Reading a book is a rarely a surface-level experience.

While some books do glance off your heart and soul as if they’re made of Teflon, others burrow their way down into the core of who you are and take up residence, while a precious few still, consume and absorb you to such an extent that you aren’t just reading turning pages, but deeply and completely living the journey right along with the characters, your heart in your mouth and your soul on the line as every twist and turn makes it presence viscerally felt.

The Way Up Is Death by Dan Hanks fits without question into the final one of those three categories, a book that demands so much of you, in the very best of ways, that you can’t simply pick it up and read it as if nothing at all is happening to you.

The fact is EVERYTHING is happening to you, sometimes it feels like on every single page, with this utterly immersive mix of fantasy, horror with some deftly-realised sci-fi thrown in for good measure, taking you on a ride that is all-encompassing and soul excoriating – don’t worry, it also builds you right back up, though not completely – and which goes to the very heart, the very heart, of what it means to be human.

While you will get your fair share of adventuring thrills and spills, and real moments of levity, warmth and emotional intimacy, and they will mean the absolute world to you, The Way Up Is Death is the ultimate long night of the soul, one that doesn’t let up for a second, and which rises and falls on the strength of its robustly-sculptured and empathetically-delivered characters.

The novel centres on a strange, glowing and colourful tower that appears out of nowhere one day over the countryside near Manchester, England, its origins cloaked in mystery and its intent manifestly unclear.

While its arrival does shock the populace of the UK, and indeed the world at first, Hanks rather wryly observes, in one of many on-point and wittily accurate takedowns of the digital culture that is currently subsuming us for better or worse, that everyone quickly adapts, and what was a viral social media sensation almost immediately becomes something else entirely, at once voraciously consumed by the ceaseless appetite of the 24/7 news cycle and then just …ignored as part of the furniture.

It looks for all intents and purposes like the planet simply has another weird thing to add to its list of inexplicable oddities, when all of a sudden, 13 quite disparate people are taken without warning from their everyday life and beamed to the ground surrounding the tower (still high up in the sky mind you so the land on which they stand is vertigo-inducing in and of itself).

A ragtag bunch strangers, among them a flight attendant, social media influencer, game designer, narcissistic children’s book author and teacher/musician, they are all equally uncertain about why they are there, and what the tower wants from them, other than it wants them to “Ascend”, the word emblazoned on its entrance in a way that is both beautifully lit and compulsively threatening.

While they are reluctant to move anywhere until they know what they are dealing with, the tower doesn’t afford them the luxury of deliberation and they set upwards, ever upwards, on a vivaciously terrifying journey through a number of harrowing levels where everything about them is tested, tested and tested again.

It’s not clear where the levels are drawn from, though that does emerge in time and is used to illuminate the characters still further – not all get the full 3D treatment; some like kind, self-sacrificial teacher Alden, game developer Nia and 13-year-old would-be writer Rakie get full service reveals while others are simply there, trope-heavy, to serve a worthy and propelling narrative purpose – but suffice to say, whatever is behind the tests meted out to the 13 strangers, it is designed to go deep into their psyches and souls and reveal exactly who they are.

But far, far more than that is how The Way Up Is Death really shines a light on the parlous state of the human condition, and how the stories we tell ourselves about who we are and the strengths of our virtue and worthiness of our accomplishments or otherwise, don’t always bear true under pressure.

For some of the characters, for many of them in fact, this plays out negatively as it becomes condemningly clear that they are million miles away from their internal narratives, but for others like Alden and Nia, it is revealing in a good way, demonstrating that their flawed and self-condemning internal narratives in no way reflect the laudably high quality of the people they are.

Beyond those individual reality checks of the quality of their humanity, what The Way Up Is Death beautifully demonstrates is the power of community, love and belonging to change the world.

All too often, these concepts are reduced to cheerleading bumper stickers, their meaning all but leached out by vacuous soundbite depictions, but in Hanks’s superlatively good adventure novel, where death and loss are scarily constant companions and survival is not even remotely guaranteed, they are muscular and robust and capable of reshaping worlds and realities.

You cannot walk away from this extraordinarily good novel without having the truth of this seared into you.

Our increasingly individualistic world fumbles and staggers when it comes to elevating the good of the many over that of the one, but in The Way Up Is Death makes it clear in ways intimate and epic but always profoundly emotionally impactful, that we are better when we stand together.

We may not always get the outcome we want, and indeed the lottery of The Way Up Is Death is that nothing, absolutely nothing, is guaranteed, and that any sense of control and influence over our lives is largely illusory – though it’s evident that what we choose to do has a heavy bearing on what happens to us; we are not simply victims of fate – but for life to matter, for our experiences to matter, especially under extreme, death-haunted duress, we need each other in ways than transcend trite meme-heavy messaging.

