Trenchmouth by Christine Morgan
Fathom Five … a state-of-the-art oceanic research facility, suspended far below the surface. There, in the dark and the deep, a team of top-notch scientists study the ecosystems and denizens of an aquatic environment as alien as another planet.
There, they also conduct illicit experiments upon hapless human subjects, with the goal of giving our species a chance to adapt to a changing world. Or, at the very least, to create mutant freaky fish-people, because, why not?
Oh, the arrogance and hubris of genius! Oh, the freaky things that already dwell in the strange, hostile depths! In the cold, crushing, silent pressure of a blackness lit only by eerie bioluminescence. Things that don’t take kindly to intruders Things that are ancient, and enormous, and hungry.
Things like … TRENCH MOUTH.
Think Sea Lab of Dr. Moreau meets Jersey Shore, plus enough gore and body parts to fill entire coal hoppers; add to that, Morgan’s uniquely visual style that rams it all in our faces in glorious Technicolor. —Ed Lee, White Trash Gothic
This is exactly the kind of book I love. Supersonic pacing. Blood spilled on every page. A grisly weird-science techno-thriller set in the crushing stygian darkness, Morgan’s Trench Mouth lures you in and leaves you gasping. —Lee Murray, three-time Bram Stoker nominee, and author of Into the Mist
United StatesRidiculously Fun
I loved this book. Christine Morgan has an amazing ear for true-to-life dialogue peppered with pop culture references. She's got a great talent for creating people that feel as real as the guy who cut you off in traffic this morning and then eviscerating them on the page. Trench Mouth feels like a funnier Jurassic Park.
United StatesHorrors from below the surface! One of the year's best novels!
A great deep sea horror extravaganza! The story itself is complex and fascinating, especially as the narrative switches perspectives. The writing is top notch, and Christine definitely did her research on life in the ocean. A great novel- must read!
United StatesIf I Didn't Fear the Ocean Before
Trench Mouth begins with a series of vignettes. It begins with human intrusion into the ocean depths upsetting a balance that existed in an alien world on our own planet, drawing a cruel and vicious attention to our existence--our delicious flavor--and ultimately to the surface waters where unsuspecting prey is in abundance. It begins with eight people who have nothing left to lose signing up for a chance to become something more, something new, something better than they are. In the dark depths of the ocean, where Fathom-5 illuminates a tiny patch of ocean floor just beyond a seemingly bottomless trench that carves down into the crust of the Earth, experiments are being conducted. Will Dr. Yale and her colleagues advance the next stage of human evolution, preparing us to venture into a massive new realm largely off limits until now? Will monsters, both man-made and ancient, tear everything apart before we even have a chance to find out for ourselves? We know how it begins. I guess you'll have to read past the beginning to discover how it ends for yourself. It's appropriate to talk about how it all begins, because Trench Mouth feels like a beginning, the origin story of some larger tale that might unfold over years to come. I, for one, would gladly join Christine Morgan in the depths again if she chooses to tell us more of this world she's created. Reminiscent of my favorite underwater science fiction/horror novel, Starfish by Peter Watts (the beginning of his Rifters series), Morgan has done something fantastic with Trench Mouth in telling a story that stands up next to a novel written by a man with a Ph.D and a long history of working as a marine biologist. Nothing feels out of place or poorly researched within these pages, and it makes the whole experience feel that much more immersive. Perhaps my favorite element is the Morgan makes the denizens of the deep feel like fleshed out characters in and of themselves, by sharing perspectives that are at once alien and strangely familiar.
CanadaUnder Da C
All the reviews so far sum up this epic story 100 percent. I loved it and like some others this was my first and definitely not my last Morgan book. It was well crafted on every page. I loved it!
Amazing book!
This was the first book that I had read by this author and it definitely won't be my last. This book has humor, giant sea creatures and mad science that doesn't bog you down in science-y lingo. I really hope that there is more to come from this book.