Binged this listen. Literally could not stop listening to it. Morning, noon, and night. My only hate for this novel/audiobook was the end. Even with that one downside this book is going to be one of my top 10 by the end of the year I can feel it. I finished listening to this today and I’m still thinking about it. Highly recommend this.

Sadly this just wasn't for me.
I enjoy these stories, the creepy hiking into the wilderness, getting lost (and inevitably killed). Just recently read Hunted by Darcy Coates and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I listened on audio to Briardark and it just couldn't hold my attention at all. Dnf-d at 27%... I could not like or care for any of the characters, and felt none of the atmosphere. I was literally bored and I'm not proud of it.
I don't think it's necessarily the book's fault - it just wasn't right for me for some reason.
Thank you for the arc and good luck with the book, i saw it was well received on Goodreads and I'm happy for it.

Wow this was so much more interesting than I thought it would be!

I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for a good cover. This cover is everything - the skull, the dark and creepy colors/tones - I’m here for it. I read the synopsis and wasn’t sold, but as if I’d already received it through NetGalley I figured I’d try it anyway.

Worth it. So interesting. So mysterious. The narrator did an amazing job, but I do wish it had been a cast of narrators for the multiple POVs provided. While I know having a full cast isn’t the norm, it is what I prefer and adds to the story…having one is fine especially when they do such a solid job with it.

I’ve read several books with this basic premise recently and I gotta say this one stands out. My guess is the characters are adults and many like this tend to consist of teens with teenage drama. That was missing here and I loved it.

I definitely like the way this horror book was done. It’s not super duper creepy, but it’s scary in the sense of “oh man, what if that happened to me?!” And these are the horror books I appreciate the most. They’re realistic in feel - and that’s what makes it creepy!

I don’t wanna say much more because *spoilers* but I DEFINITELY recommend this.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This review is based on the audiobook ARC I received from NetGalley.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5 stars


My brain is a puddle right now but I will try to sum up my thoughts as well as I can.

This book was insane, and left me with so many questions. If you enjoyed the Netflix show “Dark” or “Stranger Things” this book is for you. This book had lots of mystery and thriller aspects with a hint of horror and thrown in on top of the underlying fantasy themes. This book was spooky and weird and left me satisfied but also wanting more.

I was so happy to find out that we will be getting a sequel next year because this book was mind-boggling and I need answers.

The narrator, Brenda Scott Wlazlo did a fantastic job telling this story. She was well suited for this type of thrillerish novel.

Very dark and intriguing cosmic horror tale. It ends off on an enticing cliffhanger. Thankfully its a series and I believe the second book will be out soon. I will continue with the series and see where it goes but it is off to a great start.

Thank you to NetGalley and Compass and Fern LLC for sending me an arc audiobook copy of this title for review.

Dr. Dupont and her team of researchers embark on what could be a career making opportunity in the desolate wilderness of Deadswitch. Spooky events and anomalies aplenty upon their arrival put them all on edge. They discover a dead body, only to have it disappear mysteriously. Landmarks are ever changing and there's a creepy song that keeps randomly playing on their radio.

What I Enjoyed:
-The plot was gripping from the very beginning, the chapters always ended on a suspenseful note which made it a quick read.
-Very atmospheric. This was what I wanted and expected from creepy, isolated forests with bizarre happenings.
-Good pacing, not purely action but enough to keep you engaged.
-Listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator made the story more intriguing than I think it might have been as a physical read.

What I Disliked:
-Unfortunately, I didn't connect with or care about a single character. They all seemed so bland that it made it hard to care about what happened to them. I even found myself wishing that they would just all get killed off a few times.
-The whole Holden plot line was boring to me just because he was an annoying character. I just wanted to skip over the parts from his perspective.
-An enjoyable listen but not memorable, after a few days I felt like I forgot nearly everything that happened. Enjoyed the vibes more than the actual story/characters and I just wish it had gotten a bit scarier, because it definitely had the potential to be truly haunting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC!

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.

The narrators were great and perfect choice for this audiobook!

Can't wait for book #2!

If you crave creepy stories in winters pick this up. The storyline is around a group of researchers sent to explore the Deadswitch Wilderness ( I love that name 😉) to study the depletion of a glacier. 30 miles into the wilderness a d things are already swaying from their expectations. Discovering a missing hikers body, an additional mountain peak and people dissappearing into plants and trees and bone chilling anomalies.

