Review: HOLE IN THE WORLD by Brian Keene

Publisher Apex Book Company
Length 276 pages
Format ebook

Published 2019

Series Lost Level #3
My Copy provided by the publisher

My Review

Hole in the World in the third book in the Lost Level Series which pits displaced humans from a swath of multiverses into a land out of time, a unique place which doesn't confirm to any period or time-stream; aliens are as much at home as dinosaurs and giant futuristic robots.   

In the previous books (The Lost Level, and Return to the Lost Level) we followed the escapades of men's adventure magazine hero Aaron Pace as he 1), establishes himself in the Lost Level, 2) sojourns across the dangerous landscape in search of a loved one, and 3) kicks the a$$ of any comic-book creature which comes his way. Cool stuff. 

Hole in the World transports the reader, much like the characters of the book, into a time before Aaron Pace's current adventure, where the sheen of this mystical place isn't yet tarnished by the blood of battles fought and haunted by the ghosts of characters passed. It's a prequel of sorts which adds to the continuity and compliments the other two books.

The action is pretty intense at times with some truly memorable moments; for instance, how the wheelchair Aaron stumbled across made its way to the Lost Level, and a *spoiler alert* cameo of a character featured in the other books. 

Despite the larger cast of characters this time 'round, there's enough depth and backstory to make you feel each trial and tribulation; when a character succumbs to a bloody fate, the wounds cut deep. It's because of this great characterization, the absence of Aaron Pace isn't missed as much as he could have been. 

My rating: 5/5 stars. If you've read the previous books, I strongly suggest picking this one up, heck, even if you haven't read them, grab this one anyway.