Book Review: Dead Summit (2011)
Review By Kayley Viteo
Dead Summit, written by Daniel Loubier, is a swift, surprising and entertaining read. Like always, as summer turns into fall, I find my tastes slightly changing. In the fall I like ghost stories that make you feel like the house is closing in around you and serial killer thrillers that make you look twice at the person next to you. At the end of the summer, however, I admittedly tend to gorge myself on adrenaline rush reads – the kind where you start and finish within two hours. Dead Summit, on top of having one hell of a great title, is just that type of book.
Charlie and Grace are a young married couple who, on their latest camping journey, find that something is a little off with the mountain they’re about to hike in New Hampshire. Despite receiving a warning that a death has occurred on the trail the day before, they continue onwards (and upwards) only to find that a sinister energy brings back the dead.
I will admit to having some reservations about Dead Summit, if only because I found the prologue to be a bit heavy-handed – I wasn’t immediately hooked, in other words. That being said, within just a few minutes I was wrapped up in Grace and Charlie’s expedition. Loubier’s writing is skilled, creating a fast-paced narrative that handles twists and turns deftly – and there are quite a few of them. So when I say Dead Summit is surprising, I mean that purely positively.
From the start there is less focus on the undead, and more on Grace and Charlie as they navigate the mountain in their search for safety. There isn’t a massive amount of character development, but there also doesn’t need to be. This is an old-fashioned sort of story, told with a quick and dirty tone that adds a delicious edge until the end. Better yet, you still care about all of the characters. I was continuously surprised by the lengths to which Loubier takes his narrative – after coming to the point of the novel that I assumed was the climax, I realized I still had halfway to go. Normally, this would doom lesser authors who don’t have a firm grasp over their own storyline, and ultimately let themselves run wildly out of control. However, Loubier has a great sense of restraint in both character and plot. Charlie and Grace, for instance, are realistic and strong, without becoming instant ninjas or wilting flowers, respectively. In terms of plot, I would wager any reader will be surprised at least twice (I was), and the ending is like a punch to the face you wanted, but still regret. There has been very few times where I have sat silently for a few minutes lamenting the fact that a book was over. The art of letting the reader be left wanting more is a wonderful thing to master, and Loubier is off to a great start.
All in all, Dead Summit is a strikingly simplistic book, but in the best of ways. If you like horror novels that are set outdoors, or you just plain like a good scary story, this is certainly one to check out. I recommend you take it with you to read while camping.
Dead Summit will be released on October 15, 2011 by Dark Ink. Help out an indie publisher and buy a copy!