The book's pace was a little slow for me, but story is very very very engaging! It's like horror mystery meets science fiction and blows up the witches Calderon 😶‍🌫️🤯

Quick disclaimer though, the book is a part of series and ends on a cliffhanger:. And I don't know when the next part will come 😪

Thankyou @netgalley @s.a.harian @compasspublishing for the creepy horrific book 🤗

Genre: #horror #mystery #sciencefiction
Rating: 4/5 ⭐

This Stranger Things-esque book started a little slow but, holy buckets Batman, it caught up quick. I can’t say a whole lot about how hooked this book had me, but I can say that it is the first in a series and I’m not even mad about not having the second one. Ok, I am impatient, but I figure if that is my only draw back to this, it’s a really good book!

Siena has been working for years to go research a specific glacier. Her mentor died, and right before he did he begged her not to go, even though they had been planning everything together. With her group, they start off. But, things are off. New paths, strange trees as they hike up to the cabin. And then the glacier is gone. What has happened? Why are things so different? And why are Siena’s recordings broadcasting to a guy in a different state like a call for help?

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

I'd give this a very solid 4.5!

Part X-Files, part House of Leaves, this horror-mystery thriller will grab your attention and NOT let go.

5 friends hike into a forest... only to disappear. Years later a scientific party look to study the same area, now surrounded by stories of the fantastic. But when they start finding curious results, they will embark on their own journey of terror!

While having some really good twists, what captivated me was the weaving of many plot devices in a cohesive way toward its climax that takes the impossible and makes it feel real.

I would STRONGLY recommend giving a listen to the audio for this story, as the narrator was phenominal, breathing life into the characters rather than just narrating. Very good work here!

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Briardark follows some scientists and an influencer who are studying glaciers. The stories don't happen at the same time and I love the going back and forth between the present and the "true crime" retelling of events. It was super creepy and I didn't predict where the book was going which I really liked. I will be picking up the next book.

4 stars.

Dr. Siena and her research crew are hiking to a glacier for research that will make their entire careers. But when they’re only about 30 miles into their hike, they find the body of a missing hiker and are unable to call out with their satellite phones. But then strange things begin to happen – the body disappears, their maps no longer align with the trails, the glacier is no longer present, and the hikers begin to see sinister things in the shadows. Holden Sharpe works IT for the university that Siena left from, and stumbles across her audio files on an old hard drive. As he begins to listen to the recordings, he finds himself drawn into the fate of the team and convinced that there is more to this story than meets the eye.

This was a fascinating suspenseful mystery with elements of horror that took some unexpected turns. I enjoyed how the author set up the work with alternating timelines – one following Siena and her team, the other following Holden as he begins to uncover information relating to the team. The work ended on a major cliffhanger. I was hoping for some more information relating to the mystery and what was happening in the Briardark, but as this is the first book in a series, I think the author provided enough information to keep things interesting while making a second work necessary. I do feel that with the length that this work was, there should have been a bit more information provided or resolution given, or else it should have been shortened a bit.

The author excelled at creating the atmosphere of the work. I could immediately visualize the setting and it created the perfect backdrop for this suspenseful work. However, I did feel that the characters were lacking some. They never really came alive for me and their POVs felt and sounded so similar that it may have well just been told from a singular POV.

Overall I recommend this mystery for fans of suspense and light science fiction. My thanks to NetGalley and Compass and Fern LLC for allowing me to read this work, which will be published in January 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Genuinely creepy in a way that makes me never want to go wilderness hiking again.

Weird things are happening in Deadswitch Wilderness, things that can't possibly be real. Time is fluid, topography is shifting, and something is stalking the woods. For a research team planning to study the anomalies, it could be their big break - or their undoing.

Briardark is a slow burn mystery thriller that is engaging from beginning to end. Excerpts from other sources outside the storyline can easily be dull momentum killers for pacing, but here they bring extra detail and interest. My fascinated need to understand all the things that don't make sense had me flying through this book. My only complaint is perhaps my own fault - I had no idea this was the first in a series and not a standalone, and was completely unprepared for the lack of resolution in the ending.

Shoutout to the author for respecting my stress levels and letting the protagonist with mental health struggles be believed pretty quickly! Somewhat less of a shoutout for making me jumpy in the woods at night all weekend long.

The audiobook is an excellent choice for reading this book. Perhaps I've been spoiled by multiple narrators, but I was a little sad there weren't different voices for each POV. To be fair, that would result in a very large cast! and Brenda Scott Wlazlo handles the narration skillfully all on her own.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the narration of this book! She was able to seamlessly play multiple characters of both genders and I was always able to know who was speaking. The story had me enthralled right from the start and held onto me through the final chapter! I definitely need more ASAP but understand I’ll probably have to wait a while for the next installment. I also hope it’ll include some more of the main characters backstories as there’s so much going on that isn’t being said. Aside from the trying to get home from a forest that they’re not sure exists lol!

