I loved Ararat, the first in this series. I lead a book club at my library and had my group read it and they we're torn down the middle on those who loved it and those who didn't. I was super excited to continue the adventure with The Pandora Room. After finishing it I'll say I ultimately liked the ending but felt like it took way to long to get to it.

Mysteries of the ancient and the modern, women and men dealing with myths, good versus evil, dead bodies piling, terror arriving in many forms.
Location Amadiya, a city of less than 5 thousand, an unstable region of the world, with a gathering of people in search of some things to be deciphered.
There will be archaeologists, researchers, and teachers a project financed by the European Union, the Alliance, doctors, Dr. Ben Walker, Ms. Kim, Dr. Tang, Sophie Durand, and Lamar Curtis and Professor Beyza Solak.
A box with secrets, myths to decode, whilst all things going berserk above ground, will there be some containment and preservation of life, key aspects hooking you to the final page.
Amongst secret rooms, near altars, within a subterranean city of old secrets buried, myths, awaiting the reader an intriguing and mysterious tale, in another land, in another dimension, amongst another entity of terror, with an Indiana Joan and crew in the pandora room.

“Weird shit” indeed! Christopher Golden is an artist at using mythology and ancient history to bring current and contemporary issues to the forefront without browbeating us with the politics. His characters are realistic and easy to get to know and get comfortable around. All have flaws or issues they are dealing with but Golden doesn’t drag the story down making them maudlin with them. As the story comes to its climax, a few dwell on their past decisions, but wouldn’t we all? What Sophie Durand and her team find in the mountains of northern Iraq will use those issues against them. It’s a wondrous discovery that could give authenticity to the mythological story of Pandora’s box. As wonderful as this discovery is, a special team of scientist and operatives are dispatched to protect the dig only to find themselves trapped within the subterranean dwelling with an ancient horror determined to unravel their sanity and an all too real battle being fought above them by jihadis who are willing to do anything to get their hands on the find. Man has been warned over thousands of years about the evils contained within Pandora’s box. Will the arrogance of modern man be their downfall? Pick up this one and be prepared to lock-in and join in the battle for human kind. Golden never fails to deliver on the ‘weird shit.’ ‘Weird shit’ indeed!!!

The Pandora Room, Christopher Golden’s follow-up to his Bram Stoker Award-winning novel Ararat, sees Ben Walker returning for more supernatural archeological shenanigans and cave-based craziness.

In the book’s opening moments, Sophie Durand discovers she and her team are being followed during a trip into town for supplies. It’s a small leap in logic to realize that whoever is watching her must want whatever is buried in the subterranean city recently uncovered in Northern Iraq. Not until they discover a hidden chamber does Sophie realize what mysterious find is so prized. Her dig site isn’t home to just the remains of an ancient city, but to an ancient artifact straight out of myth — Pandora’s Box. Or, more accurately, Pandora’s jar. Enter “weird shit” expert Ben Walker, his UN counterpart and lover Seong Kim, and a violent ISIS raid to seize the jar and its ancient deadly contents.

I recall Ararat being a bit of a slow-burn with Golden ratcheting up the tension by increments and lulling us into that book’s horror element by degrees, until everything finally boils over into all-out insanity. The Pandora Room, however, wastes little time dropping us into the thick of things. Golden brings in the tension right from the start as Sophie is followed by a pair of mustached men, leading to a car chase through the desert and an encounter with Allied military forces protecting her archaeological dig site. Although, as with Ararat, Golden reins in the horror elements for a good long while, but there’s certainly no shortage of action. Once the supernatural aspects come into play and it’s (mostly kinda sorta) clear that Sophie, Walker, and company are not alone in this underground city, The Pandora Room becomes a frenetic sequence of chases, gunplay, double crosses, and all sorts of other associated mayhem.

