Thank you so much to Compass & Fern and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC; it is greatly appreciated.

FINALLY ! I have been wanting a spooky lost in the woods novel that would just completely immerse me for ages. This book is it ! It's touted as a combination of Lost and House of Leaves. While I never watched Lost, and don't know what sort of twists are present in that show, House of Leaves is my favorite book of all time, and I can confirm that this book has major HoL vibes and is a great comparison.

This book takes off quite quickly, and never dies down. I am honestly a bit shocked at how much crazy shit happens in here. As someone who absolutely loves to craft theories this book is right up my alley. It will keep you questioning everything and everyone. As this is the first book of a series, do not expect many answers. I know I'm going to be going crazy waiting for the second book.

Considering how quickly the plot gets going, this is a long book. I'd say from the 70-90% mark it does start to feel drawn out a bit, but then that last 10% is another gut punch. I think the first 50% of the story is my favorite, and is just the right amount of "WTF" for me. I do think for some it might get a bit overwhelming past this point, because there is a lot going on here, and it might be tough to keep track of everything.

This is a multi POV book, which I thought was going to be a downside for me in the beginning, but it actually fits into the story so well. It's easy to tell the characters apart, and they are fully devoloped, so no one feels like a throw away character. What they are feeling comes across the page effortlessly , and I felt so much freakin' anxiety reading this book.

The atmosphere, the fear, that feeling of not knowing what's real or not, retreating into your head to feel safe, etc. All these things are portrayed in a well done manner without being over descriptive. It's exactly the kind of read I've been searching for lately, and it makes my horror filled heart so happy. I 100% recommend it to horror fans, particularly if you love the deep, dark woods as a setting. If you loved House of Leaves, and enjoyed the show Dark, I think this book would be worth picking up.

Have I already found my favorite book of 2023 ? I might have ! I will for sure be picking up a physical copy of this book, and bring on 2024, because I absolutely need that sequel !

This book is told from multiple points of view and includes excerpts from a book written about a group of hikers that were lost in the High Sierra of California in 2016. It follows a research team from CalTech who are backpacking into the Deadswitch Wilderness to study a glacier. An IT worker at Oregon State University finds a bunch of corrupted audio files on a hard drive related to the glacier study and becomes concerned when he hears that some of the researchers may be injured or missing but he cannot find anyone connected with the study willing to speak with him.

The setting is eerie and creepy with confusing trails that appear or disappear despite the detailed maps the group is carrying from previous excursions into the wilderness, which several of the group were also party to in the past. The stories of the missing hikers also lend an air of mystery to the forest. There are strange things in the woods including shadows that lead to interesting finds and plant life that shouldn’t be there. The characters all have strong personalities with complicated relationships as well as secret agendas that at times cause conflict.

I really enjoyed this story and look forward to the next installment of the series.

Thank you to Netgalley and Compass and Fern for a copy provided for an honest review.

Firstly, a huge thank you to S.A. Harian and NetGalley for the e-ARC of Briardark!! Briardark captured my attention from the very first page. The book reminded me The Blair Witch Project and Lost, both taking place in dense forests while strange things occur to the people trapped among the trees and mountains. I love all things spooky, and I can't believe it took me so long to pick up my copy of this book. I can say with certainty I'll be talking about it and recommending it for a very long time.

The book introduces the reader to The Deadswitch 5 -- five women who went hiking in the Californian wild one summer only to go missing Without a Trace. Their disappearance inspires a book to be published, and excerpts of that book are sprinkled within Briardark, giving the reader an "unbiased" media POV, which I loved. It gave extra information and wove in another plot line within the book.
Fast forward 6 years and we meet a new set of researchers who are hiking the Deadswitch to conduct geomorphology research on a glacier within the mountains. As soon as they set foot on the trails, though, things start to go haywire, and issues pop up left and right. Paths go missing and footprints disappear, while new forks in paths emerge when there shouldn't be any. The vegetation is different, there is a weird presence surrounding them all, and when they finally reach the glacier it's all but melted into a lake.
When the team finally decides that enough is enough and something more sinister is at play than abnormal coincidences and that they need to leave, the forest is doing everything it can to prevent their escape. At the same time, a group of strangers, scientists, and park rangers gather together to piece together clues and past experiences in hopes that they'll be quick enough to save the research group before it's too late.

