ARC review will be out in August. Very interesting read about myths and legends. Covers a lot of different religions.

Go to Hell is informatively written in a very personal way. It was perfectly suited for this book. The photos in this book are GORGEOUS! (Colorful, vivid, interesting!) This is probably the best non-fiction book that I've read this year.

Bracken Caves in Texas are now on my bucket list. The flowing sulfur blue flames that flow on Kawah ijen look amazing. Love the picture of the Sifaka lemurs on the Grand Tsingy rock formations. Devil's Bath in New Zealand looks intriguing. Again and again I was fascinated by each location.

I highly recommend Go to Hell. Definitely more than 5 stars!

Many thanks to NetGalley, publisher National Geographic and author Erika Engelhaupt for the opportunity to read the advance review copy of Go to Hell in exchange for an honest review. 288 (full color) pages, release date is (Tuesday) August 13, 2024. (Release dates seem to fall on Tuesdays, but it seems that they might have waited for Friday Sept 13, 2024. Just saying.)

This is such an interesting book! Even though the locations are hell, the descriptions make them sound intriguing and fun to visit (although sometimes dangerous). The book gives the locations their own section, with photos and historical context. The history is fascinating, with some places being the sites of human sacrifices or other rituals. I wasn't expecting to want to visit these places, but I would love to just be able to have one huge trip where I got to see all these places with this book in hand.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I find history incredibly fascinating, so when the opportunity to read a book about the history and lore surrounding some truly eerie places popped up, I knew I had to read it! In ‘Go to Hell,’ Erika Engelhaupt brings us along as she discusses 50+ hellish locations. She dives into the lore and myths surrounding each location, and the visuals presented alongside add an extra layer of intrigue. I frequently pulled up additional images of the places she talks about because I was so curious to see more! In the introductory section, Engelhaupt calls these places “awesomely awful,” and I found that to be the perfect description.

Going into this, I thought I would know many – if not most – of the places Engelhaupt would take us to; however, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had prior knowledge of very few of them! I found the discussions dealing with the different religious beliefs of the various cultures to be especially interesting. I was also surprised by the fact that some of the spots are right in the center of (or very nearby) popular tourist spots. The writing was never dry or boring, and I never caught my eyes trying to skip paragraphs just to get through the book. I honestly enjoyed Engelhaupt’s research so much that, before finishing this one, I added her other book, ‘Gory Details,’ to my TBR.

If you are interested in world travel and otherworldly locations, or you just like interesting books with lots of pictures, please check this one out!

Has anyone ever told you to go to hell? Well, now you can! There are a surprising number of ways to get there, from rivers in Greece to caves in Ireland, the Valley of Hinnom in Jerusalem or a castle in Czechia built to protect the mortal world from a gateway to hell. Really, your choices seem almost endless. This book not only lets you know which of these places you can visit — such as St. Patrick’s Purgatory, a small pit on an island in the middle of an Irish lake, the temple of Mount Osore in Japan, or cenotes on the Yucatan Peninsula — but when. Fortunately many of them seem amenable to tourists during summer, when the weather is at its warmest.

The book is also littered with facts about hell, purgatory, and the religious beliefs of many of these cultures, showing the similarities between ancient beliefs and more modern Christian ones. It also makes note of the differences between the television “voodoo” and the actual Vodun religion while mentioning the differences between the Shinto and Mayan netherworlds.

Then there are the truly inspiring places, such as the pit in Turkmenistan — 230 feet wide and 66 feet deep which belches fire. Or Death Valley where temperatures can reach over 130 degrees Fahrenheit, the Dead Sea with its intricate salt formations, or even the Antarctica’s Blood Falls. There are even sections dedicated to a selection of impressive caves, volcanoes, and parks which host bats, snakes, and other ‘hellish’ creatures.

The writing is approachable, giving just enough information about any one place to pique your interest, but never so much to feel like an encyclopedia entry. Each location seems to get a rough page — sometimes two for those with more stories or details to be mentioned, and all entries come with full color pictures or illustrations. This would be a fun coffee table book for anyone interested in hell, religion, history or geography. I very much want to thank Net Galley and National Geographic for granting me an advanced reader copy.

