Unearthed – A Dark Tale From Innsmouth: Ashley Lister
Reviewed By Steve Stred
Recently I read the first book of Ashley Lister’s ‘A Dark Tale from Innsmouth’ series. While that one didn’t fully grab me, I found there were some really intriguing pieces and definitely bits of the story that had me wanting to know more.
After chatting with Lister on Twitter, he kindly emailed me a digital review copy of the second in the series, titled ‘Unearthed.’
I decided to go in completely blind on this one, wanting to see what darkness Lister had set up for the reader and how it would relate to book one.
What I liked: ‘Unearthed’ starts with an absolute bang. We are thrust into a hidden chamber below a church where a sarcophagus has been sitting unknown for hundreds of years. The gathered academia open the lid expecting to find the remains of Maegla of Ebrauc. Rather than the remains of the former warrior, they’re shocked when the body within sits up and begins to attack.
From here Lister goes full-tilt with the story. The dead reanimate and they are out for blood. I loved the backstories that were intertwined and Lister did a great job of giving each character some breathing space and some character growth. The ending seems to set up a further release, so we’ll need to wait and see what’s next.
What I didn’t like: I’ll stay spoiler-free, but I found the link to book one to be minor and not as exciting as I’d hoped/expected. It is noteworthy and ties them together well, but a part of me was hoping to learn more about the book one events.
Why you should buy this: ‘Unearthed’ was a downright fun time. I’m not the biggest zombie fan, but for reanimated beings, this was a blast. Lister had some fantastic gore and I loved some of the banter that developed between the characters.
Overall, for me, a much more enjoyable trip to Innsmouth than book one.
Unearthed
Five staff members from Innsmouth University break into a church to unearth a secret that should have remained buried. Deep beneath the church’s ancient sepulchre there is a grave, labelled with a warning that promises hell on earth if it is ever opened. And still, because they believe they know better, the graverobbers ignore the warning.
You can buy Unearthed from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Steve Stred
Steve Stred is the author of a number of novels, novellas and collections. He has appeared in anthologies with some of Horror’s heaviest hitters.
He lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada with his wife, son and their dog OJ.
You can follow Steve on Twitter @stevestred
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You can visit Steve’s Official website here
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