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The Mine
At a secret mining facility somewhere in the deserts of Rajasthan, an ancient place of worship, with disturbing carvings on its dome, is discovered buried deep inside the earth. Soon the miners find themselves in the grip of terrifying waking nightmares. One tries to mutilate himself. Worse follows.
Five experts are called in to investigate these strange occurrences. Sucked into a nightmare deep underground, they embark on a perilous journey; a journey that will change them forever, bringing them face-to-face with the most shattering truth of them all...
The greatest evil lies deep inside.
Five experts are called in to investigate these strange occurrences. Sucked into a nightmare deep underground, they embark on a perilous journey; a journey that will change them forever, bringing them face-to-face with the most shattering truth of them all...
The greatest evil lies deep inside.
282 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
24 people are currently reading
363 people want to read
About the author
Arnab Ray
14 books120 followersArnab Ray, better known as Greatbong, is one of India's most widely read bloggers who blogs at Random Thoughts Of A Demented Mind. He is known for his sarcastic takes on the Indian film industry, Indian politics and society in general. His blog was awarded the "Indiblog of the Year" at Indibloggies in 2006[1] and 2008. He has written for several media outlets like the Washington Post, Outlook magazine and Live Mint. He graduated from Jadavpur University as a Bachelor in Computer Science and Engineering and went on to finish his PhD in Computer Science from State University of New York at Stony Brook. He is presently employed as a research scientist at the University of Maryland and resides in the suburbs of Washington DC. His first book "May I Hebb Your Attention Pliss", published by Harper Collins, was on India Today's Bestsellers list.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
March 31, 2012
A good majority of people who read or watch movies are fascinated by a group of people getting trapped in a seemingly unsurmountable set of obstacles. The setting could be anywhere : haunted houses, jungles, isolated islands and they could facing off against killer(s), monsters or forces of nature. Throughout the ordeal, members of the group give up their ghosts and the survivors leave the stage with a new perspective on life. This thread is so common that its extremely difficult to find the word 'novelty' in it anymore. This book suffers the same fate.
I must say that in the overall scheme of things, it is well written without much of flowery prose or unnecessary details. I wouldn't want to go in and dissect the plot for it is a very altered version of the Saw franchise of movies. Oh no ! I did not spoil the suspense for you prospective reader for suspense is not what this plot is all about. It is about people confronting their sins and to follow the dictums of divine justice, it is about paying the price for those sins as well !
Arnab Ray chose only one sin : Lust. This he methodically extrapolates all through his book. It could just be the reflection of the sentimentalities of a good chunk of Indian moviegoers as sex sells like nothing else in movies here ( as it does everywhere else in the world !). While the plot lacks ingenuity, I somehow felt that if the author had thought of focussing on the other evils infecting the Indian populace ( read corruption, media frenzy et al) then it would have been a tremendously readable book. Sadly, it's almost completely consumed by sex with a few exceptions. Character development is not something I was very interested with for at places they appear solid and rounded off but frequently they are as thin as paper. The forced effort to ape what might one day be a film script is very overt & I did not miss those clues.
I must say that in the overall scheme of things, it is well written without much of flowery prose or unnecessary details. I wouldn't want to go in and dissect the plot for it is a very altered version of the Saw franchise of movies. Oh no ! I did not spoil the suspense for you prospective reader for suspense is not what this plot is all about. It is about people confronting their sins and to follow the dictums of divine justice, it is about paying the price for those sins as well !
Arnab Ray chose only one sin : Lust. This he methodically extrapolates all through his book. It could just be the reflection of the sentimentalities of a good chunk of Indian moviegoers as sex sells like nothing else in movies here ( as it does everywhere else in the world !). While the plot lacks ingenuity, I somehow felt that if the author had thought of focussing on the other evils infecting the Indian populace ( read corruption, media frenzy et al) then it would have been a tremendously readable book. Sadly, it's almost completely consumed by sex with a few exceptions. Character development is not something I was very interested with for at places they appear solid and rounded off but frequently they are as thin as paper. The forced effort to ape what might one day be a film script is very overt & I did not miss those clues.
December 9, 2014
When I began reading, I found the story very gruesome. I couldn't read more than 10-20 pages at a time. But as the story progressed, it got less revolting, because my mind got used to it, and I simply stopped putting imagery into the words.
Despite that, it was a difficult read. I like books with shades of grey, where people are both good and bad, where situations can swing either way. I am a cynic and do not believe that people are good by nature, but digesting so much hatred and manipulation and "evil" was hard. The book is a "feel-bad" one that makes you realise "there is evil lurking within each individual" through what I'd like to call a hyperbole of evils (yeah, all right, call me delusional) - the opposite of feel-good, which generally exaggerates the good in the world.
Narrative style is all right, and though initially I felt that some characters were not being given enough page space (Samar's story dominates), I realised that it was a technique to keep the worst for the last. In a way, the narrative also made us a "helpless bystander" like Samar, forced to watch evil brewing.
*spoiler ahead*
We do not learn anything about the shrine or the mine in the end though. As in, what exactly was its purpose. Who was Lilith Adams? Is the author planning a sequel to explain, or is it supposed to be left to readers' imagination? I, for one, do not want to imagine. I shall "remember to forget".
Despite that, it was a difficult read. I like books with shades of grey, where people are both good and bad, where situations can swing either way. I am a cynic and do not believe that people are good by nature, but digesting so much hatred and manipulation and "evil" was hard. The book is a "feel-bad" one that makes you realise "there is evil lurking within each individual" through what I'd like to call a hyperbole of evils (yeah, all right, call me delusional) - the opposite of feel-good, which generally exaggerates the good in the world.
Narrative style is all right, and though initially I felt that some characters were not being given enough page space (Samar's story dominates), I realised that it was a technique to keep the worst for the last. In a way, the narrative also made us a "helpless bystander" like Samar, forced to watch evil brewing.
*spoiler ahead*
We do not learn anything about the shrine or the mine in the end though. As in, what exactly was its purpose. Who was Lilith Adams? Is the author planning a sequel to explain, or is it supposed to be left to readers' imagination? I, for one, do not want to imagine. I shall "remember to forget".
February 27, 2012
A good thriller from Arnab Ray. Quite cinematic and fast paced, this book is loosely based on the thriller Saw series. The book ends on an open note and you are left to imagine the different possibilities as to what could have happened, and how it has happened.
Read this if you have a lazy weekend and nothing much to do.
Read this if you have a lazy weekend and nothing much to do.
May 26, 2024
***NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEARTS***
This is the second book of Arnab Ray that I read. The first one was May I Hebb Your Attention Pliss, which was quirky non-fiction. So after reading that book, i came across The Mine and i tried it on for size. I have never read such a dark, well-written thriller by any Indian author, period!
