Last summer, Will Dean blew my mind with “The Last One”, so I was very excited to also get this ARC. Instead of being trapped on a cruise ship, in this book we have people locked in a hyperbaric chamber. These six people have been working deep in the North Sea, and now will need a few days to slowly ascend to the surface. They will eat, shower, sleep and work in very close quarters, but the money is worth the risk of claustrophobia and the potential for injury.

Then, one of them ends up dead. The group doesn’t know how a healthy man can just die, seemingly for no reason, but they must continue on. They get his body into a lifeboat…and then there were five. As the days go on, they are dropping like flies until there are only two of them left. They ran out of body bags, so the remaining two are stuck in this tiny vessel with their friends decomposing in the hot, helium-filled atmosphere of the chamber. Tensions rise as the two each believe that the other is a murderer.

I liked “The Last One” better, but this was still a great book that teaches the reader about this career and the risks that go with it. The characters were written well, the murder mystery was done well, and the whole thing was very suspenseful. Four stars!

(Thank you to Atria, Emily Bestler Books, Will Dean and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released on August 6, 2024.)

"Chamber" takes your breath away! It sends shivers down your spine, makes every hair on your body stand up! It makes you feel trapped, paranoid, delirious, sweaty, dizzy, helpless! You feel like one of the six people caged in the chamber, forming conspiracy theories about who wants to kill you, who the main villain is: somebody inside or anyone working in the corporation sending your food, your drinks, equipment you use. Who? Even writing these sentences made me hyperventilate.

One thing I’m sure of is you’re going to feel exactly the same as soon as you flip the pages of this book. You're going to feel like you’re suffocating. You will barely restrain your screams and feel an urge to throw the book and run aimlessly without direction, but the book is too addictive to leave. You're going to want to know what’s going to happen. And with each chapter, the pressure builds more and more. You feel like the walls are closing in on you and you will be squeezed like an insect. Especially in the last chapters, as the countdown continues, you will feel the sweat appear on your forehead, dripping down from your hair, and curse loudly, even scream, because you are about to explode with suspicion, pressure, praying the hatch door opens without more incidents like more dead people! And that ending! Oh boy! What the heck did I just read? Yes, you’re going to steal this line because as your jaw hits the floor, the only thing you can say is these words or something similar to them!

Well! This book is a roller coaster and the best locked room/chamber mystery that gives readers every kind of worst claustrophobic feeling and one of the most realistic, effective thrillers that I've read! It’s not only a well-written whodunit mystery that takes place in a hyperbaric chamber (for the readers it seems like a barbaric chamber), it is also a well-executed psychological thriller that questions the sanity of people who suffer from PTSD, tragic events that ruin their entire perspective and ability to think clearly. Especially the war stories the divers share from their pasts, the things they’ve seen, left behind, and regretted in remorse are so heart-wrenching that they leave a mark on your soul.

Let’s give a quick recap of the plot that revolves around six experienced saturation divers who find themselves locked inside a hyperbaric chamber, and as the clock ticks, each of them starts dying. Ellen Brooke, 38, leaving behind her husband and two kids for this mission, has no idea what’s going on and if she’s going to leave the chamber alive as her colleagues start dying in front of her eyes. Could someone inside be the perpetrator or are they guinea pigs of the company sent to die in this chamber? What’s really going on? Why do the detectives who force them to take fluids from the corpses and send them talk vaguely about the reasons for death? Why can't they have any WiFi? What are they trying to prevent them from knowing?

The best thing is, until the last page, you keep questioning what really happened in the chamber, and you will realize nothing is as it seems.

I loved this thriller, and if I had a chance to give more than five stars, I would do it without hesitation! It’s so good!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books/Emily Bestler Books for sharing this amazing thriller’s digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

What a suffocating and claustrophobic read! The ending was a bit bland for me, but the journey of being inside the chamber and Wet Room--I was hooked. This is what I imagine being on a submarine is like, except way more humid and with tight quarters. I'm sure Dean had to conduct some research before writing this, and the diagrams and definitions at the start were helpful as someone who does not dive or have much interest in doing so.