The Pandora Room is a worthy sequel to Ararat, but like most sequels and series it fairly closely adheres to the original’s formula for success. It’s kind of like Die Hard 2 in terms of sequels. To borrow from John McClane, there’s another cave, another ancient evil…how can the same shit happen to the same guy twice? It’s forgivable, of course, simply because of how enjoyable it is, but it does tread heavily on familiar ground already covered in the prior book. Golden injects just enough freshness to keep the formula alive, gives us an extreme landscape to set it all in that’s the polar opposite of Ararat’s freezing, high-altitude mountain cave, and seriously ups the ante in terms of threat levels and deadly serious dangers from both inside the subterranean city and the jihadist-filled desert above. The Pandora Room feels familiar, but there’s enough unknowns lurking about the edges to make the endeavor welcome. There’s also some neat teases into Walker’s past unseen adventures that I would love to see fleshed out at some point, particularly his time in Guatemala, and a brief detour to the Arctic that has plenty of story potential and horrific implications to fill a future novel (book 3, perhaps, Mr. Golden? Please?)

Books like Ararat and The Pandora Room hit a particular sweet spot for me, and Golden has a done a wonderful job of following in the footsteps of authors like James Rollins. Turning to the ancient world and historical myths made real is an endlessly fascinating realm to mine for present-day fiction, and the implications of what ancient evils could be mishandled in the present provides all sorts of harrowing horror. While Rollins trends more toward the high-tech aspects of ancient history/modern military thrillers, Golden puts in a sweet spin all his own by taking similar conceits and running them through the filter of horror and supernatural terrors, and with plenty of run-and-gun vim and verve. Basically, if you dig Rollins’s Sigma Force books or are maybe looking for something a little fresher than that long-running series, the two (thus far) Ben Walker books are a natural pick up. The Pandora Room is meaty, scary, and has enough potential what if? terrors to keep you up late into the night worrying about ancient evils and their possible weaponization. It’s not exactly a feel good read, but it sure is damn well riveting.

[Note: I received an advanced reading copy of The Pandora Room from the publisher, St. Martin's Press.]

Eh. Wooden characters and a shallow plot with some hard-to-swallow twists and turns (more around the human decisions and motivations than the suspend-disbelief bits). Harmless but not memorable.

A huge thank you to St Martins Press and Netgalley for an advanced copy of The Pandora Room. This book is so thrilling I have a hard time containing my excitement while writing about it! I am always a sucker for stories that relate around mythical artifacts. This story did not disappoint in that arena. The Pandora Room starts on an archaeological dig site in Iraq and the whole world is astounded when an item is uncovered that seemingly looks like the original Pandora's Box. Yes that Pandora's Box, the Pandora's Box story that everyone learns when they are young. Are you hooked on that synopsis yet?! Just wait, it gets better. The jar could contain a virus. This book takes on an incredible journey which all good books should do. You will adventure through hidden tombs, secret caves and are often times than not in incredible danger. Whether you love history, adventure or dangerous settings, this book is for you.

If you found Pandora's Box, would you open it? The Pandora Room explores this question when an archeologist discovers what she believes to be Pandora's Box. Of course, something so monumental can never be kept secret. Now, nations will fight for this box. This is my first book by the author, and I enjoyed it. It's confusing at times because a lot is happening, but overall this is a solid thrill ride. I will read more from the author. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview The Pandora Room by Christopher Golen. Golden is a great writer - some of his past work are my favorite books - Snowblind - Dead Ringers. I read his last book Arafat, and it was very good.
This book is a stand alone, but I suggest you read some of his previous novels - they are filled with mystery, suspense, and are really scary.
This book doesn't disappoint - and I give it 3 stars.

Recommend.