Briardark had me hooked the entire time I was reading it, I couldn't put it down. This is one of my favorite horror/thriller books that I've read in a very long time!! I think that S.A. Harian did such an amazing job creating the Briardark world and layering everything together that it wasn't difficult to comprehend, unlike some thriller/sci-fi books. Briardark was also told in multiple POVs, ranging from the four researchers to the rescue group outside of the forest. When I saw that the 2nd book won't be out until 2024 I almost started crying because I don't think I can wait that long -- the cliffhanger at the end of the book was so well placed. Everything wrapped up, nothing ended too abruptly. I still have questions that I NEED answers too, but maybe I'll get some when I do a re-read before the release of the second book.

The atmosphere S.A. Harian created and how information was given out slowly over time so you were always second guessing and anxious couldn’t have been done any better, chef’s kiss.

You are thrown in right at the beginning of the trip for a scientific study of a glacier. A team of 4 are hiking a wooded area called the Deadswitch and encounter a dead body on a tree, and the logistics of how it ended up there don’t work out and then it disappears. On the other hand we have an IT guy that finds a corrupted file of this expedition and instead of deleting it tries to find out what happened.

Masterfully written and bone chilling. Kept me at the edge of my seat the whole entire time! It’s a great horror to keep you up at night.

Recommend to readers who enjoyed Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read Briardark!

This one is going to stick with me for a while!

Growing up in Oregon, hiking was one of my favorite past times. I loved being in the wilderness, among all the natural beauty. But there were times when being out in the forest alone was a little spooky and times where I would get down-right scared. Finding a dilapidated old building, trails that didn't sink up with maps, being in an area that didn't seem to have had many visitors (who knows what you can find there!) and when all of the animals would go quiet. Creepy!

Briardark seemed to play off of those very real feelings you can get while being out in the woods, adding paranormal twists and lots of mystery. It was simply Excellent!

I went to OSU in Corvallis so of course I loved that tie in. And being set mainly in the Northern California forests, Briardark has this beautiful, remote setting to play with.

There are 3 main POV's that are very easy to follow. The characters all seem like real people and brought me quickly into the story. And the creative, spooky parts of the story were my favorite.

It's best to go into this one as blind as possible, I think. So if you enjoy a little bit of creepy paranormal with your mysteries, pick this one up and don't even read the Book Summary. Just jump right in! You're going to love it!

When does the second book to this come out? Because I need it now.

This book hits close to home as I have lived in the Pacific Northwest practically my whole life, The way that this book made me hesitant to go on any hikes (and thankful that I don’t go on many).

This book has a lot of things I love in books: multiple POVs, some mixed media elements, and a cosmic horror plot that kept me glued to the pages and terrified of going to sleep.

I will say that the only reason this book gets 4 stars instead of 5 from me is because, when it comes to book series, I like to have at least SOME answers. Even if it’s minimal. I didn’t like that 100% of the plot is left on a cliffhanger. The ending of this one felt a bit rushed and incomplete, but overall as a whole I devoured the story and loved every second of it.

I really felt disappointed in this book. On paper it sounds fantastic and totally up my alley. I love strange phenomenon and supernatural drama but I felt my mind wandering throughout the book and the ending felt really rushed. There is a second book in this series coming out in 2024, so I will be reading that to see how the story will be finished, so it's not totally bad!.
The story follows Sienna Dupont, a researcher who has climbed the Alpenglow glacier
with her team to study the changes happening there. It is a strange place. Another team of four went missing and never came back which is particularly worrying for Sienna and her colleagues. They then find a dead woman hanging in a tree, which then disappears. It's unsettling. Lots of other strange and odd sightings start happening and they seem to get lost and find themselves in a different place which doesn't feel right. Meanwhile, Holden, doing his boring job listening to old audiotapes before they are deleted, finds Sienna's audiotape of her trip. The timings don't make sense and the experiences she recounts sound horrific to him, but then he realises the team may still be up there and proceeds to try and get help and travels to the wilderness to find the stranded team.
I received this free ARC book for an honest review.
#Netgalley, #s.a.harrian, #compassandfern.

