DEEPER by James A Moore

DEEPER by Jim Moore is being released in paperback the first of May. It is a terrific book that honors his influences picked up from the works of H. P. Lovecraft.

It was originally in Baryon 105 and appeared in advance of the hardcover edition. Since it has been so long, I thought I would share it with you.

Jim is one heck of a writer and is also a Georgian. Keep an eye out for his books and add them to your library when you can.

Deeper, James A. Moore, Necessary Evil Press, limited edition hardcover, Berkley Books paperback, May 2009, reviewed by Barry Hunter.

Several years ago in EXTREMES 3, a limited anthology on cdrom from Lone Wolf Press, James A. Moore introduced us to Golden Cove, Massachusetts and he has taken that story ("A Place Where There is Peace") as a springboard for this extraordinary novel.

Joe Bierden is the captain of Isabella’s Dream – a cabin cruiser that he rents out for fishing trips, weddings or whatever. He is approached by Doctor Martin Ward who wants to rent the boat for a month in order to do research. Joining them for the trip are Jacob and Mary Parsons who are parapsychologists with their own television show and fifteen student interns who are going to do the work.

Since tourist season is over, Joe takes the charter and has Charlie – his usual first mate and two local boys – Tom and Davey who have helped out before as his crew. All is well until Joe is told that Golden Cove is their destination and they plan to map the caves at Devil’s Reef and Charlie senses bad things are going to happen. While Doctor Ward is mapping the caves, The Parsons are checking into local legends of sunken ships and ghosts.

All is well until a diver is hurt on the first dive and Joe learns more of the history of Golden Cove – which just happened to have been rebuilt over the former location of Innsmouth (does that name ring a bell?).

Belle, Joe’s wife, comes down for a visit and everything starts going to hell as people begin to disappear and a strange creature is captured. All of this leads into a very interesting battle and in typical James A. Moore fashion, no one or nothing is safe from harm.

This is a fast read that will keep you going until you finish it. It is one of his most interesting storylines so far. It makes him a member of the Lovecraft Circle and I hope and pray that this is not the only foray into those territories. Some folks are comparing Moore to King and Koontz, but to me he is an American original.