Genre: Mystery & Supernatural Thriller
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Pub. Date: April 23, 2019

This is the author’s second novel with his protagonist, Ben Walker. Think James Bond, only more realistic. This hero actually feels chronic pain from injuries incurred during his fights with bad guys. The reader first meets the character in Golden’s 2017 novel, “Ararat.” He joins an archaeological expedition, digging deep within a mountain located in Turkey. They were looking to find Noah's ark (and stumbles instead on to the devil). In “Pandora,” he joins another expedition. Once again, Walker becomes part of the team as a member of the National Science Foundation. In reality, he works for the US government—spy lies. Nothing new about books with spies and forces beyond scientific understanding, but Golden does it very well, reminiscent to “The Age of Exodus,” by Gavin Scott. In “Pandora,” the archaeological team learns that the infamous titular box is real and buried in an ancient subterranean city located in Northern Iraq. Golden is a master at creating a claustrophobic atmosphere filled with evil, both real and hallucinatory. The infamous titular box, which is a jar in this novel, is filled with ancient diseases that once opened turns into a plague. Do not be surprised if you begin to feel a sore throat.

Enhancing the tale, “Pandora” has an element of current affairs to it. It seems that both governments, the US and the Iraqis, want the jar in their hands to be used as a weapon. Now that is a thought that is truly terrifying and probably not all that farfetched. In this sequel, Walker is fighting demon ghosts underground and soldiers above ground: A very nice touch. “Pandora” does not quite have the same finesse as “Exodus.” Scott simply never misses a beat. Golden spends a good deal of time explaining why the team is actually experiencing two different types of disease: skimming material. Still, Ben Walker#2 is a very good supernatural fantasy. The similarities in both Walker tales are obvious, but as long as you go in knowing this, you will not be disappointed. If you didn’t read the first tale, this can easily be a standalone novel. “Pandora” is written razor-sharp to scare the bejesus out of the reader. Your adrenaline should rise with each chapter. The secret to Golden's success seems to be that he writes about supernatural thrills with just the right amount of religious references to make it all feel grounded in something familiar.

The premise for this book is intriguing. The story starts off with Sophie Durand, the lead archaeologist, slithering through a crack in the wall, to see what was hidden behind the chamber where they were working. Going against her colleagues’ insistence that she wait until the wall structure could be stabilized, Sophie finds herself cut off as soon as she enters the room and mortar showers down closing the opening.

As she waits for her crew to break through the cave-in, she explores, finding a tunnel, leading to stairs, descending into a city beneath – Derveyi. She locates a small room with an altar upon which rests a stone jar with a tightly sealed cap.
Her translation of the writing on the altar and the jar overwhelms her when she realizes just what she has found.

Then the story shifts to Ben Walker in Greenland. The Pandora Room is the second in a series by Christopher Golden. Beginning with Chapter 5, Ben Walker and Kim Seong are the primary characters along with a Dr. Erika Tang, a biological anthropologist and epidemiologist. Based on Sophie’s translations, she found the Pandora Room and the sealed stone jar sitting on the altar. Rumors of the find spread, and international forces start to maneuver for access. U.S. Military is providing security along with the Kurds, but ISIS and other terrorists are curious about any artifacts considered religious.

The story slowly becomes challenging to follow as lots of secondary characters are introduced and an attempt to steal the jar ends with a leak spreading through the underground city. The psychological effects of the contagion include hallucinations and the physical effects are varied and serious. While all this interaction is playing out underground, topside terrorists are attacking to gain entry to the city beneath.

Finally, this ends up being an intense psychological thriller, sometimes hard to follow but never boring.

Christopher Golden does it again. I thought that his Bram Stoker winning novel Ararat was spectacular: a blend of adventure, myth, religion, and terror. Now, in his latest, "The Pandora Room,"Golden does it again.
The writing is easily accessible, and yet there is a profundity in it that makes the reading so beautiful and poignant despite the "genre" writing.
I was particularly excited to see that a series for television is being adapted, and I look forward to seeing these beautiful, dark, chilling adventures brought to life in a visual medium.