If you take anything away from this enthrallingly good, terrifyingly intense and emotionally rich novel, let it be that we are far stronger as one, and that when we prioritise community over self, we not only achieve great things, temporary though some maybe, but we transform ourselves in the process, and for however long that lasts, that can be the greatest gift we ever give ourselves and others.

When a mysterious tower appears in the skies over England, thirteen strangers are pulled from their lives to stand before it as a countdown begins. Above the doorway is one word: ASCEND.

As a grieving teacher, a reclusive artist, and a narcissistic celebrity children’s author lead the others in trying to understand why they’ve been chosen and what the tower is, it soon becomes clear the only way out of this for everyone… is up.

And so begins a race to the top, through sinking ships, haunted houses and other waking nightmares, as the group fights to hold onto its humanity, while the twisted horror of why they’re here grows ever more apparent – and death stalks their every move

We need more horror fantasy! I loved the combination in this one, everything I love abour both genres. I cant wait to read more books in this series and more of anything by this author!

Not what expected at all!

But to be fair, I don't even know what I expected in the first place, as this isn't my usual type of read.

However, I got hooked quite early in the book. The storyline kept me engrossed and at the edge of my seat, I found characters loveable and entertaining. Really, what a ride it has been!

The only reason I'm not giving 5 stars is - I would not pick this book up again. Not that's it bad, it's definetly not bad at all. It just lacked a little something for me to wish to re-read it.

If you thought Stephen King had conjured up the weirdest and darkest tower in existence, then Dan Hanks is here to prove you wrong in The Way Up is Death. In turns brutally disturbing, hysterically funny and soul-stirringly poignant, this extraordinarily bizarre acid trip of a survival adventure will melt your brain and crush your soul without remorse, and I love it all the more for it.

What would you do if one day, out of nowhere, you are mercilessly pulled out of your daily life and dropped along with 12 other strangers before a mysterious floating tower that demands you ASCEND. That, my friends, is just a tiny glimpse of the stupendously intriguing premise of The Way Up is Death. And as you can maybe guess from the title, it doesn’t take long for things to get disturbingly dark and absolutely batshit crazy in the best way possible.

Through the eyes of Alden, a lonely and grief-stricken teacher by day/singer by night, Nia, a weary and angry concept artist, and Dirk, a self-obsessed walking red flag of a celebrity children’s author, we get to experience the nightmarish madness contained within the tower from the front-row seat. While I sometimes had a hard time visualising the increasingly weird and mystifying settings that the tower contained, I never felt lost because these characters’ strong voices kept me so grounded throughout all the madness. Their virtues and vices are truly on full display (for better or worse; looking at you, Dirk), and I loved exploring how they each reacted in such an authentically unique way to the horrors that they were faced with over the course of the single day that they spend in this tower of terror (if they even make it that long).

See, on the surface this story might seem like just another brutal thrill fest of a race against death, but at its core it’s a deeply emotional and beautifully human story that just tugged on my heartstrings in all the most unexpected ways. The Way Up is Death is honestly more multi-layered than the twisted labyrinthine tower it’s set in, and I loved how with each new level the characters ascended, another layer of complexity and emotional depth was peeled back. Heavy themes such as grief, sexism, female rage, loneliness, sacrifice, morality, memory, love, humanity, and, naturally, mortality are all explored in surprisingly deep though often darkly entertaining ways without ever detracting from the addictive thrill factor of the narrative, which is exactly what makes this story stand out from the crowd to me.

Now, I do have to admit that I found some of the (side) characters to be little more than obvious cannon fodder or a mere vessel for the theme they were supposed to represent, which not only made some of the thematic messaging feel a bit on the nose, but also took away some of the stakes and unpredictability of the story for me. The slightly caricaturish character work combined with the break-neck speed pacing somewhat hindered my emotional investment in the wider cast of characters, and that ultimately made some of the supposedly hard-hitting moments fall a bit flat for me.

However, the key characters of the narrative absolutely carried the story for me (Rakie is the MVP, just saying), and I can’t deny that all the emotional gut punches just hurt oh so good in the end. For the longest time I was just along for the crazy ride, uncertain if or how we would get any satisfying answers to the deeper purpose behind the inexplicable mysteries and challenges of the tower, but Hanks managed to surprise me in all the best (or worst?) ways with the shocking revelations. The brutally bittersweet conclusion to The Way Up is Death was more satisfying than I could ever have hoped for, leaving me with only one big unresolved mystery in the end: how in the hell did Hanks manage to write a story that is simultaneously so bizarrely alien yet beautifully and relatably human?

Regardless of what your typical reading preferences are, The Way Up is Death is guaranteed to lure you in with its dangerously addictive storytelling, darkly alluring mysteries, visceral emotions, and scarily evocative imagery that will haunt your mind for days and nights to come. It’s got a bit of fantasy, sci-fi, horror, mystery, thriller, and arguably even a sick and twisted version of LitRPG, but ultimately it’s a powerfully moving and truly transcendental story that just speaks to the soul and showcases the incredible resilience of the human spirit. This is one of those stories that you simply can’t do justice to in a review, so please do yourself a favour and go experience its brilliant madness for yourself, if you dare.

