Ararat

Starred review from February 27, 2017
The whole is more than the sum of its parts in this exceptional supernatural thriller from bestseller Golden (Dead Ringers). An avalanche on Turkey’s legendary Mount Ararat uncovers a cave that may contain the remnants of Noah’s Ark. Adventurers, authors, and filmmakers Adam Holzer and Meryam Karga are determined to be the first to stake a claim on the site, and thus get the Turkish government’s permission to excavate it. They succeed, despite fierce competition, only to find that the ark contains a hideous and unsettling humanoid skeleton with two horns on its skull. While the scientists and rationalists on the team, including Ben Walker, whose National Science Foundation affiliation is actually a cover for the U.S. Department of Defense, dismiss any talk of demons, someone—or something—begins to pick off members of the expedition. While the contours of the story line will be familiar to genre fans, Golden makes them feel fresh through solid prose, effective characterizations, and a willingness not to pull any plot punches. Agent: Howard Morhaim, Howard Morhaim Literary Agency.

February 15, 2017
Far up on Turkey's Mount Ararat, buried within it like a cave, explorers discover the remains of a ship they think may be Noah's Ark. After they open an odd sarcophaguslike container and mess around with the horned cadaver inside, evil happens.Unafraid of ascending Ararat, with its threat of storms and avalanches and altitudinal challenges, Adam Holzer and his fiancee, Meryam Karga, take on the mountain with plans of co-writing another of their exploring bestsellers and shooting a documentary. From the start, there are tensions between the couple and among their multinational, multiethnic crew. One biblical scholar, a priest, is in favor of opening the coffin and finding "the greatest connection to biblical history we have ever found." Another scholar insists that "some things are better left buried." And then there's Ben Walker from the National Science Foundation, who hopes the 5,000-year-old cadaver proves to be an actual demon to "confirm the existence of God." It's not a good sign when people start disappearing. Things get even hairier when certain expeditioners start acting like they are possessed--which, in fact, they are. When a blizzard does, indeed, trap everyone in the cave, heightening their paranoia, they struggle as much for sanity as survival. Likely inspired by the claustrophobic film thriller The Thing, Golden (Dead Ringers, 2015, etc.) tightens the screws slowly but surely. While there are times the participants succumb to a group mania reminiscent of another film, The Poseidon Adventure, the book mostly works in an eerier and subtler manner. A thriller with an intellectual bent, Golden's latest effort ruminates on the nature and existence of good and evil while providing the chills and tingles fans of this prolific author have come to expect.

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March 15, 2017
Since religion's conception, human beings have striven to find proof that some higher power exists. Sometimes the search is abstract, but in the case of Golden's latest novel, the unearthed proof is horrifyingly real. Engaged thrill seekers Meryam and Adam spend their time traveling the world, publishing books about their adventures, but it isn't until an avalanche on Mount Ararat occurs that they decide to cement their claim to fame. With the help of guides, their group reaches a newly exhumed cave at the site of the avalanche, to discover what looks like Noah's Ark. But the Ark isn't the only thing they find; a mummified body with long horns is uncovered in the ruins, and its presence causes tension among the team of archaeologists and scholars sent to study the artifacts. Fights escalate, people start disappearing, and even the nonbelievers of the team begin to suspect the worst: they've unearthed a demon. Golden takes readers on a terrifying journey into their own worst nightmares with a novel that is sure to chill to the bone.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

December 1, 2016

Trapped in a blizzard on Mount Ararat, a couple discover what looks to be Noah's Ark, and scholars, archaeologists, and filmmakers rush in for their own purposes. Alas, the sumptuous coffin they find contains a wretched-looking cadaver with horns. From a two-time Bram Stoker Award winner.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2017

Adventure writers Meryam and Adam are thrilled when they discover what they believe to be Noah's Ark in a cave inside Turkey's Mount Ararat. Among the treasures they find is an ancient coffin bearing a disfigured human, but the archaeological expedition quickly goes awry. Golden weaves political and religious elements into this scary tale of people trapped on a mountain with a demon. VERDICT Those who dare to read this novel will enjoy a spine-tingling tale with rich imagery and a buoyant cast of characters.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.