National Science Foundation/DARPA fixer Ben Walker gets a call that the discovery of an ancient jar in Kurdistan may be the mythical Pandora’s Box. Walker must go undercover in an effort to acquire the jar for study by the U.S. government. The secret is out however and a terrorist cell known as New Caliphate is determined to get the jar and unleash whatever plagues it may contain. As a battle between Coalition forces and the jihadists go on above ground the scientists and support staff underground are getting deathly ill and many fear that the jar is to blame.
Any time DARPA is mentioned I think of James Rollins and those are mighty big shoes to fill. But I thought Golden did an admirable job not only with The Pandora Room but with Ararat in 2017 of keeping me interested in the mythology, the history, and the science behind these various discoveries. He also adds an element of the supernatural to ratchet up the tension a bit more. Golden provides a nice cast of supporting characters to bring different perspectives to the myth, the story can drag in places and the oppressive underground setting is very similar to Ararat’s.
A fine effort all the same and recommended for anyone looking for a James Rollins lite.

I thoroughly enjoyed Golden's book. The plot pulls you and holds you until the end. The characters were well developed.

My thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley.
I'm a sucker for this man's stories. Well, his adult market stuff. Matter of fact, nobody should ever trust me when I review his books! He almost always gets a pass with me.
I did love Ararat, the first Ben Walker story. I almost loved this one too. Almost. One thing Golden can do is develop the scenery and the mood. I could clearly picture this underground system of caves, and feel the oppression of rocks, crazies with this Pandora virus, and then Daesh coming in the only opening in the whole cave system. Shit fuzzy! 😬 What I also should have been feeling though was fear. Fear for my friends "the characters" in the book. I wasn't though. Mr. Golden has come up with one hell of a tale. It was so fast paced though, that he didn't take time to develop his characters. When someone dies in a story, then I want to feel that loss. If I don't care who lives or dies, then all I've done is read a good story without heart. I'm willing to overlook the lack of character development for now, because of read other books by him that made me cry and cry. I'm hoping #3 will revert to more insight into the red shirts!

What grabbed me off that was one of my favorite authors had a good blurb on this plus idea Pandora's box being opened was very intriguing I enjoyed it quite a bit there's a lot of different ways they could have gone with the idea fund read

Title: The Pandora Room

Series: Ben Walker #2

Author: Christopher Golden
Author's Website:

St.Martin's Press

Genre:Horror, thriller http://www.christophergolden.com/

Pages



Book 1 :

Title: Ararat



When a newly engaged couple climbs Mount Ararat in Turkey, an avalanche forces them to seek shelter inside a massive cave uncovered by the snow fall. The cave is actually an ancient, buried ship that many quickly come to believe is really Noah’s Ark. When a team of scholars, archaeologists, and filmmakers make it inside the ark for the first time, they discover an elaborate coffin in its recesses. The artifact tempts their professional curiosity; so they break it open. Inside, they find an ugly, misshapen cadaver—not the holy man that they expected, a hideous creature with horns. A massive blizzard blows in, trapping them in that cave thousands of meters up the side of a remote mountain…but they are not alone.



The Pandora Box



When what appears to be the original Pandora's Box is discovered in an ancient city, neighboring countries fight for ownership and unleash a terrible plague.



The Pandora Room is New York Times bestselling author Christopher Golden's chilling exploration of what happens when the original Pandora's Box is discovered in an ancient subterranean city, stirring international conflict and exposing the archaeological team to curses, whispers, and the terror of a legendary plague.



In one ancient variation on the myth of Pandora's Box, there were two jars, one for Pandora and one for her sister, Anesidora. One contained all the blessings of the gods, the other all the world's curses. Now, in a subterranean city in Northern Iraq, archaeologist Sophie Durand has discovered a secret chamber covered in writing that confirms that version of the tale--a chamber which contains a single jar. "Weird shit" expert Ben Walker joins Sophie's team just as the mystery deepens and grows ugly. Those who believe the myth want to know which jar has been found in the Pandora Room, the one containing blessings, or the one full of curses. Governments rush to lay claim, but jihadi forces aren't waiting for the dust to settle. Whatever the jar contains, they want it, no matter who they have to kill...or what will emerge when they open it. For Sophie, Walker, and the others, the Pandora Room may soon become their tomb.