I was lucky enough to receive a digital ARC of “The Way Up is Death,” by Dan Hanks!

I give this book 3/5 ⭐️. The title and cover are great, and are what made me so interested in this book to begin with. The concept of a tower randomly selecting 13 people from the area it “spawns” over is intriguing, and Hanks wastes no time in throwing us into the action. As the thirteen people begin to ascend as commanded by the tower, each floor is revealed to be pulled from one of the thirteen’s subconscious. To avoid spoiling anything, I’ll just say that the title of the book does not lie.

I felt the characters in this novel weren’t realistic enough, and at times it seemed like the writing involving them was slipping into the realm of caricature. It difficult for me to get emotionally attached to any of the thirteen, but it did make it very easy for me to hate Dirk! There was too much “telling” and not enough “showing,” especially when it came to characters’ emotions and relationships with one another. This was one of those books where I was aware of every page I was reading and struggled to immerse myself into the story. From what I’ve seen, a lot of other readers love this book, so I’ll accept it’s just not my cup of tea!

Filled with complex characters, attention to detail world building that makes you feel like you’re in the pages this is one of the best books I’ve read all year I devoured it!

It follows a bunch of strangers in London when a tower suddenly appears in the sky telling people to ascend., with horror and syfy vibes Dan hanks will have you on the edge of your seat!

Thirteen Strangers find themselves in front of a mysterious tower with one goal: ascend.

The Way Up is Death by Dan Hanks is my latest book from Net Galley. I’m very lucky to have gotten to read this one early. Ever since I heard about it, I wanted to read it. I loved Dan Hanks last back, Swashbucklers, and was excited to see what he would write next. As much as I loved Swashbucklers, The Way Up is Death is better. Oh my god this book is great.

I don’t want to give away too much about this book but I will say that it is, largely, a horror story. It also reminds me of A Light Most Hateful by Hailey Piper in that it introduces you to the main characters and then says “Buckle up! This is a ride!” I called this book an “absolute horror rollercoaster” on social media and it is.

And yet later in the book, we do get moments where the book slows down a little to reflect and pause. There are moments of pure beauty later in the book that make up for some of the horrifying images from earlier. As I said, I don’t want to spoil this story. Just know that the ride goes up and up and then down and whirls around and takes a slight pause and then goes up again. You’ll often find yourself going “Oh, those poor people.”

Well, okay, maybe you won’t feel sorry for all of them…

The Way Up is Death is a fantastic book. Its so well written, with complex characters and enough detail that you can picture whats going on very well but also can fill in the gaps with your own horrible brain too. This book is one of the best books I’ve read this year. Its going to be one of the books to come out next year!

You should not miss The Way Up is Death by Dan Hanks. The book comes out on January 14th, 2025. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing me with an early digital copy of this book. And thanks Dan Hanks for writing this one. Wow. What an amazing book.

I read this book in less than 24 hours and the only reason I didn’t finish it in one sitting is because my body unfortunately needs sleep (rude). The Only Way Up is Death so absolutely wild, I couldn’t stop, I had to keep reading. I read it while brushing my teeth, I read it while walking my dog. If you’re struggling to get out of a book slump, this is the book to get you out of it. If you’re not, this is the book to read anyway because it’s rad. It gets right into the action (of which there’s a ton) and as I mentioned before, it’s basically impossible not to keep turning the page.

It was easy to feel like a 14th person in the group of 13 confused people forced to climb the mysterious tower. No one knows what the hell is going on, so I was like, “hey, same,” and we all began the ascent together. And I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t… that. Sorry, no spoilers. You likely won’t be expecting it either but it’s all awesome.

Of the 13 people, there were some obvious main characters that were more finely developed. I loved Rakie and Earl, I despised Dirk (seriously, he is the worst and I just know people like him actually exist which makes me hate him more), and Nia was beautifully written and relatable, but I think I most closely related to Alden. As he ascended the tower, he came to some realizations about grief that hit pretty close to home for me and I found it comforting.

And I found more comfort in the book, which feels weird when I look back on it because I’d easily describe it as sometimes funny but mostly terrifying science fiction which doesn’t sound at all comforting. Between the violence, in-fighting, and general confusion, there were drops of commentary on humanity, the way we treat each other, and the things we value, as well as the importance of caring for and about the future regardless of whether or not we’ll be here to see it. I loved the inclusion of those themes and the ways in which they were perfectly woven into the story.

I’d been looking forward to reading this one for a while and am so happy I can now say I’ve read it and it lived up to my expectations and then some!


***I’ll post this review on Instagram, my blog, and other socials closer to release.***