The storyline is about a group of external experts who are 'invited' to check some mysterious happenings in a mine somewhere in the bowels of Rajasthan. The team of these experts all have deep dark, secrets that we do not know in the beginning. But as the story continues we get flashbacks of all the characters, and know about their past and the type of person they are. It is a very fast-paced story and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the end! The End... it hit me like a cracking merciless whip, ripping all sorts of preconceived notions that I had while I read the book. The characters are intensely sketched and their POVs are brutal. Apart from that the writing style is very mature and dark, as it deals with complexities of human psychology.
While reading I felt for each of the characters, their reasoning, and the predicaments they were in. There were many moments in the book, that made me think and rethink about my mental sanity as I started to empathize with characters. In the book, every character had their little piece of hell to deal with. If you love psychological thriller this is the type of thriller you should pick up, but be advised to read the disclaimer in the first line.
This is the second book of Arnab Ray that I read. The first one was May I Hebb Your Attention Pliss, which was quirky non-fiction. So after reading that book, i came across The Mine and i tried it on for size. I have never read such a dark, well-written thriller by any Indian author, period!
The storyline is about a group of external experts who are 'invited' to check some mysterious happenings in a mine somewhere in the bowels of Rajasthan. The team of these experts all have deep dark, secrets that we do not know in the beginning. But as the story continues we get flashbacks of all the characters, and know about their past and the type of person they are. It is a very fast-paced story and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the end! The End... it hit me like a cracking merciless whip, ripping all sorts of preconceived notions that I had while I read the book. The characters are intensely sketched and their POVs are brutal. Apart from that the writing style is very mature and dark, as it deals with complexities of human psychology.
While reading I felt for each of the characters, their reasoning, and the predicaments they were in. There were many moments in the book, that made me think and rethink about my mental sanity as I started to empathize with characters. In the book, every character had their little piece of hell to deal with. If you love psychological thriller this is the type of thriller you should pick up, but be advised to read the disclaimer in the first line.
March 5, 2025
I have a mixed feeling about this book. The survival dark story of 6 strangers into the pit of a mine could have been an interesting plot yet, some character buildings and dialogues aren't upto the mark.
The story started with a mining accident, the death of an engineer, few psychotic experience by some workers and then complete shutdown of work. The company brought six experts from various fields to examine the problem. The six persons came for the greed of huge money only to discover that they were trapped inside. They found a shrine at the mine and saw some gruesome deaths only to find out that their past was the reason of their misfortune.
The plot was not unique but subtle. It made the premise interesting. The darkness inside each characters were very much profound to unsettle reader's mind. But, the way it had left thing unsaid was much unsettling. The story ended with more questions than ever. Nobody knows who made the mine even who was behind it. It made somehow clear that these people and their lives were interconnected but did not show why and how. No characters made it believable to root for them. One time read for me.
The story started with a mining accident, the death of an engineer, few psychotic experience by some workers and then complete shutdown of work. The company brought six experts from various fields to examine the problem. The six persons came for the greed of huge money only to discover that they were trapped inside. They found a shrine at the mine and saw some gruesome deaths only to find out that their past was the reason of their misfortune.
The plot was not unique but subtle. It made the premise interesting. The darkness inside each characters were very much profound to unsettle reader's mind. But, the way it had left thing unsaid was much unsettling. The story ended with more questions than ever. Nobody knows who made the mine even who was behind it. It made somehow clear that these people and their lives were interconnected but did not show why and how. No characters made it believable to root for them. One time read for me.
January 11, 2021
So, I’ve been looking for horror and thrillers from an international perspective and came across The Mine by Arnab Ray. Then, I looked at some of the reviews on Goodreads and was like…oof, I don’t know. But decided to at least start the book, and I was glad I did.
Wow! This is a roller coaster ride of a thriller. Yes, it *is* violent. And, yes, it does have a *lot* of sexually-based situations. But the violence takes on a new meaning when you realize that so much of it is based on real life occurrences and the sexual situations are absolutely essential to the plot and not just some sort of sexual romp.
More than anything, the author takes us deep into the horrors that men and women commit in both real life and in their hearts…and it’s a very unpleasant place to visit.
I did wish for a few less flashbacks and that some of what happened in the mine happened a little sooner, but that’s just a personal preference and once things got rolling, they simply didn’t stop!
No spoilers here, but one reveal absolutely shattered me – it was shocking and terrible, but fit very well within the story the book told.
Finally, it was an absolute pleasure to read a book from a perspective that wasn’t generic white American or generic white Brit – the book is told from an Indian perspective and it gives insight into both modern culture and history.
Wow! This is a roller coaster ride of a thriller. Yes, it *is* violent. And, yes, it does have a *lot* of sexually-based situations. But the violence takes on a new meaning when you realize that so much of it is based on real life occurrences and the sexual situations are absolutely essential to the plot and not just some sort of sexual romp.
More than anything, the author takes us deep into the horrors that men and women commit in both real life and in their hearts…and it’s a very unpleasant place to visit.
I did wish for a few less flashbacks and that some of what happened in the mine happened a little sooner, but that’s just a personal preference and once things got rolling, they simply didn’t stop!
No spoilers here, but one reveal absolutely shattered me – it was shocking and terrible, but fit very well within the story the book told.
Finally, it was an absolute pleasure to read a book from a perspective that wasn’t generic white American or generic white Brit – the book is told from an Indian perspective and it gives insight into both modern culture and history.
April 1, 2012
What do you think you are doing? I asked this very question when I started reading this. I know that I happen to read a cheap flick every now then; this book is no different. It is a high flying, super duper pow, worst of its kind.
I came to know that if I am a intelligent scientist, I would probably also be a sex addict. And I also came to understand that sex is the only thing that I would remember when I think of something that I did wrong. And if I think there is a guy who is under control, he is most likely to be the one worst hit by the addiction. I came to know the author himself is a computer scientist (Oops - hope he knows what he thinks).
I sincerely request authors like dear Arnab not to manipulate fiction.
I came to know that if I am a intelligent scientist, I would probably also be a sex addict. And I also came to understand that sex is the only thing that I would remember when I think of something that I did wrong. And if I think there is a guy who is under control, he is most likely to be the one worst hit by the addiction. I came to know the author himself is a computer scientist (Oops - hope he knows what he thinks).
I sincerely request authors like dear Arnab not to manipulate fiction.
July 24, 2012
Loved it. Never expected this kind of book from an Indian author. Not that I don't read Indian authors. They write really well but revolves usually around love stories etc the ones we usually refer to as light read. This one is a bit disturbing but overall nice.
