The parts that focus on the atmospheric horror of arctic exploration and suspense of being hunted were all done so, so well. It was such a heavy, claustrophobic read and I loved most of it. However, Simmon’s almost pathological need to force a weird, fetishized romance is very distracting. He does it in almost all of his books, so I was prepared, but I wish Silna’s character had been given the depth she deserved. Also, there are some choices that are made to characterize the villain that were very cringey and cartoonish. Overall, though, if you have even a passing interest in the terror of exploration pre-modern conveniences, I recommend it.

Yes! It was a poorly written gross out book with a dumb ending. I kept reading to see what other people found so compelling about it, but it was definitely lost on me.