a lot of explanation for all of the diving and different things going on. I am not familiar with diving so I was a bit confused through the whole thing. I do feel like the explanations were just a bit too much. I was bored reading some of it since it was explaining a lot. I also felt like the book was just a bit repetitive as well.

I do think the writing was good and the twists were pretty good. I would recommend this one to sci-fi readers (which I am not one).

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Are you ready for a to-die-for locked room thriller?

Todays venue: an underwater chamber for a deep sea diving crew. Six divers will descend but not all will make it back up to the surface. One by one the divers are being picked off.

All the usual questions: how? Why? And most importantly, who is behind it all?

I enjoyed this latest thriller from one of my new go to authors. He kept me guessing all the way. I was doing the usual finger pointing at everyone involved in the dive.

I would have liked to have seen a bit more tension and fear and a little less cleaning!😂 (but maybe that’s just a me thing).

This is the fourth book I’ve read from Will Dean. All his books have a bit of a different feel to them which I love. His ideas are always unique and fresh. You just never know what he will come up with next. What more could us readers ask for!?

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books

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This one was interesting and a little hard to rate honestly. It was very informative, but maybe too informative? There is absolutely no way I would ever be able to be locked in a hyperbaric chamber, I felt claustrophobic just reading it! I think this book will be for a certain audience but I’m not sure I was it.

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This was such a struggle for me. I would’ve DNFd this normally but I really wanted to know what happened. I think there was too much extemporaneous stuff going on. Definitely could’ve been edited more.

2.5

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I was drawn to this book by the premise - a whodunnit deep under the sea. This definitely delivered the feeling of claustrophobia with thorough setting descriptions, and creating full-fledged fear and paranoia by trying to figure out what was happening in that chamber!

The book was a very slow burn, though it did keep you in suspense. It was filled with a lot of educational information about sat diving (which was actually pretty interesting), and a lot of anecdotes from various characters. I thought the information in those anecdotes would lead to something, but I guess it was there to help us get to know the characters better.

By the end, I'm not exactly sure how to feel. The conclusion to the mystery was...unexpected, but also didn't quite fit in with any previous clues and fell a little flat after all of that build-up. Overall, I enjoyed learning about a career that I didn't really know existed, but was a little let-down on the plot.

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THIS BOOK! The Chamber solidified Will Dean's position as an auto-buy author for me. This plot takes the "locked room" trope and kicks it up quite a few notches. I loved this experience and look forward to Dean's future works.

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This intense thriller had me hooked—and feeling seriously claustrophobic! It’s set inside a hyperbaric chamber where six experienced saturation divers are stuck in tight quarters for a month. They only leave the chamber on dive days, and it’s all good—until one turns up dead.

As they start their decompression process, which will take four long days, another body turns up, and panic sets in. The team is trapped, with no quick escape, and the paranoia about who (or what) is responsible ramps up fast. The writing perfectly captures the tension and confinement, keeping the suspense constant. Will Dean does an incredible job of building up the dread and keeping you turning pages!

The only downside was keeping track of all the characters' real names and nicknames; it got a little confusing. Some people didn’t love the diving terminology, but I thought it added to the experience—I barely needed to check the glossary. If you’re up for a thriller heavy on atmosphere and will make you feel like you’re right there in that tiny chamber, this book is a must-read!

Thank you, NetGalley and Atria, for this ARC!

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ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I’m a little backlogged with my ARCs but working diligently to get caught up. I really like this science fiction/mystery/thriller! Reminded me a lot of And Then There Were None if it was set in the future and on a submarine! Some parts felt a little predictable to me but all in all a good read and I had fun trying to figure out the mystery. If you like mysteries and thrillers taking place in high stakes situations, check this book out!

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The Chamber by Will Dean is a slow burn psychological read. Like his last book, The Last One, this story is unsettling all the way through. Unlike the last book, the pace is slow and methodical. I was invested in the story the whole way through, but was a bit disappointed in the end. I won't give more details to avoid spoilers.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #AtriaBooks for a free copy of #TheChamber by Will Dean. All opinions are my own.

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*The Chamber* is a pulse-pounding thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat—and made me feel incredibly claustrophobic! Set inside a hyperbaric chamber, the intense imagery really brought the suffocating atmosphere to life. With six experienced saturation divers locked in tight quarters, the tension escalates rapidly when one of them turns up dead.

As they work through the stress of decompression, paranoia runs high, and the fear of who will be next is palpable. The writing masterfully captures the sense of confinement and dread, making this a serious contender for thriller of the year. I couldn’t put it down! If you love suspense that leaves you breathless (and not just from the action), this book is a must-read.

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Always a fan of locked room adventures. I was hooked from page one and the pace moved quickly. I don't think I'd do well in a tight and confined space and after reading this book, I never want to find out for sure.

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I have been a fan of Will Dean's books and The Chamber did not disappoint. This book had me on the edge of my seat. Highly recommend.

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