April 19, 2021
"Cynicism is a crutch, a crutch that justifies the worst in us by pointing to the worst in others."
Although I enjoy psychological thrillers as a genre, I am not a big fan of out-and-out horror. I still decided to give “The Mine” by Arnab Ray a chance because I have thoroughly enjoyed his other work and a little indulgence has never hurt anyone, right?
So even though I am probably not the right “target audience” for this book, I found “The Mine” to be adequately enjoyable. The mystery is not bad, the characterization is sufficiently layered for a horror story and even though the gore is a little too much for my taste, it is not completely off-putting. Talk about a lukewarm review for a book! A “solid” 3.5 from me.
What did bother me though is that despite the theme of the story being how some evil is hidden in all of us, the only “sin” that the characters indulge in, is lust. I understand sex sells, but I like to believe that it is not the only thing that sells.
So anyway, if you enjoy horror, do give this a try. If you don’t particularly enjoy horror, you can still give this a try and you won’t be too put off. One absolutely great thing about “The Mine” is the super unexpected twist at the end - which literally happens on the last page, so be sure to read the Epilogue!
Although I enjoy psychological thrillers as a genre, I am not a big fan of out-and-out horror. I still decided to give “The Mine” by Arnab Ray a chance because I have thoroughly enjoyed his other work and a little indulgence has never hurt anyone, right?
So even though I am probably not the right “target audience” for this book, I found “The Mine” to be adequately enjoyable. The mystery is not bad, the characterization is sufficiently layered for a horror story and even though the gore is a little too much for my taste, it is not completely off-putting. Talk about a lukewarm review for a book! A “solid” 3.5 from me.
What did bother me though is that despite the theme of the story being how some evil is hidden in all of us, the only “sin” that the characters indulge in, is lust. I understand sex sells, but I like to believe that it is not the only thing that sells.
So anyway, if you enjoy horror, do give this a try. If you don’t particularly enjoy horror, you can still give this a try and you won’t be too put off. One absolutely great thing about “The Mine” is the super unexpected twist at the end - which literally happens on the last page, so be sure to read the Epilogue!
November 29, 2017
I really dont know what to say. All i know is this story will occupy my brain for a good time now! 😕
March 9, 2012
None of your actions : muted in secrecy or invisible in chaos ever goes unnoticed. We have known this for decades through our parents and theirs. "The Mine" by the Greatbong dramatizes the thought .... and what a dramatization has it been !
The story follows the philosophical learning of the protagonist : an ex-spy Samar Bose who is desperately searching for his daughter. He and a couple of other well skilled individuals, each carrying a dark baggage from his/her past are lured into a secret mining facility plagued by strange occurrences. However, the mine, so well known in our daily rhetoric for its depth and darkness actually constitutes something more sinister for all of them.
The story grips all your sensations from the first page itself. Nowhere during the book, do you feel weighted to keep it down. Though at times, the philosophical baggage and the technological explanations do seem heavy.
Arnab Ray -- or more popularly the Greatbong, has infused a lot of philosophy in this gripping thriller. Sometimes, to the extent that the reader is forced to relive his own actions through the prism of the story. The English, though "GRE-level" at patches, is something that everyone will be able to keep pace with. The story building is constant, and doesn't stoop at any point.
Personally, I would have loved the ending to culminate with the doctor and not extend to the protagonist's brother and subsequent actions. I found that a bit too negative.
To summarize, The Mine is worth every second and penny spent, and does an impressive job of gripping you, while forcing you to introspect ... the usual neutral view of life.
The story follows the philosophical learning of the protagonist : an ex-spy Samar Bose who is desperately searching for his daughter. He and a couple of other well skilled individuals, each carrying a dark baggage from his/her past are lured into a secret mining facility plagued by strange occurrences. However, the mine, so well known in our daily rhetoric for its depth and darkness actually constitutes something more sinister for all of them.
The story grips all your sensations from the first page itself. Nowhere during the book, do you feel weighted to keep it down. Though at times, the philosophical baggage and the technological explanations do seem heavy.
Arnab Ray -- or more popularly the Greatbong, has infused a lot of philosophy in this gripping thriller. Sometimes, to the extent that the reader is forced to relive his own actions through the prism of the story. The English, though "GRE-level" at patches, is something that everyone will be able to keep pace with. The story building is constant, and doesn't stoop at any point.
Personally, I would have loved the ending to culminate with the doctor and not extend to the protagonist's brother and subsequent actions. I found that a bit too negative.
To summarize, The Mine is worth every second and penny spent, and does an impressive job of gripping you, while forcing you to introspect ... the usual neutral view of life.
June 2, 2012
This blog is about movie reviews, and would continue to be. But I just had to write a small review about this book.
I picked this book luck by chance waiting for someone at the Landmark Book store. I was drawn to its particularly grotesque and vibrant cover with an unconventional title for an Indian author. I thought I’d humor myself and read a few pages till my friend came along. I ended up reading the first 20 pages and was instantly hooked on to the plot.
The Mine follows 5 individuals through a secret mine in Rajasthan. The 5 are “experts” in their particular field of work and have been called upon to investigate strange on – goings in the mine. Events such as delusional miners, people killing themselves for no rhyme or reasons start after a strange Shrine dated even before the Harappa civilization was accidently excavated. What starts as a normal investigation for the 5, ends up into a fight for survival for the individuals.
Read the whole review at : http://devlifeintechnicolor.com/2012/...
I picked this book luck by chance waiting for someone at the Landmark Book store. I was drawn to its particularly grotesque and vibrant cover with an unconventional title for an Indian author. I thought I’d humor myself and read a few pages till my friend came along. I ended up reading the first 20 pages and was instantly hooked on to the plot.
The Mine follows 5 individuals through a secret mine in Rajasthan. The 5 are “experts” in their particular field of work and have been called upon to investigate strange on – goings in the mine. Events such as delusional miners, people killing themselves for no rhyme or reasons start after a strange Shrine dated even before the Harappa civilization was accidently excavated. What starts as a normal investigation for the 5, ends up into a fight for survival for the individuals.
Read the whole review at : http://devlifeintechnicolor.com/2012/...
March 27, 2014
Having heard glowing reviews of this book by Arnab Ray , whose other book May I Hebb your Attention pliss , I really loved , I had high expectations here .... This book , however just reads like a cheap , uninspired Bollywood rip-off of the Saw films franchise , with a generous dose of sleaze thrown in for good measure ......... It has none of the shockers , ingenuity and philosophical base that the films rather had........ I'll chose a 2-hr Saw film any day ,over this 587-page of a time-waster.