A team of saturation divers is gearing up for a month-long job on the sea floor, residing in a hyperbaric chamber. External management of pressure is crucial to prevent serious harm or fatalities. When one diver dies inside the chamber, suspicions arise among the others. However, the process of returning to the open air is gradual. Confined in close quarters, they question their trust in each other and those outside. Is everyone in jeopardy? Was the death natural or the result of foul play? Paranoia and fear escalate as the chamber's opening approaches. Will anyone survive?

Will Dean expertly manipulates paranoia, delving into the characters' past traumas amplified by their current predicament. The locked chamber intensifies suspicion, but reliance on external support adds another layer of uncertainty. The story starts as a slow burn but quickly gains momentum. Reader discretion is advised due to mentions of loss. Grateful to Netgalley for providing an advance copy of the book.

This was a hard one to rate. The concept was wild: a team of six deep-sea saturation divers are in their hyperbaric chamber, and then they start dying off. No one can figure out wtf is happening, and no one can leave the chamber until decompression is complete (or they will basically explode and look like raspberry jam, which is mentioned 1,000 times). Is it someone from the support team killing them off or is it someone locked inside with them or ????

There was a diagram at the beginning of the book, but I still had a hard time understanding how the chamber/ship/diving bell situation worked which was very distracting to me while I was reading, so I had to do a bunch of googling to figure it out (while avoiding seeing any actual pictures of this situation because I am scared to death of the stupid ocean and the creepy s*** that lives in it, so thank you random scuba diving message board for providing the answers).

Here's how it works (I think - if I'm wrong, I don't really care because I want to forget any of this even exists as soon as I'm done writing this review): the divers go into the hyperbaric chamber, which is attached to a big boat, and the chamber is pressurized to match the pressure at the bottom of the ocean. The divers stay in the chamber for the entire duration of the job, other than when it's their turn to work, at which point they get in a diving bell which takes them up and down from the surface to the deep ocean to do their oil pipe welding or whatever without having to do a lengthy decompression every time. They get their supplies and whatnot passed to them through an airlock or something from the big ship.

Could there be a worse job than this? I think not. Being locked in a tiny, hot, metal box for weeks at a time, with your only outlet being WALKING ON THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN WHILE TERRIFYING THINGS SWIM AROUND YOU? No f-ing thank you. Also, I have had an irrational fear of The Bends ever since I died from them in a Choose Your Own Adventure book at age 8. Also quicksand.

Anyway. Amazing setup, horrifying situation, interesting characters (which also took me a bit to figure out because everyone has a name and a nickname)... and then there's mostly a lot of wiping surfaces and sweating, and it's all very repetitious? But then also terrifying? It definitely kept me reading, and there was a very upsetting reveal that I enjoyed, but I really, really hated the ending - like throw the kindle on the floor hated it.

I think fans of Dean's other books will like this one -- I can't say I didn't enjoy reading it, but I was super furious by the end, which kind of ruined it for me.

This book gave me goosebumps multiple times throughout, it left me with an eerie feeling I couldn't shake, the writing was incredibly detailed and I found it so interesting!! The amount of detail and explanations regarding all the little details that was included was just amazing, it never felt like too much information or clunky, it flowed perfectly with the storyline and it really shows the amount of effort that Will Dean put into this book.

You could truly feel the desperation and fear that the characters were feeling in the moment. The entire book takes place in a claustrophobic inducing hyperbaric dive chamber, with 6 saturation divers beginning a month long job, until one of them is found dead and more are soon to follow. With the decompression process taking 4 total days before the divers can be let out, they are stuck together while desperately trying to figure out what is happening to them.

This book was hauntingly immersive, I was sucked in from the very first chapter and absolutely loved how fast paced the plot unfolded. You will be left a paranoid, uneasy feeling, this locked room thriller is a must read!!