Five hikers went missing in the Deadswitch woods....

Dr. Siena Dupont is leading her team on the Alpenglow glacier expedition. This is expedition is going to make her career! But thirty miles into their hike, the find the body of a hiker hanging from a tree and their satellite phone is not working. If that is not strange enough, the body disappears! This is where I would call it a day! But the fun is only beginning for this exploration. Their map does not align with the trail, the glacier they were going to study has melted, there is strange foliage and a tunnel inside of a tree.

Holden Sharpe works in IT and finds an old audio file and begins to search for Siena and determine her fate.

Here's an idea: if you want to go for a walk in the woods and you know others have gone missing in said woods; don't, just don't go into those woods. Find somewhere else to walk. You're welcome.

This is book #1 in the Briardark series and it is off to a good start! This one grabbed me right away and kept my attention. I was intrigued by the mystery of what happened to the missing hikers and the expedition Siena was leading. I wondered if Holden would find answers. This book has a blending of time and place which adds to the uneasy feel of the book and mounting tension.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narration. This book was interesting, gripping and well thought out. I will be on the lookout for the next book in the series.


This book reminded me in some ways of some books I have read Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident andAnnihilation. This was a nice blending of science fiction and horror.

Thank you Netgalley and Compass and Fern LLC for this advance listener copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was really good. It had elements of sci-fi, horror and drama and they all blended well. I enjoyed the three parallel stories, and the narration was great. However, I am really confused as there was no ending. It was left wide open and there were many unanswered questions. Is this the beginning of a series? I certainly hope so as I have so many questions that I would like answered. This is the reason for the 3 star review. There were a lot of loose ends that need to be tied up.

All in all, great novel, however I'm just concerned about the lack of answers and the abrupt ending.

Let me start by saying how fantastic this debut novel was. It was intriguing, with a slow burn and them bam Jumpscares. The Prose was flawless and the character development was superb.

:"For Dr. Siena Dupont and her ambitious team, the Alpenglow glacier expedition is a career-defining opportunity. But thirty miles into the desolate Deadswitch Wilderness, they discover a missing hiker dangling from a tree, and their satellite phone fails to call out."
The part of the hiker dangling from a tree gave me nightmares.
"Then the body vanishes without a trace." This is when it really takes a turn and the twists gave me inception meets interstellar meets Dreamcatcher.


"The disappearance isn’t the only chilling anomaly. Siena’s map no longer aligns with the trail. The glacier they were supposed to study has inexplicably melted. Strange foliage overruns the mountainside, and a tunnel within a tree hollow lures Siena to a hidden cabin, and a stranger with a sinister message…"
Poor Siena she already suffers from mental illness "fear of bugs" and this part threw her over the edge/

"Holden Sharpe’s IT job offers little distraction from his wasted potential until he stumbles upon a decommissioned hard drive and an old audio file. Trapped on a mountain, Dr. Siena Dupont recounts an expedition in chaos and the bloody death of a colleague. "
I was so glad someone was looking into this.

"Entranced by the mystery, Holden searches for answers to Siena’s fate. But he is unprepared for the truth that will draw him to the outskirts of Deadswitch Wilderness—a place teeming with unfathomable nightmares and impossibilities."
THE CLIFFHANGER~ I need book 2 now.
I loved this book and now will keep my eye out for this author. The world-building is chefs kiss and the overall idea was exceptionally creative

Honestly I didn’t hated this book it was enjoyable and entertaining but for me it was nothing special.
This is marketed as a horror novel but I think this is more like a slow burn mystery with horror elements in it.
I really don’t liked the ending, it just ended without any explanation to the mystery. This is the first book in the “Briardark” series so I assume since this ended on a cliffhanger the next books going to give explanations but I’m not that invested in the story or the characters to want to continue with the series.
I listened the audiobook while I followed through in the ebook as well which was great, I enjoyed the audiobook it definitely helped me to get through the book.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review and opinions.

☠️ Release Date: January 16th 2023 ☠️

Thank you to NetGalley and Compass and Fern for this ARC! I really enjoyed the narrator, her voice was even and also added a lot to the story. This was an interesting read and kept my attention until the end! This was my first read by this author, but definitely not my last.