January 16, 2013
Started reading this after seeing some rave reviews and a lot of buzz about the book. However, after finishing it, was not too impressed by the ending and the overall story as such.
July 6, 2012
not impressive..seems like the author has watched lot of movies like seven,cube,exam and combined them to form a so called novel THE MINE..
December 22, 2016
A fast-paced thriller with lots of blood and gore. I guess it is an OK read for fans of pulp.
September 6, 2021
Very good attempt at horror + mysticism. However, a ton of sex thrown in tests your patience. May be very long for some readers.
January 23, 2019
Horror, Thriller, exciting characters.
November 10, 2018
Imagine combining Event Horizon with Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None then mixing in the criminally underrated film Below. Set it in a mine deep below the Great Indian Desert and you'll get an idea of what you're in for in Arnab Ray's horrifying, claustrophobic, sex-filled gore-fest of a novel about five adults and one little girl trapped underground with their guilt.
The Mine starts out with Samar, a rich recluse specializing in industrial security, wallowing in his grief after the disappearance of his daughter and the death of his wife. Yeah, Samar has shit luck. A mysterious man named Arnold Paul (whose name I kept reading as Arnold Palmer) finally bribes, er, "convinces" Samar to drag his depressed butt out of bed by offering him a large sum of money to go with him and do a sketchy job, the details of which Paul/Palmer won't reveal. Samar is apparently used to this sort of thing due to his work as a security expert/spy for secret government ops, and figures he wasn't doing anything important anyway (except moping and sleeping) so he begrudgingly accepts the offer and heads off for the titular mine. As it turns out, greed is a great motivator because Mr. Paul/Palmer has also convinced four other experts to go to the middle of nowhere with a complete stranger, no questions asked.
Joining Samar are Dr. Karan Singh Rathore, a diplomatic and laid back older gentleman who specializes in infectious diseases; Dr. Anjali Menon, a widowed archeologist who brought her disabled daughter, Anya, along; Dr. Akshay More, an arrogant and obnoxious assistant professor in forensic toxicology; and Dr. Preeti Singh, a short-tempered psychologist with a surprising lack of people skills. The group has been brought together to give their expert opinion on a series of deadly accidents that seem to have been caused by the discovery of an ancient, creepy temple the miners are too afraid to go near. A temple that also happens to be covered in explicit carvings of naked women being tortured and killed, because whomever created the damn thing is sexist and gross. If that wasn't ominous enough, the director of the mine is named Lilith Adams. While it's fully possible her parents were just uncreative goths from the early 00's, it's far more likely that Ms. Adams just picked the most obvious evil pseudonym since Alucard and Lou C. Pher.
At this point, most people would've noped the fuck out of there, but Samar and the scientists have clearly never seen a horror movie in their lives and are too wrapped up in their own issues to notice the whole situation has more red flags than a May Day parade in Moscow. The mine could not be more obviously evil if it had "Gateway to Hell" in big florescent lights over the entrance, ominous music playing in the background, and a bunch of demons chilling in the conference room. Then again, these are people who willingly followed a creepy stranger into the middle of nowhere to visit his sketchy underground dungeon (literally, the workers are all criminals and aren't allowed to leave until their contracts are up) because Paul/Palmer promised them candy/money. Little kids have more street smarts than this group, so I shouldn't be surprised they're completely oblivious to danger.
Akshay and Anjali explore the torture-porn temple and discover it depicts ironic punishments attributed to specific sins. Meanwhile, Karan and Preeti talk to the survivors, who share stories that would make Rob Zombie squeamish. Akshay makes light of the situation and acts like a jackass, Anjali does her best to ignore everyone and just do her job, Karan remains calm and reasonable, and Preeti is hostile and short-tempered. Samar checks the security and continues to have no fucks to give beyond a kind of creepy obsession with Anya, who reminds him of his dead daughter. The general consensus among the workers is that they've somehow opened a portal to hell and everyone in the mine is going to die horribly as a result of their dark pasts. Needless to say, company morale isn't great. At this point, everyone finally agrees this place is super creepy and they want to collect their paychecks and GTFO. Alas, in a twist that should come as a surprise to exactly no one, Lilith turns out to be evil, and sets off an explosion that kills all the mine workers and traps the six survivors (Samar, the scientists, and Anjali's daughter) inside while she laughs manically about the mine's real resource being fear. Worst. Job. Ever.
The explosions cause the security systems to engage, sealing the group inside with a series of death traps. Because why wouldn't you want death traps in an already dangerous mine? On top of everything, an experimental gas that causes super human strength and insanity is being pumped through the A/C, which frankly, feels like overkill to me, but hey, they can run their portal to hell however they want. After their initial panic, presumably followed by the realization that they really should have seen all of this coming, the survivors formulate a plan to navigate the traps and make it to the surface. They're slightly hindered by the fact they have to trust each other and work together to make it out, and most of them are deceitful, suspicious, assholes, not to mention all the stupid puzzle traps that were apparently inspired by 80s video games. One such puzzle involves trying to obtain acid vials while avoiding motion activated laser and an electrified floor, and if you succeed you'll be rewarded with a chainsaw, which may be useful later. Unfortunately in this "game" their are no save points or extra lives.
What follows is about what you'd expect for a book about trying to escape from a possibly haunted mine with a bunch of jerks, but the predictability doesn't make the story any less suspenseful or gripping. But face it, if you're reading this book, you're looking for creative deaths, not creative storytellin, and boy, does Ray deliver there. Besides, the true mystery doesn't lie in their Aeneas-like journey through the mine, but in each character's backstory, all of which are slowly revealed as they try to escape the subterranean deathtrap. Each of the adults has done something criminal and escaped punishment, and have been struggling with their guilt ever since. The quality of the backstories varies, with some characters (like Akshay and Preeti) getting plenty of focus, while Anjali gets very little characterization beyond "the aloof mom". So too do their sins seem to be of differing severity. Some of the survivors have committed crimes so awful as to make them irredeemable, while others are more sympathetic and their sins, while still terrible, are still at least partly understandable. This disparity seems a little unfair as it means at least some of the group will potentially suffer a gruesome death (at least according to the carvings in the temple) over something that would normally earn them less than 15 years in prison (at least in the US, not sure about the Indian judicial system). It's not that their crimes aren't bad, they just don't seem to merit a sentence of being reduced to a puddle of bloody viscera.
