Customer Reviews

Deeper (Tunnels, Book 2)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Let's get to the point from the off: Deeper is better than Tunnels. I guess the next question is: how is it better?

First up there is the pacing. Deeper begins where Tunnels left off, with unlikely protagonist Will Burrows still on the trail of his lost, curator father, and finding his friend Chester on board the train that is transferring him to the subterranean hell-hole that is The Deeps. The authors have pulled out the stops in grabbing - and maintaining - the reader's interest; something sorely lacking in the first book.

Secondly there is more depth given to some of the main characters, the relationship between Will and Chester moves from the one dimensional, making the reader care a little more for these two guys. Will's estranged birth-mother is also given some airtime; her personality - feral - based upon her fugitive lifestyle as she keeps one step ahead of the relentless Styx.

To discuss plotline so soon after release would not be fair on those who have not had opportunity to read the tome. Lest to say that I found it an entertaining, albeit mirthless, affair.

So why three stars? Well, for this reader, some issues remain. The narrative remains clunky in places and it is becoming increasingly clear that one of the authors is adept and the other, quite possibly, isn't. The book also comes in at 675 pages and is still in need of a good edit. It has the `well proof-read, but poor copy edited' feel of a self-published book, and the publisher - not the authors - must take responsibility for this.

Gordon's and William's subterranean opus continues. No-one doubts that the world they are creating is inventive and, in this post-Potter hiatus, refreshingly different. I will stay with these guys in the hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel - heck, I'm intrigued enough.

I ordered a copy of Deeper from an UK Amazon third party (I couldn't wait for the US release). I was expecting a lot in the way of character and plot development and I wasn't disappointed. If you enjoyed Tunnels, you'll love this sequel! The numerous nail-biting chapters leave the reader nearly as exhausted as the characters in the story! As dark as the Colony is described in Tunnels, the world of the Deeps is even darker and more deadly. However, the harshness of the environment is not nearly as terrifying as the evil of the Styx. A fantastic series!!

I finished Deeper. It has to be one of the best books/series I have read. I truly enjoyed every page. Up in the night for "just one more chapter."

The only thing I did not like was that it contained for me, so much violence. It was just a lot "darker" than the first book. I would place it more as a book for adults than kids. I would have no hesitations with the kids reading Tunnels, but I found this one just a little "deep" in those areas for them. With the torture, firing squads, killing, shooting of one of the kids, it was just a bit much for what I would let any of my kids read at this point in their lives (aged 3 - 16).

Both Gordon and Williams have created a masterpiece here...it is truly EXCELLENT work, I SO can't wait for Free Fall.

WWW.ClaireGuthrie.com

Fourteen-year-old Will Burrows lives in the suburbs of London, or at least he did up until a few months ago. That's when his archaeologist father suddenly disappears. When the police fail to turn up any clues, Will takes it upon himself to search for his father. With the help of his best pal, Chester, they discover a hidden tunnel behind a bookcase in the basement. Positive that this is where his father went, Will and Chester delve into the tunnel as well, unaware of the adventure --- and horrors --- they are about to experience.

Will and Chester discover an underground city called the Colony, ruled by the harsh and unrelenting Styx. They also learn another surprising fact: Will actually comes from the Colony. His mother, Sarah, took him and escaped to the surface when Will was a baby, and so the Burrows are actually his foster family. After years apart and not even knowing he existed, Will reunites with his younger brother, Cal. Another shocker is the fact that his foster sister, Rebecca, is a Styx and was spying on him all these years.

Will and Chester don't mix well with the Colony, and after suffering imprisonment, they, along with Cal, are banished to the Deeps. The Deeps is even farther underground, a wild and desolate place where the slaves, called Coprolites, mine for supplies. Will is positive that Dr. Burrows is wandering around in the Deeps somewhere and is determined to find him. But locating his father takes a backseat when all of their attention must focus on mere survival.

The Styx, and more specifically Rebecca, want Will back. An army is staked out to hunt him down, dead or alive. However, bands of Renegades live in the Deeps, fighting against the evil of the Styx. Two of the Renegades --- war veteran Drake and his young female protégé, Elliott --- take Will, Cal and Chester under their wings, teaching them how to find food and fight the Styx. And there's another person hunting Will. Sarah, Will's birth mother, has been on the surface, keeping out of the hands of the Styx for years, but is finally captured. The Styx tell her that Will has killed her brother. She is determined to find Will and extract the truth. While all of this is going on, the Styx are developing a super virus and intend to release it on the surface to wipe out the Topsoilers. Will and company have quite the task ahead of them: their own survival and that of every human on the surface of the planet.

Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams have created an amazing world of adventure, danger and the fight for survival. The story jump-starts right away into action of unexpected magnitude; there's no way to predict the astonishing twists and surprises hiding around every darkened corner. The authors cleverly present differing points of view of the mind-boggling Deeps --- from the absent-minded archaeologist, the war-toughened Renegades, the long-lost Colonist, and the open-minded and adventurous hero. They also delve into the theme of differing classes of people --- the ruling Styx, the rebel Renegades, the lowly slaves, the naïve outsiders and the banished outcasts --- and write with vividly colorful descriptions, bringing the Deeps alive and kicking.

As an added bonus, the adventure doesn't end with DEEPER; a third book in the series is on the way, titled FREEFALL.

--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman, author of FINDING MY LIGHT, THE BLACK POND and GHOSTS OF THE U.P.

(Note: I read tunnels, thought it was really good and allowed my 12 year old daughter to read it). Deeper is a great book as far as creativity and action/adventure/suspense, and despite tough situations, there is virtually no inappropriate language and no sexual situations. It advocates friendship, loyalty, self-sacrifice and doing what is right. It does have violence, as the main characters are being hunted and fighting for their lives, but it's not too graphic. I also read it prior to giving it to my daughter, and I am going to hold off doing so for a little while longer, as one character contemplates suicide without any regret, and another character advocates a mercy killing and denies the existence of an afterlife. These are great topics to discuss at the appropriate time. I would definitely recommend this book for older teens.

This is the second book in the Tunnels series. I bought the original book (Tunnels) to see if my [...] would like it. I read it first and found that I could not put the book down! I ordered Deeper and received it in no time at all from Amazon. I'm a mother of 3 and help work the farm plus have a job outside the home but it only took me ONE WEEK to read Deeper!!!!!!! Fantastic! I am anxiously awaiting the third book to be available in the USA in Feb 2010! I would reccomend these books to anyone! P.S. There is to be a major motion picture to come out too!

After digging through the subterranean world of modern-day London in search of his father, fourteen-year-old Will Burrows ended up on the run from the diabolical Styx army with his best friend, Chester, and his newly discovered brother, Cal.

As they travel deeper into the earth, they find dangers none of them ever dreamed possible. And the worst danger of all is the one from Will's murderous sister, Rebecca, who is leading the Styx army in an evil plot that threatens to wipe out those living above ground.

But with their lives at risk far below, can Will and his small band of friends stay alive long enough to save those above?

I enjoyed reading DEEPER even more than I enjoyed the first book, TUNNELS. The dark caverns of this book wound me along at a quick pace as it led me deeper and deeper into the story. I found myself happily submerged in the deeper and darker lives and trials of these characters.

It wasn't as slow going as the first book since Gordon and Williams excavated and laid the groundwork for a solid underground world in TUNNELS. As a result, the plot and character development moved along at a much smoother pace in DEEPER.

I am looking forward to the sequel so I can FREEFALL further into the depths of these characters' lives.

Reviewed by: Joan Stradling

I loved this sequel to "Tunnels". I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. That said...I really don't think this book is appropriate for the 9-12 year-old age group. There are many mature themes in this book; mental illness, the desire to kill for revenge, the young characters dealing with death and decaying corpses, and young characters killing to defend themselves. I'm nearly 40 and I found some of the events disturbing. I have a son who is 11 and I know this book would probably give him nightmares.

This book was a lot better than the first one, and I really enjoyed it. In fact, I loved it. It was every thing tunnels was not. It had action, fighting, it was thicker. I loved it. The reason I said it was thicker is because I LOVE thick books. It takes me a lot longer to read them, and they are packed with a tone of stuff. This book was great, and I would say that if you have not read this book or the series, I think you should. Great Book.

Personally, I liked it. It's much darker and grittier than Tunnels. I mean, Will's mother dies, Cal dies, and what the heck happened to Bartelby? I read the third one, and I didn't see any reference to the cat. But there's plenty of explosions, action and emotion. I agree with the person who said that it's not a book for kids; it really isn't. Too violent. All in all, good book, even if there is a need for editing.