Under the Surface Review
It honestly feels like clockwork at this point. I go through a serious romance kick where I read several novels back to back until I hit a wall. While all of the romances I’ve read have been stellar (hello, Emily Henry!), the time has come where I’m in desperate need of a genre switch up. When I picked up Under the Surface by Diana Urban, I knew that this would be the perfect novel to get me out of my funk. This novel is full of the kind of suspenseful twists and turns that had me up late reading just one more chapter. Without further ado, here is my Under the Surface review!
The Plot
High school seniors Ruby and Sean are thrilled to be in Paris for their senior class trip. When Ruby’s best friend sneaks out after hours, Ruby finds herself beneath the city headed to an exclusive party, deep in the catacombs. What starts out as harmless fun below ground, quickly transforms into a life or death chase through Paris’ oldest maze.
Review
Normally not one to judge a book by its cover, I have to admit that I picked this one up solely because of the amazing cover art. The cover alone suggests that this novel will be full of twists and jump scare moments. Thankfully, the plot is as interestingly spooky.
From the beginning, this book packs in the thrills. I love a thriller that doesn’t overload on backstory before getting to the action. This novel strongly delivered on that front. Ruby and her friends find themselves in the catacombs almost right from the get go. This made for an interesting read with the majority of the plot taking place underground.
The suspense in this novel is top tier. The dark, underground setting, lost without a way out, it all created the perfect amount of desperation that had me devouring each chapter. Throw in a cat and mouse chase with a serial killer, and I was hooked.
Part of the suspense came from the characters, their decisions, and their mistakes. Although at times frustrating, it was refreshing to see a portrayal of high school students that didn’t have everything together. They made decisions reflective of their maturity levels, which at times were not so wise, but hey. It increased the stress
That being said, my biggest complaint with this novel was the slang. It felt like the author was trying so hard to be up to date with the youth, that the dialogue at times came off as inauthentic. Maybe I’m being too harsh. However, anytime I see the word ‘fashionista’ used unironically, it’s hard for me to take it seriously.
Even so, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The twists and turns kept my attention throughout, and I was on the edge of my seat until the very end. This is one of those novels in which the conflict hits the ground running pretty early on, and doesn’t let up until the epilogue. There are some elements of romance, but don’t pick this one up expecting for a big romantic side plot. This novel is all about the thrills, and thrill it certainly did!
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Overall Rating:
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Xx, M