We never really learn if the mine is truly being controlled by a demonic entity or if the group's guilt and paranoia (fueled by the hallucinogenic gas) is causing them to attribute bad luck to malicious forces and see things that aren't there. Samar even suggests that the whole thing is an unethical experiment by the government to test their new gas on subjects no one will miss, as there are far too many coincidences for mere random chance, and the temple may be a fake created to amp up their fear levels. Since none of the characters are able to trust their own senses, making them unreliable narrators, arguments could be made for either scenario, making the story even more spooky and disturbing. Monsters are scary, but they're even scarier when you can't even tell if they're real or simply the imaginary scapegoats of guilt-ridden, paranoid people. Even more frightening, Ray argues, are the depths of human cruelty and depravity, which are explored in each character's backstory. Though that may just be an excuse to squeeze more gore out of the story.
The Mine does an excellent job balancing itself between psychological horror and splatterpunk. The true scares lie in the book's creepy atmosphere, suspense, and the characters slowly succumbing to madness; the over-the-top gore is simply dessert. Unfortunately, this otherwise perfect blend of horror comes with as huge helping of misogyny. Yuck. Look, I'm fully willing to admit I'm part of the lowest common denominator who just wants to see heads exploding like overripe cherries and attractive people boning, but that doesn't mean I like sexism. Unfortunately, more often than not, the three seem to go hand in hand, much to the frustration of female horror fans, and other, more enlightened individuals who just happen to like hot sex and lots of blood. Ray isn't as bad some other authors out there, the violence is pretty evenly split between the genders and there aren't any scenes of knife-wielding killers chasing half naked women. He even manages to handle the subject of sexual assault fairly well, choosing to focus more on the problematic culture of victim-blaming and men who feel entitled to women's bodies rather than the rape itself. But he struggles with creating believable female characters, defining them by their relationships with men, and them victimizing them. Both of the female scientists have backstories that involve abuse and mistreatment at the hands of men, and instead of being written as strong, survivors, they both come off as bitter, man-haters. Apparently Ray subscribes to the theory that in order to be "strong" a woman must act rude, aloof, aggressive, and despise an entire gender, with the exception of that one special man who tames her with his magical penis. Which is why both Anjali and Pretti act like complete jerks, with Pretti especially flying off the handle at every perceived slight (she must be a great psychologist), and basically being awful to everyone except, ironically, Akshay whom she latches onto almost immediately (despite the fact that he's literally just the worst). Despite all her bluster, Pretti still falls quickly into the role of helpless victim in need of a man's protection at the first sign of danger. It's really embarrassing. I guess she can't help it because she's an emotional female with a hysterical uterus or some such nonsense. The women in the story are all described as being gorgeous, but only one male character is described as being very attractive, the wholly unlikable Akshay, and that's only because his appearance is supposed to reinforce how vain and materialistic he is. Many of the women are also incredibly horny, even minor characters, like Tanya the gold-digging nurse, and Ray paradoxically has no problem slut-shaming them for it (apparently enjoying sex is sinful enough to get you murdered by the mine), even though he later demonizes other characters for doing the same thing. Maybe the mine is just super slut shame-y. The unearthed temple certainly implies that someone behind the scenes hates women.
The women in the story seem less like real people and more like a weird combination of straw-feminists and male masturbatory material, with Ray putting way too much emphasis on their appearance, sex drives, and relationships with men. Then of course we have Anya, who, while thankfully not a sex object, is still treated as an object nonetheless. She barely gets any characterization, and doesn't communicate even through sign language or writing, she's just a blank slate for Samar to project his weird daughter obsession onto. It's doubly problematic since Samar seems to use Anya's disability as an excuse to treat her like a life-sized doll he can love, protect, and turn into his replacement daughter. Because she's mute he assumes she has nothing to say, and because she doesn't walk he thinks she's completely helpless. We don't even get to learn what she's thinking, or how she feels about Samar treating her as some sort of second chance, because, unlike the other characters who all get their turn in the spotlight of the limited, third-person narrative, Anya is completely ignored. At least she gets a little bit of a role later on (which I won't spoil). Miraculously, Lilith Adams is the only female character who is neither a victim, nor a sex fantasy, and is described only as being terrifying, intense, and very much in charge, much like her namesake.
So the female characters are about as well written as you'd expect from a male author who doesn't know how women work, and the whole "helpless, sick wheelchair girl" trope is super problematic. It's not the worst treatment of women I've seen in splatterpunk, but I'd still prefer to enjoy my blood and guts without the side of sexism. I mean, I don't think it's an unreasonable request. The writing is still pretty good, and it's definitely the scariest book I've read so far this year. The Mine is also one of only a few Indian horror novels I've been able to find in English. Whether that's enough to overshadow the book's problem areas, however, is up to the individual reader.
The Mine starts out with Samar, a rich recluse specializing in industrial security, wallowing in his grief after the disappearance of his daughter and the death of his wife. Yeah, Samar has shit luck. A mysterious man named Arnold Paul (whose name I kept reading as Arnold Palmer) finally bribes, er, "convinces" Samar to drag his depressed butt out of bed by offering him a large sum of money to go with him and do a sketchy job, the details of which Paul/Palmer won't reveal. Samar is apparently used to this sort of thing due to his work as a security expert/spy for secret government ops, and figures he wasn't doing anything important anyway (except moping and sleeping) so he begrudgingly accepts the offer and heads off for the titular mine. As it turns out, greed is a great motivator because Mr. Paul/Palmer has also convinced four other experts to go to the middle of nowhere with a complete stranger, no questions asked.
Joining Samar are Dr. Karan Singh Rathore, a diplomatic and laid back older gentleman who specializes in infectious diseases; Dr. Anjali Menon, a widowed archeologist who brought her disabled daughter, Anya, along; Dr. Akshay More, an arrogant and obnoxious assistant professor in forensic toxicology; and Dr. Preeti Singh, a short-tempered psychologist with a surprising lack of people skills. The group has been brought together to give their expert opinion on a series of deadly accidents that seem to have been caused by the discovery of an ancient, creepy temple the miners are too afraid to go near. A temple that also happens to be covered in explicit carvings of naked women being tortured and killed, because whomever created the damn thing is sexist and gross. If that wasn't ominous enough, the director of the mine is named Lilith Adams. While it's fully possible her parents were just uncreative goths from the early 00's, it's far more likely that Ms. Adams just picked the most obvious evil pseudonym since Alucard and Lou C. Pher.
At this point, most people would've noped the fuck out of there, but Samar and the scientists have clearly never seen a horror movie in their lives and are too wrapped up in their own issues to notice the whole situation has more red flags than a May Day parade in Moscow. The mine could not be more obviously evil if it had "Gateway to Hell" in big florescent lights over the entrance, ominous music playing in the background, and a bunch of demons chilling in the conference room. Then again, these are people who willingly followed a creepy stranger into the middle of nowhere to visit his sketchy underground dungeon (literally, the workers are all criminals and aren't allowed to leave until their contracts are up) because Paul/Palmer promised them candy/money. Little kids have more street smarts than this group, so I shouldn't be surprised they're completely oblivious to danger.