I really love the concept of the story. It was unique and I've never read anything about divers before. Also, it appears a lot of research was done to make the story accurate and believable to the readers. However, it did fall a bit flat for me. I didn't really care much about any of the characters, although my heart did break late in the story with the reveal that her family had been killed. It also was very confusing in its accuracy. I had to keep referencing the diagram and/or googling. The ending fell flat for me a little as well. In my mind, it was Ellen who was guilty (not sure if that was the author's intent). But if that was the case, I would have loved a big boom at the end where that was more clearly revealed. Overall, it grabbed me enough to keep reading, but was underwhelming and confusing. 3.75 stars, rounding up to 4.

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
The Chamber releases August 6, 2024

Haunting and claustrophobic. This suspenseful, locked room thriller was my nightmare come to life and I will never view raspberry jam the same way ever again.

Six saturation divers are confined to very close living quarters in a hyperbaric chamber for a month, but when a diver unexplainably dies on their first day, everything changes. The remaining divers must wait out the necessary four days of decompression time before they can be released, though who’s to say if everyone will make it out alive?

Dean created a setting that was wholly immersive, with stakes that were incredibly high from the moment the characters stepped foot into the chamber.
The meticulous hygiene routines paired with the constant need to keep calm and maintain a levelled headspace were aspects of this novel that really fascinated me.

I loved every minute of this, even if it made me feel uncomfortable and tingly in my own skin!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher.

One of the most tense locked-room thrillers of recent memory. Another brilliant work by Will Dean!

A team of saturation divers prepare to work on the sea floor. During a month long job they will live inside a hyperbaric chamber. The pressure must be managed cautiously from outside to safeguard against serious injuries or death. When one of them dies within the chamber, the others begin to worry. Unfortunately the process of returning to open air is not quick. These things must be done slowly. Confined in tight quarters how well do they know each other? Their reliance on others on the outside concerns even more. Are they all at risk? Was this natural causes or foul play? Paranoia, fear, and intense emotions grow as the countdown to opening the chamber gets closer. Will anyone make it out alive?

Will Dean is a mastermind at playing with paranoia. All of these characters have been through trauma in their lives, their current situation only makes that grow. The locked chamber makes you question who could be most suspicious, but don't forget the six divers depend on everything from the outside. This book was a slow burn at first that kicked into high gear quickly. There are several mentions of loss within the story, so be warned. Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book.

Will Dean is a favorite author of mine. This author writes in a way that you gladly join in. He writes interesting narratives and then I begin to feel uncomfortable, terrified maybe and then I’m hooked. And I’m saying, “What in the world?”
This one was a slow burn for the suspense because of the place it would all go down. Diving seems interesting but terrifying and the writing made me trust no one!
Thanks Atria books via NetGalley.

I immediately requested this because I loved Dean's The Last Thing To Burn. I suffer from major claustrophobia, so I wanted to try to read this to see if I could get through it. There were just too many technical terms for me to try to enjoy this. The feeling of being hot and trapped was also so realistic, that ass the reader that I had to walk outside a couple of times. I think if you enjoy books that you want to learn something about that you've never really researched before, this would be for you. I just got tremendously bored in the beginning.

This took a locked room thriller to a new level. Six saturation divers find themselves trapped in a hyperbaric chamber miles below the North Sea after a crewmate mysteriously dies. The decompression process forces them to remain confined for a grueling four days, creating a pressure cooker of suspicion and fear.

As another diver perishes, paranoia and mistrust grip the remaining crew. The author's vivid descriptions make you feel the claustrophobia and rising tension alongside the characters, desperate for answers and a chance to breathe fresh air.

Will Dean clearly did a lot of research. I had no idea what saturation diving was but it’s all understandably laid out when you start the book. I could visualize everything perfectly.

I was completely immersed in this book and was suspicious of every diver and crewmate. The finger of suspicion point in many directions and you won't get answers until closer to the end, which keeps the tension and suspense at a constant high.

Thank you Atria Books, NetGalley and Will Dean for an advanced copy. The Chamber comes out August 6, 2024.

This was INTENSE. Will Dean is a master of suspense and dread. I am, once again, blown away by this author’s ability to write a thriller that really gets the heart rate up. After loving Will Dean’s last book, I had to give this one a go. I’m so glad I did.

