Don’t let the “for fans of Dan Brown” sticker on the front of The Anomaly put you off. Michael Rutger’s tense, smartly-written, achingly-exciting page turner might share some basic literary DNA with Brown’s laboured potboilers but, mercifully, it’s in an entirely different league as a modern mass appeal action thriller. However, claustrophobics or those suffering from extreme bathophobia might well want to pause before parting with their cash; once you’re in, there’s no way out…
Nolan Moore, amateur archaeologist and host of The Anomaly Files, an unremarkable “unexplored mysteries” web series hoping to get its big break onto cable TV, leads a small but perfectly-formed expedition into the Grand Canyon, following the trail of a centuries-old conspiracy involving the whereabouts of a secret cave mouth hidden high in the Canyon’s skyscraper cliff face. Previous expeditions have told of strange artefacts and structures within the cave, but details of its exact location have been lost in the mists of time and detailed reports of previous explorers’ experiences airbrushed from history.
The group stumble upon the cave mouth (which is a blessing, all things considered, as The Anomaly would be a painfully thin and pointless read if they didn’t) and do indeed find some remarkable things hidden deep inside. But they then find themselves trapped in the cave with little in the way of supplies, and they begin a desperate search of the warren-like cave system hoping to find a way out. What they find not only plunges them into greater danger but also changes their understanding of the theory of evolution and the very nature of all life on Earth.
The Anomaly is chokingly good stuff. It’s a book that grips the reader from the first page, a doomy and ominous prelude to what’s to come, and Rutger wastes no time introducing his small cast of relatable, believable characters and pitches them into the living Hell of the almost unbearable situation they find themselves in pretty damned quickly.
The narrative builds a palpable sense of dread and unease as the group, trapped in the gloomy cave system, wait cheerfully for rescue before realising that all isn’t as it seems in their new pitch-black surroundings, and that perhaps the help they’re expecting from the outside world (one of their number escapes the group’s entombment and offers a sliver of hope for rescue) won’t be coming as quickly as they hope, if at all. As conditions in the cave deteriorate and Nolan’s group – a well-drawn, colourful and largely likeable bunch (the sparring relationship between Nolan and his snipey producer Ken is a joy) – discover more about the extraordinary, life-altering properties of the caves, the tension builds to almost unbearable levels.
The Anomaly is a shamelessly enjoyable thrill-ride, by turns terrifying, thought-provoking, gory and blessed with a deftly-handled plot which twists and rolls and constantly surprises. The Anomoly screams “feature film” from virtually every nerve-shredding page; over to you, Mr Hollywood. Don’t screw this one up.
THE ANOMALY / AUTHOR: MICHAEL RUTGER / PUBLISHER: ZAFFRE / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