Akshay and Anjali explore the torture-porn temple and discover it depicts ironic punishments attributed to specific sins. Meanwhile, Karan and Preeti talk to the survivors, who share stories that would make Rob Zombie squeamish. Akshay makes light of the situation and acts like a jackass, Anjali does her best to ignore everyone and just do her job, Karan remains calm and reasonable, and Preeti is hostile and short-tempered. Samar checks the security and continues to have no fucks to give beyond a kind of creepy obsession with Anya, who reminds him of his dead daughter. The general consensus among the workers is that they've somehow opened a portal to hell and everyone in the mine is going to die horribly as a result of their dark pasts. Needless to say, company morale isn't great. At this point, everyone finally agrees this place is super creepy and they want to collect their paychecks and GTFO. Alas, in a twist that should come as a surprise to exactly no one, Lilith turns out to be evil, and sets off an explosion that kills all the mine workers and traps the six survivors (Samar, the scientists, and Anjali's daughter) inside while she laughs manically about the mine's real resource being fear. Worst. Job. Ever.
The explosions cause the security systems to engage, sealing the group inside with a series of death traps. Because why wouldn't you want death traps in an already dangerous mine? On top of everything, an experimental gas that causes super human strength and insanity is being pumped through the A/C, which frankly, feels like overkill to me, but hey, they can run their portal to hell however they want. After their initial panic, presumably followed by the realization that they really should have seen all of this coming, the survivors formulate a plan to navigate the traps and make it to the surface. They're slightly hindered by the fact they have to trust each other and work together to make it out, and most of them are deceitful, suspicious, assholes, not to mention all the stupid puzzle traps that were apparently inspired by 80s video games. One such puzzle involves trying to obtain acid vials while avoiding motion activated laser and an electrified floor, and if you succeed you'll be rewarded with a chainsaw, which may be useful later. Unfortunately in this "game" their are no save points or extra lives.
What follows is about what you'd expect for a book about trying to escape from a possibly haunted mine with a bunch of jerks, but the predictability doesn't make the story any less suspenseful or gripping. But face it, if you're reading this book, you're looking for creative deaths, not creative storytellin, and boy, does Ray deliver there. Besides, the true mystery doesn't lie in their Aeneas-like journey through the mine, but in each character's backstory, all of which are slowly revealed as they try to escape the subterranean deathtrap. Each of the adults has done something criminal and escaped punishment, and have been struggling with their guilt ever since. The quality of the backstories varies, with some characters (like Akshay and Preeti) getting plenty of focus, while Anjali gets very little characterization beyond "the aloof mom". So too do their sins seem to be of differing severity. Some of the survivors have committed crimes so awful as to make them irredeemable, while others are more sympathetic and their sins, while still terrible, are still at least partly understandable. This disparity seems a little unfair as it means at least some of the group will potentially suffer a gruesome death (at least according to the carvings in the temple) over something that would normally earn them less than 15 years in prison (at least in the US, not sure about the Indian judicial system). It's not that their crimes aren't bad, they just don't seem to merit a sentence of being reduced to a puddle of bloody viscera.
We never really learn if the mine is truly being controlled by a demonic entity or if the group's guilt and paranoia (fueled by the hallucinogenic gas) is causing them to attribute bad luck to malicious forces and see things that aren't there. Samar even suggests that the whole thing is an unethical experiment by the government to test their new gas on subjects no one will miss, as there are far too many coincidences for mere random chance, and the temple may be a fake created to amp up their fear levels. Since none of the characters are able to trust their own senses, making them unreliable narrators, arguments could be made for either scenario, making the story even more spooky and disturbing. Monsters are scary, but they're even scarier when you can't even tell if they're real or simply the imaginary scapegoats of guilt-ridden, paranoid people. Even more frightening, Ray argues, are the depths of human cruelty and depravity, which are explored in each character's backstory. Though that may just be an excuse to squeeze more gore out of the story.
The Mine does an excellent job balancing itself between psychological horror and splatterpunk. The true scares lie in the book's creepy atmosphere, suspense, and the characters slowly succumbing to madness; the over-the-top gore is simply dessert. Unfortunately, this otherwise perfect blend of horror comes with as huge helping of misogyny. Yuck. Look, I'm fully willing to admit I'm part of the lowest common denominator who just wants to see heads exploding like overripe cherries and attractive people boning, but that doesn't mean I like sexism. Unfortunately, more often than not, the three seem to go hand in hand, much to the frustration of female horror fans, and other, more enlightened individuals who just happen to like hot sex and lots of blood. Ray isn't as bad some other authors out there, the violence is pretty evenly split between the genders and there aren't any scenes of knife-wielding killers chasing half naked women. He even manages to handle the subject of sexual assault fairly well, choosing to focus more on the problematic culture of victim-blaming and men who feel entitled to women's bodies rather than the rape itself. But he struggles with creating believable female characters, defining them by their relationships with men, and them victimizing them. Both of the female scientists have backstories that involve abuse and mistreatment at the hands of men, and instead of being written as strong, survivors, they both come off as bitter, man-haters. Apparently Ray subscribes to the theory that in order to be "strong" a woman must act rude, aloof, aggressive, and despise an entire gender, with the exception of that one special man who tames her with his magical penis. Which is why both Anjali and Pretti act like complete jerks, with Pretti especially flying off the handle at every perceived slight (she must be a great psychologist), and basically being awful to everyone except, ironically, Akshay whom she latches onto almost immediately (despite the fact that he's literally just the worst). Despite all her bluster, Pretti still falls quickly into the role of helpless victim in need of a man's protection at the first sign of danger. It's really embarrassing. I guess she can't help it because she's an emotional female with a hysterical uterus or some such nonsense. The women in the story are all described as being gorgeous, but only one male character is described as being very attractive, the wholly unlikable Akshay, and that's only because his appearance is supposed to reinforce how vain and materialistic he is. Many of the women are also incredibly horny, even minor characters, like Tanya the gold-digging nurse, and Ray paradoxically has no problem slut-shaming them for it (apparently enjoying sex is sinful enough to get you murdered by the mine), even though he later demonizes other characters for doing the same thing. Maybe the mine is just super slut shame-y. The unearthed temple certainly implies that someone behind the scenes hates women.