Creepy horror in a dark dark wood, where you can't trust your own senses and mostly have no idea what the heck is going on.

What the book is about

- A creepy wildnerss preserve where people go missing and menacing things lurk
- A research team that gets into trouble in the wilderness during an expedition
- An IT nerd who get in over his head when he stumbles across what remains of the expedition's recordings

The writing, the world-building, and the plot

I really enjoy the author's writing style. The atmosphere is perfect for horror and it was at times a little too easy to get immersed in the story. The story is mostly told in third person past tense and it constantly switches between perspectives. The creep factor worked very well for me, with the sense of foreboding and ominous threat. The way the perspectives of the expedition members and Holden fit together, feeding the sense that things are so very wrong.

One thing I wish I'd realized before: this story does not in any way wrap up in this book. For some reason I didn't realize this is a start to a series, so I was quite unprepared for the entirely open ending of the story.

The characters and their relationships

All of the characters, with the exception of Emmett, feel very real and well fleshed out. Holden is a very relatable character to me: he's underachieving, unambitious, a nerd, fed up with people, and an on page demi-sexual to boot. He's just floating through life, mostly satisfied without a higher purpose. Isaac is the character that's the puppy of the expedition and the author really makes you feel for him. Cameron is a bad bitch with secrets and inner conflict, and Sienna, our main girl, is a determined and independent woman who's plagued by her past problems. The less said about Emmett the better.

My reading experience

I really loved the beginning of this book. Impeccable atmosphere and exactly the kind of horror that works for me, personally. Creeped me out so good. The book is blurbed as a mix of House of Leaves and the show Lost, but I'd also throw in Annihilation as a pretty good comparison.

The last quarter of the book didn't quite live up to the rest, mostly because it became clear that we weren't really headed toward any kind of resolution and the reader was left with as many questions at the end as at the beginning. But I still really loved the book and I'm just really bummed that I'll have to wait at least a year for the sequel.

Harian is definitely a new author to keep your eye on.

Briardark is a multilayered isolation survival cosmic horror tale set in some beautiful, yet creepy woods. There are multiple time lines and multiple points of view about different experiences of people exploring/ hiking through the Deadswitch woods. The map doesn’t match with reality and there are several unexplained scientific anomalies. If that isn’t creepy enough, there are rumors of a mysterious cult dating back to the pioneering times and a shadow figure stalking about the woods as well.

Briardark was such a fun read. I really enjoyed reading about each character’s personal experiences and look forward to seeing what happens next in book 2. I only wish that book was being released now so I wouldn’t have to wait a year to find out what happens next.

Briardark | S.A. Harlan
5 ⭐️

Hikers have been going missing in the Deadswitch wilderness for years. The bodies have never been recovered. In fact, there isn’t any proof that the hikers were ever there at all.

Now Dr. Dupont and her research team are hiking in to study the Apenglow Glacier. The issues start when the maps they have don’t quite match up to the trails. Then the unexpected and unpredictable woods start to show their true nature.

Despite this book ending with a cliffhanger, I loved it! This is a little more sci-fi than I usually read but I’m so glad I gave it a chance.
The dual narrative is clear and easy to follow and it was an unpredictable and fast paced page turner. Briardark incorporates horror in a fresh new way and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.

Read if you like:
- Lost in time dual narrative
- Cliffhanger endings
- Horror/sci-fi mashups

This absolutely enthralled me in a very folk horror, mind-bending creepy way. I'm excited that there's a sequel soon because wow I already hate that I have to wait after the cliffhanger it ends on. Our scientific team of researchers really gets way more than they bargained for on a trip through a very horrific forest that at first they think is playing tricks on their minds when they stumble across a body. There's so much more to play than that and it takes you through twists and turns you won't see coming.

Thank you netgalley, Compass and Fern LLC and S.A Harian for this ARC of both audio and ebook for me.

This one was TRIPPY! I didn't know what was happening sometimes but I was thoroughly enthralled. It hooked me and I just needed to get through it.

It was creepy both in atmosphere and the happenings and this is the perfect book for those who want something different and a slow burn plot that grips you the WHOLE time.