What a fun and interesting travel book! The author did an amazing job researching and presenting the 54 locations mentioned in a thoughtful, thorough, and accessible way. I really enjoyed learning about each location - many I had never heard of before - and in particular loved the “Before You Go” sections.

I do wish there had been more photographs included. I found myself often googling these locations or something mentioned so that I could have a better image of what the author was referring to. The pictures that were included were stunning! I just wish there had been a bit more to round out the experience.

All in all I had a lot of fun reading this work. I’d recommend to anyone interested in travel or learning more about the afterlife/hell/underworld.

Thank you to NetGalley and National Geographic for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Go to Hell.

First, great title! Second, great subject!

The author does a great job researching an unique travel guide to the most 'hellish' places on earth, both local and the exotic.

There are 54 destinations to choose from, from Hell, Michigan to Hell, Grand Cayman Island, but don't stop there!

There are plenty of locations to add to your bucket list, and it makes for a great icebreaker at parties.

I'm going on vacation.

Great! Where?

Hell!

I loved learning about the various cultures and rituals where each hell is from.

There are caves and volcanoes, ghost towns and isolated islands, and pretty much a hell for any kind of person.

But it was also wonderful to read that some of these hellish places can also be quite beautiful, too.

What a gorgeous and cool book this is! It was, admittedly, tough to review using the NetGalley shelf app. I get that the photo-rich document was too large for an easy Kindle download, but it would have been more helpful to have it as a downloadable .pdf (rather than an .acsm) - that way it could be read on a computer, allowing maximization of the visuals. I was able to use translation software I have purchased to convert it, but not every reviewer will necessarily have that access... In physical form, this will be a stunning book. The photos are spectacular. The text was a little dryer than I expected, but still interesting. I had no idea there were so many Hellish destinations, and found the history and ties to mythology to be fascinating. It's a fabulous concept and will make a lovely coffee table book!

A very interesting read! It serves as a great resource for learning about myths about hell/death from various religions and cultures. I appreciated the emphasis on pre Christian beliefs and distinguishing between original myths and the changes made by missionaries to adapt it to their world view. It’s a very thorough and comprehensive look at the topic so I’d recommend for anyone interested in learning more about hell myths/history even if they don’t travel. Now, I have to admit: I wish there were more pictures. I have no problem with all the descriptions and details, but wish there was more imagery. Some pages described a whole landmark without showing it, instead showing a statue for instance related to the myth (ex., pages 34&143). Cool, but if you’re encouraging travel somewhere, it’s best to show them what it looks like. There were also a few minor errors but I believe that’s just because it’s an early release copy so I have faith they will be fixed (eg., pages 47-49 have incomplete captions/page number references). All in all, very informative and detailed - but could be improved by more pictures! —— thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review 🤍

This is a really cool book! Erika does a wonderful job of weaving historical and geographical locations with the myth and lore of Hell. I will absolutely snag a physical copy of this! The photography is beautiful and each story is engaging!

I loved this. I love learning about different places and cultures and this book was perfect. I love this publisher, they always have the best images and stories to tell if the world around us and this didn’t disappoint.

A fun, illustrated travel guide from National Geographic to fifty-four “hellish” destinations around the world, places with some connection to some society’s vision of the underworld…places like Pluto’s Gate in Turkey, the town of Hell, Michigan, the “roadside attraction” Haw Pav Villa in Singapore and Fengdu Ghost City in China.

What a fun, delightful idea for a book! I would have loved to have been the researcher for this as she got to visit a number of these places. The photography is absolutely beautiful, as you would expect. Also, there’s a man named George Kourouris who is interviewed several times who is clearly an insane person - as far as I can tell his primary job may be to lower himself into lava holes and the like..

My only quibble, while I understand why the author organized the sites as she did it makes the book a little repetitive…all the volcanic sites are together, etc. It would have provided more variety for the reader had they been scattered throughout the book rather than being one after the other. I really liked the “Before You Go” section (which explains exactly how one gets to the location, what big cities are nearby, what permits are needed) and wish it had been included for all the attractions. This was well done!