My thoughts

rating:

Would I recommend it: yes

Will I read more of this series? yes

This was sent to me unsolicited from St.Martin's Press, and wow what a story, I would have to say the series is getting better and better , and this is only book , in book 1 Ararat you find that the story takes place in the Mount Ararat in Turkey and having to deal with snow storms and avalanches , here in The Pandora Box you join Ben and his friends as they go to a underground secret chamber in Northern Iraq, have to deal with the danger of cave-ins, jihadi , and what ever is in said jar, and the more they don't know the more it becomes clear that everyone and anyone want its, and that the jar its self is just as dangerous by its self maybe even more so then the ones that want it, as I was reading it ,it reminded me of a movie I like called Ghost of Mars ,this story had some of the same aspects of that movie which I loved , and the writing still reminds me of something that James Rollins would write . It was so much more then I thought it would be. It didn't disappoint me at all , which I started reading I had to keep reading, had to see what was in said the jar so to speak, had to see if it was as dark and dangerous as they thought it was going to be, and the more I read the more I kept thinking nope I don't want to be a room with it or any where it is, it was like you could feel the evil coming off the page itself , and that's a good thing, because I love finding authors who can make their stories some to life as well as their characters, make you feel everything the characters feel . With that said I would love to think Allison, as well as St,Martin's Press and Netgalley for letting me read and review it exchange for my honest opinion , and the ending wow just wow didn't see that coming, now i can't wait for the next one to come out and I really want to set down and re read this one and the first one back to back .Once again thank you so much.

Christopher Golden caught my attention with Ararat. It was a solid read heavy on the atmosphere and with characters you were drawn to. It is hard to accept Pandora Room as the follow up to that story. While it raises the stakes with potentially world-ending badness, there is little if anything to make you care about the outcome of any of the characters. So many possibilities were planted with the first Ben Walker book that seeing them pissed away into a pile of mass-market blegh written with half the competency of a rote-thriller king like James Rollins is a huge disappointment.

Pandora Room has the feel of a book written to check a certain amount of boxes. It’s done competently enough, but it has all the magic of a man stuck in a dead-end job who is doing his taxes for the 20th year.

Ben Walker is a good guy, and I can appreciate the fact that Golden has saddled him with lasting effects from previous encounters. However, in this book he’s another just another hero figure with skills for everything he could possibly need that pop up when he needs it most. Unique and attention-grabbing he is not. He sets the tone for the rest of the book. The other characters have potential, but there are just too many introduced too fast and the action starts moving a tad too quick to really get to know or care about any of them. (I did feel for two of them near the end, but not as much as I could have.)

With that being said, the pace is nice and quick, the dialogue doesn’t suck, and there have definitely been worse things published. This is – if not actually the entertaining thriller we were promised – at least palatable.
Overall, The Pandora Room obviously failed to thrill me, but as with any type of book your mileage may vary. I think the majority of my problem with the book is that my expectations were so high after reading Ararat. Taken on its own, it’s probably not as cardboard-tasting.

All I can say is WOW & WOW!!!!
One crazy and wild ride of a read. Very tense thriller. This was my first read by this author and I can’t wait to get my hands on more reads.
The Pandora Room is one you don’t want to miss. This book will keep you reading long into the night until the very last page.
A very dark and scary horror adventure you will never forget!!

I just discovered Christopher Golden and it was like Christmas morning to me! How did I miss this author? Now I can look forward to reading all his books and savor them slowly. I read the Ocean Dark first and just finished this The Pandora Room for a honest review. Oh wow! I love his writing and you honestly will to! He reminds me a lot of Ronald Mali. The Pandora Room has the setting of the book down in caves with a possible deadly virus escaping into the world. The main character is also in his other book with him fighting the evil devils who want to get down into the cave system to the Pandora Room for the jar holding the virus. I am totally thrilled to have read this book and want to read more like it! Highly recommended from me a serious reader! Thankyou!

What happens when the real Pandora's box is discovered? As Michael Koryta said, "a wild ride". And who to trust? You won't be able to put this book down.