Can't wait for book #2!

Five hikers entered Deathswitch Wilderness for a backpacking trip and never escaped its wrath.

Seven years later, Dr. Siena DuPont is leading her team on the Allenglow Glacier expedition into the depths of where the famous Deathswitch Five disappeared. After hiking for miles, their trial on the map is different from what’s in front of them; a fork in the road throws them off kilter and Siena feels like something is terribly wrong.

Just when I thought I would be reading a typical book about a hiking trip gone awry, the cabin transforms the hikers into another dimension. What if the Deathswitch Five didn’t perish on the mountain? What if they were sent to a different dimension?

The Shadow is keeping Siena and her team on the mountain, the anomalies are changing and keeping them inside a cabin with an unbreakable barrier. How will Siena escape? We won’t know until the next book in the series is published.

I’m usually not a fan of books that end without a conclusion but it ended in a way for readers to imagine their own ending until the author writes and publishes the next book, Waywarden. I can’t wait for more page turning horror and to finally find out the fate of Siena and her team.

While this book was good, I think I was expecting too much of it. One of my favorite movies is The Ritual (also a book, but the movie is what really captivated me), and I think I was expecting it to encapsulate that. It was an unfair expectation to have when going into this book, so I admit my bias in this review, but I felt this novel was a tad lackluster for me. It was creepy, scary at times, and had engaging writing that kept me reading. But again, I was expecting something different so was ultimately disappointed by the ending.

That aside, the increasing feelings of dread as the novel spirals from the forests nightmares was excellent. It truly had me fearing my forest, even though I’ve grown up in them, and had me truly haunted by the end. I do wish we had more answers at the end, as I felt that contributed to the disappointing feeling I had, but maybe that’s what the point was. An abrupt, open ending that has the reader guessing even after they close the book.

If we could give half stars, I’d give it 3.5. 3 stars seems too low but 4 is a tad high.

"In the summer of 2016, five young women - one an influencer - entered the inarguably breathtaking Deadswitch Wilderness for a backpacking trip, an opportunity rich in social currency. When they failed to reemerge, Search and Rescue would begin their operation without a GPS breadcrumb.

None of the women had taken their phone."

And none would be found again.

We now have a current group of researchers making their way through Deadswitch Wilderness to study the Alpenglow glacier which is melting at an alarmingly quick rate. While there the group experiences things that are beyond our understanding. Otherworldly and terrifying.

We also have Holden, an IT worker at Cal State, who comes across the audio files of Dr. Dupont, one of Alpenglows researchers, and what he hears on the file has him worrying that her life, and possibly the others with her, are in danger.

"Deadswitch was haunted. Something had been given free rein to roam and manipulate this place, just like the devil over Earth. "

One thing to note, this is the first book in a series so expect a cliffhanger. Thankfully I was aware of this going in so the abrupt ending didn't tick me off too much. I hope the questions I have will be answered in the next installment. And yes, I do plan to read it.

If cosmic horror and folk horror had a baby then that sweet little bundle of joy would be called Briardark. My friend Debra (Thanks for the rec, Debra!) compared this book to Annihilation which is a book I loved and I agree...to a point. Annihilation was really mind-bending and not for the casual *I think I'll try sci-fi for the first time* reader where as this will be much more palatable to a wider audience. I don't want to classify this as young adult but the writing is much simpler than VanderMeers making it easy to get lost in the story. I was flipping pages yesterday when I realized I had been reading for hours and had hardly looked up once. Harian had me hooked without a doubt.

If you enjoy books cloaked in mystery and incapacitating dread then this is the book for you. Just don't get lost in the woods! 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Compass and Fern for my complimentary copy.

I finished this book in two sittings. It was absolutely enthralling and I was genuinely scared while reading it. The two pieces of media this book is compd to (Lost and House of Leaves) are absolutely the perfect inspirations but I think this book does it slightly better - specifically with its comparison to HOL. Much like with HOL, the novel is told in dual timelines, one of them being the POV of someone finding the documents of the first timeline however I think it was done far superiorly here. Is it probably because Holden is a much more interesting character with an interesting reason to find the lost documents? Absolutely. I think both timelines had a purpose and I felt the horror in both timelines in the pit of my stomach. You feel just as disoriented and confused as our characters and I loved that. The only element I did not enjoy with this book is that it is not a complete story on its own and is the first in a series. I prefer my horror to be resolved within one novel, so while the ending leaves you on an interesting cliffhanger, I felt dissatisfied by it.

