Review: Where the Dead Wait

Where the Dead Wait by Ally Wilkes
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Thank you to Booklist for the ARC and the opportunity to review this title.

Victorian explorer Captain William Day will forever remember the polar expedition of the Reckoning, in which the last of his crew only survived by succumbing to cannibalism. Many years later, Day’s closest confidante from the Reckoning has gone missing on his own expedition, and Day is tasked with finding him. The rescue mission is fraught with uncertainty and animosity, and, haunted by the ghosts of his past, Day struggles with flashbacks and hallucinations that threaten to send him down the same disastrous path he followed before. Wilkes’ (All the White Spaces, 2022) interest in polar expeditions is evident in her intricate descriptions; the sense of place is remarkable, and the survival scenes stomach churning. Past and present accounts are often blurred by the slowness of the plot, making it difficult to keep details straight, and the conclusion inevitably falls short. Still, Wilkes provides strong examples of managing inner turmoil and past regrets. Recommended for fans of survival horror and sea voyage tales, such as books by Julia Armfield and Ian McGuire.

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