This is a locked room mystery/thriller that takes place in a hyperbaric chamber. Six sat divers are going down to do work on the seabed. They must live inside this pressurized chamber for a month because of the pressure at the bottom of the sea. They don’t breathe air, they breathe a gaseous mix of helium and oxygen. They’re not able to make calls home because the helium makes their voices intelligible without an unscrambler. So, a month basically cut off and dependent on the ship’s crew to keep them alive and fed. What could possibly go wrong? After the first dive, the divers start to die one by one. It takes time to depressurize and open the chamber hatch, so they’re stuck inside the chamber without knowing who, or what, is killing them.

This book was so well done. You can feel the walls closing in, the claustrophobic dread our characters are feeling. I honestly had anxiety after the very first chapter. This is a page turner you won’t want to put down. Seriously, read this book!! It’s absolutely fantastic and heart pounding. This book gets 5 stars from me. Thank you so much to Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC! Can’t wait for this author’s next book!!

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆. 𝑰𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔, 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒖𝒎𝒂, 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒊𝒕𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇; 𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅, 𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒉𝒔, 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒊𝒔.

I'm a reader who consumes a steady diet of thrillers and horror, the more extreme the better. I could never have predicted the effect this book had on me. No lie, it very nearly induced a panic attack. I suffer from thalassophobia, a fear of the ocean and large bodies of water, but as I always tell myself, "it's just a book." Not in this case.

THE CHAMBER is a locked room thriller that takes place inside a hyperbaric chamber. The author added a glossary at the beginning of the book, and since I'm totally unfamiliar with any terms related to diving, it was quite helpful. The pervasive sense of dread kicked in for me almost immediately because guess what? I'm also claustrophobic, and reading about SIX divers in such narrow confines, breathing only helium, and enduring four days of decompression before the hatch can open was almost too much to bear.

The plot hasn't even started yet, and I'm already on edge.

One of the six is inexplicably found dead in his bunk. Who could have killed him in such tight quarters without anyone bearing witness? Suddenly, the paranoia kicks in. The person who passes the crew hot water and food; could he have poisoned the food? When it happens again, the sense of desperation kicks in. Who is picking these divers off one by one, and why?

Be ready for a completely atmospheric, immersive read. I love the little snippets of life outside the chamber as it allowed me to know and bond with the characters in an environment away from where they are trapped. Coming August 6, 2024! Thank you to Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the early copy.

Very technical in the beginning. Loved Will Dean's other books. This one I did not feel was as good. All the teachnical stuff made it hard to get interested in the story. It did get better. 3 stars

Six experienced saturation divers (divers who remain pressurized for a period of time, often for weeks), are locked inside a hyperbaric chamber on a job. Rapid decompression would cause death. They spend their time working two to a shift and otherwise live in very close quarters (think an extended VW bus.) Then one of them is found dead. Their chamber cannot be opened for four days. Then a second diver is found unresponsive. What is happening? And will any of them survive?

Oh, this was a really good, tense thriller. First, the topic was so interesting. I love books which cover an intriguing topic and saturation diving and the crazy, wonderful people who are willing to do it was a perfect choice. I was totally unaware that this even existed, and I was fascinated to learn the specifics about it. The author hit all the right notes, giving readers just enough information without overloading the text with unnecessary technical stuff. Loved that.

Then, the mystery itself. Also very good. A locked room mystery set in a literal metal tube. It doesn’t get much better than that. The suspects were almost never out of sight of one another. I did guess the culprit, but not the why, and the whole thing was incredibly satisfying. Giving this one 4.5 stars, which might be high, but I just enjoyed it so thoroughly and I couldn’t go to bed until I finished it. Highly recommended.

Will Dean has done it again! This book had me holding my breath and immersed in the claustrophobia from chapter one. We follow a small group of divers as they descend to the ocean depths in a tight packed hyperbaric chamber. When one of the diverse turns up inexplicably dead in his bunk, the dive gets called off. But decompression to bring the team back up takes 4 days, and as time goes things turn bad and worse. I literally felt dizzy at times reading this! The author did such an incredible job immersing us in the tight quarters of the chamber with the divers. This truly felt like such a unique thriller and I can’t wait for the rest of the world to get their hands on this too.