This immensely gripping thriller is about a group of scientists out on Dr. Siena Dupont’s research expedition in the dead switch wilderness where things aren’t exactly what they seem. 7 years ago, a hiker went missing in this very same wilderness. Today, this same hiker’s body is found hanging in a tree; the next day, the body is no longer there. Biology doesn’t seem to follow the laws of science. Time isn’t passing like it should…

Meanwhile, Holden, an IT worker finds some disturbing audio files on an old hard drive - Dr. Dupont’s audio logs of their expedition. He discovers that these scientists were in danger, one of them is dead, but are they still out there? He takes it upon himself to find out before it’s too late and the wilderness possesses them.

Brilliantly written, had me gasping at the end of every chapter. Fast paced, immensely intriguing and eery sci-fi elements. Absolutely unputdownable.

I cannot WAIT for the 2nd book in this series!

ARC from NetGalley
Pub Day: 1/16/23

Deadswitch Wilderness is not for novice hikers, but with an abundance of biodiversity and a rapidly shrinking glacier it is a very popular place for experienced hikers and environmental researchers alike. Siena Dupont’s entire career has been leading to this research trip and though she has been replaced as Lead Researcher, that won’t get in the way of her finishing her mentor’s research.

Holden doesn’t want to look too close at his life. He’s at a dead end IT job, his coworkers suck, and his girlfriend left him. After yet another terrible double date with his buddy, Holden goes home and does some work because what else is there to do? He’s wiping hard drives when he comes across a strange audio file from a scientific research trip that seems to have gone awry. He needs to find out who Siena Dupont is before he can erase these files and move on.

This book is absolutely wild. And, for me, reading it was an experience. It reads a lot like a found footage movie and I wasn’t sure I liked it at the beginning, but as the narrative rolled along, I think that Harian found a really interesting and compelling style to tell a “found footage” story in novel form. This book is the first book in a series, so just know before you begin that the story isn't complete by the end of this book.

I found all of the characters interesting, if not likeable. Unlikeable characters in a horror story are usually the biggest deal breaker for me. I want to root for the characters to succeed, not cheer for their deaths. The book is multi-POV and in understanding each character's motivations, I'm fully invested in their struggle for success.

The way Harian weaves the worldbuilding into the narrative might be my favorite part of the book. We are fed information at a slow, but consistent drip from so many different streams of information that I am certain I missed things. I have questions, but they are questions that I am confident will be addressed in the next book and I look forward to reading whatever comes next.

This novel was spooky with a capital "S".

Five people go missing in the forest and are never found....several years later 4 researchers enter Deadswhitch on a grant trip to the same area,... or is it? This book will have you questioning everything and keep you on the edge of your toes. Multiple story lines that create an introcate web and keep you searching for answers until the very last page. Cosmic Horror at its best.

I can't wait for the 2nd book!!! Thank you NetGalley & Campass and Fern LLC for the ARC

Finished on the last day of 2022 and quickly added to my 2022 favorites. Waw. Briardark is an amazing intriguing quick read that keeps you hooked for hours. I read this in two days in two sittings and spent my whole day reading it altho I’m kinda in a slump. The plot is fastpaced and exciting with some breathers inbetween the exciting stuff but the whole story felt exciting overall actually. All characters are loveable and I felt for them through their adventure.
I gasped at multiple occasions and got spooked by the rich way the author describes locations and happenings on multiple times. It kinda reminded me of the game ‘oxenfree’ wich is about multiple dimensions and time descrepancies.

The story ends on a cliffhanger wich was a liiiitle bit too big to my liking wich is the reason for my 4.5 star rating. I was made to curious about Holden’s path in this story to be left hanging I guess?

I haven’t read alot of horror yet but this was deff the best I read so far and will probably stay one of my favorite books for awhile! Amazing read!