The women in the story seem less like real people and more like a weird combination of straw-feminists and male masturbatory material, with Ray putting way too much emphasis on their appearance, sex drives, and relationships with men. Then of course we have Anya, who, while thankfully not a sex object, is still treated as an object nonetheless. She barely gets any characterization, and doesn't communicate even through sign language or writing, she's just a blank slate for Samar to project his weird daughter obsession onto. It's doubly problematic since Samar seems to use Anya's disability as an excuse to treat her like a life-sized doll he can love, protect, and turn into his replacement daughter. Because she's mute he assumes she has nothing to say, and because she doesn't walk he thinks she's completely helpless. We don't even get to learn what she's thinking, or how she feels about Samar treating her as some sort of second chance, because, unlike the other characters who all get their turn in the spotlight of the limited, third-person narrative, Anya is completely ignored. At least she gets a little bit of a role later on (which I won't spoil). Miraculously, Lilith Adams is the only female character who is neither a victim, nor a sex fantasy, and is described only as being terrifying, intense, and very much in charge, much like her namesake.
So the female characters are about as well written as you'd expect from a male author who doesn't know how women work, and the whole "helpless, sick wheelchair girl" trope is super problematic. It's not the worst treatment of women I've seen in splatterpunk, but I'd still prefer to enjoy my blood and guts without the side of sexism. I mean, I don't think it's an unreasonable request. The writing is still pretty good, and it's definitely the scariest book I've read so far this year. The Mine is also one of only a few Indian horror novels I've been able to find in English. Whether that's enough to overshadow the book's problem areas, however, is up to the individual reader.
May 23, 2024
-A Slow Descent Into Madness-
Review of The Mine by Arnab Ray @greatbong and @hachette
🖋️📖
First things first. This book needs a disclaimer the length of a curtain hanging in your reading room. The Mine is a story that, page after page, tests you. It teases you with violence and inflammatory dialogues. How much can you take? It pushes you and your limits, breaking them brick by brick while you keep erecting more walls to hide your reading self behind them. If you can’t take horror, this is abso-dapso-lutely not for you. I have made my disclaimer. Read at your own peril.
The prologue has all it takes to make a mass entertainer: an eerie location deep under the earth, a promise of deviant sex between two people separated by a vast age difference, a thrilling-by-the-second build up and these lines- ‘Mother had always warned him of the dark.
What she had forgotten was to tell him about the light.’
The Mine is a story where a motley bunch of crowd, overachievers all of them, come together to solve a mystery hidden thousands of feet under the earth. A corporate is mining a crystal that will solve the energy crisis of the world. They however can’t drill for it anymore as they have come upon an eerie (erotic? Scary? Dangerous?) shrine that’s supposedly making people crazy with fear and guilt. Read about it more in the book as any further descriptions might be considered spoilers.
Apart from being overachievers, these people- Karan, Samar, Anjali, Preeti and Akshay have a common vein running through them- a sordid past. Something dark hangs in their past lives which is threatening to come to the front. Their greed brought them to the mine: they were offered obscene amount of money to come and tackle the problem at hand but the problem is now going out of their hands and fast.
The employees of the Mine who have been exposed to the shrine have all been losing their minds. Are they schizophrenic? But if so, how’s it possible for a mental disease to appear at once in multiple victims? The story moves continuously, going back and forth in time as the five protagonists keep on going back to their past to dig the answers to the questions that have hit them like a wall in their present. Ray writes: ‘The past is not dead here. It walks.’
Ray has total control of the plot. He soon introduces a twist that changes the course of the story and cast doubt on every protagonist. Nothing is what is seems. Nobody is what they tell they are. Everyone has something to hide. This is an age old prop but Ray handles it tactfully.
My chief grouse with the book is that it appears to bite and claw at every last ray of sunshine, dooming everything to deep darkness. Sometimes not even the dialogues but the exposition comes out to be quite angry. This was the similar problem with the runway hit of 2023- ‘The Age of Vice’ where the author found even the shine of the stars ‘malevolent’. The author here could have toned down the anger a bit. Even a cat isn’t spared- ‘The doll's house lay on the ground, smashed to fine dust. It must have come close to the shelfs edge and then that accursed cat, fattened by the prime cuts of fish that Anita would spoil it with, must have knocked it over, like it had the heavy vase in the living room a few months ago.’ This all-black-nothing-white-not-even-grey writing sometimes tires the mind.
In order to keep the readers from guessing, Ray moves the plot at a breakneck speed. There are hidden laser shots, nerve gas attack, a decapitation and what not. The characters are continuously at one another’s throat. The ones who seem to be good come under the spotlight because the mine exists in a world of high stakes: nobody can be that good without an ulterior motive.
One of my favourite threads was Samar’s constant struggle with the memories of his lost daughter Reshami. His repeated digging of the past post his entry in the mine adds to the thrill of the plot.
Ray plays with the hidden demons we all have in our minds and unleashes them one at a time. Have a look at these lines- 'A shrine is just a pile of stones. And a mine... just a hole in the ground. No, it's not the place that bothers me. I's the people. Always the people. Because true evil', he said tapping the left side of his chest gently, 'the greatest evil... lies deep inside?'
In a rare burst of comedic relief, Ray lets a character point out at another for her alleged underconfidence as a psychiatrist. ‘Dr Singh really likes making her recommendations as a qualified psychiatrist. She is almost afraid that no one takes her seriously otherwise.’
Ray certainly knows his one liners. My favourite was- ‘Memories. The more beautiful they are, the deeper they cut.’
The Mine is a power-packed punch of a book. Read it for its unapologetic violence and gory mood.
Review of The Mine by Arnab Ray @greatbong and @hachette
🖋️📖
First things first. This book needs a disclaimer the length of a curtain hanging in your reading room. The Mine is a story that, page after page, tests you. It teases you with violence and inflammatory dialogues. How much can you take? It pushes you and your limits, breaking them brick by brick while you keep erecting more walls to hide your reading self behind them. If you can’t take horror, this is abso-dapso-lutely not for you. I have made my disclaimer. Read at your own peril.
The prologue has all it takes to make a mass entertainer: an eerie location deep under the earth, a promise of deviant sex between two people separated by a vast age difference, a thrilling-by-the-second build up and these lines- ‘Mother had always warned him of the dark.
What she had forgotten was to tell him about the light.’
The Mine is a story where a motley bunch of crowd, overachievers all of them, come together to solve a mystery hidden thousands of feet under the earth. A corporate is mining a crystal that will solve the energy crisis of the world. They however can’t drill for it anymore as they have come upon an eerie (erotic? Scary? Dangerous?) shrine that’s supposedly making people crazy with fear and guilt. Read about it more in the book as any further descriptions might be considered spoilers.
Apart from being overachievers, these people- Karan, Samar, Anjali, Preeti and Akshay have a common vein running through them- a sordid past. Something dark hangs in their past lives which is threatening to come to the front. Their greed brought them to the mine: they were offered obscene amount of money to come and tackle the problem at hand but the problem is now going out of their hands and fast.
The employees of the Mine who have been exposed to the shrine have all been losing their minds. Are they schizophrenic? But if so, how’s it possible for a mental disease to appear at once in multiple victims? The story moves continuously, going back and forth in time as the five protagonists keep on going back to their past to dig the answers to the questions that have hit them like a wall in their present. Ray writes: ‘The past is not dead here. It walks.’
Ray has total control of the plot. He soon introduces a twist that changes the course of the story and cast doubt on every protagonist. Nothing is what is seems. Nobody is what they tell they are. Everyone has something to hide. This is an age old prop but Ray handles it tactfully.
My chief grouse with the book is that it appears to bite and claw at every last ray of sunshine, dooming everything to deep darkness. Sometimes not even the dialogues but the exposition comes out to be quite angry. This was the similar problem with the runway hit of 2023- ‘The Age of Vice’ where the author found even the shine of the stars ‘malevolent’. The author here could have toned down the anger a bit. Even a cat isn’t spared- ‘The doll's house lay on the ground, smashed to fine dust. It must have come close to the shelfs edge and then that accursed cat, fattened by the prime cuts of fish that Anita would spoil it with, must have knocked it over, like it had the heavy vase in the living room a few months ago.’ This all-black-nothing-white-not-even-grey writing sometimes tires the mind.
In order to keep the readers from guessing, Ray moves the plot at a breakneck speed. There are hidden laser shots, nerve gas attack, a decapitation and what not. The characters are continuously at one another’s throat. The ones who seem to be good come under the spotlight because the mine exists in a world of high stakes: nobody can be that good without an ulterior motive.
One of my favourite threads was Samar’s constant struggle with the memories of his lost daughter Reshami. His repeated digging of the past post his entry in the mine adds to the thrill of the plot.
Ray plays with the hidden demons we all have in our minds and unleashes them one at a time. Have a look at these lines- 'A shrine is just a pile of stones. And a mine... just a hole in the ground. No, it's not the place that bothers me. I's the people. Always the people. Because true evil', he said tapping the left side of his chest gently, 'the greatest evil... lies deep inside?'
In a rare burst of comedic relief, Ray lets a character point out at another for her alleged underconfidence as a psychiatrist. ‘Dr Singh really likes making her recommendations as a qualified psychiatrist. She is almost afraid that no one takes her seriously otherwise.’
Ray certainly knows his one liners. My favourite was- ‘Memories. The more beautiful they are, the deeper they cut.’
The Mine is a power-packed punch of a book. Read it for its unapologetic violence and gory mood.
March 20, 2024
This book is a good one time read, but nothing more. It will keep you good company in a train or in a bus when you need an interesting book to while away your time.
Synopsis
Strange occurrences are happening in a mine deep in the heart of Rajasthan. The miners have discovered an ancient shrine with some odd and disturbing carvings. Soon, some bizarre and unexplained things are happening to the crew. Some see nightmares, some try to kill themselves etc.
Five experts from different arenas are called to investigate these occurrences and conclude whether mining should continue or not. All of these five people have some skeletons buried under their closet. Soon, their greatest long-forgotten buried secrets come to the fore as some mysterious force seems to be targeting them, ensuring that none of them leave the place alive.
Will the five people brave the odds and get out of there alive, or will the mine be their tomb?
Review
This book is good in bits and pieces but fails to impress overall. It's not in the league of Stephen King and other horror/thriller writers. But as mentioned earlier, it is a good one time read. The Author tries to build up the suspense from an interesting premise, but fails to create the required effect.
The novel lacks continuity and there are some flashbacks which mar the tempo. Except for Samar, the other characters lack depth. The story looks more like a hurried effort with a lump of words clumped together rather than one continuous streamlined effort. The Author should also have told the stories from the POV of the other characters instead of focusing on just one.
There is an interesting twist at the end though, which makes the effort taken to complete the book worthwhile.
Overall, a one time read but mostly disappointing and not living up to expectations.
Synopsis
Strange occurrences are happening in a mine deep in the heart of Rajasthan. The miners have discovered an ancient shrine with some odd and disturbing carvings. Soon, some bizarre and unexplained things are happening to the crew. Some see nightmares, some try to kill themselves etc.
Five experts from different arenas are called to investigate these occurrences and conclude whether mining should continue or not. All of these five people have some skeletons buried under their closet. Soon, their greatest long-forgotten buried secrets come to the fore as some mysterious force seems to be targeting them, ensuring that none of them leave the place alive.
Will the five people brave the odds and get out of there alive, or will the mine be their tomb?
Review
This book is good in bits and pieces but fails to impress overall. It's not in the league of Stephen King and other horror/thriller writers. But as mentioned earlier, it is a good one time read. The Author tries to build up the suspense from an interesting premise, but fails to create the required effect.
The novel lacks continuity and there are some flashbacks which mar the tempo. Except for Samar, the other characters lack depth. The story looks more like a hurried effort with a lump of words clumped together rather than one continuous streamlined effort. The Author should also have told the stories from the POV of the other characters instead of focusing on just one.
There is an interesting twist at the end though, which makes the effort taken to complete the book worthwhile.
Overall, a one time read but mostly disappointing and not living up to expectations.
November 3, 2024
The Mine by Arnab Ray is a gripping thriller set deep in the deserts of Rajasthan, where an ancient shrine is discoveredwithin a secret mining facility. This discovery plunges the miners into terrifying waking nightmares, leading to bizarre and violent behavior. As the situation escalates, five experts are called in to investigate, only to find themselves entangled in a nightmarish ordeal that tests their sanity and survival. Ray masterfully crafts a story that blends psychological horror with a fast-paced thriller.
The five protagonists—Karan, Samar, Anjali, Preeti, and Akshay—are not just experts in their fields; they are individuals haunted by dark pasts. Their journey into the mine becomes more than just a professional investigation; it turns into a personal battle with their own demons. The mine itself, with its eerie, ancient shrine, is almost a character in the story—its dark, oppressive atmosphere heightening the tension and dread.
Ray’s writing is intense and relentless, with a plot that moves at breakneck speed, keeping readers on edge. The twists and turns are unexpected, and the final reveal is both shocking and satisfying. While the book’s relentless darkness may not be for everyone, it is a compelling read for those who enjoy thrillers that delve into the darker aspects of human nature. Ray’s ability to maintain suspense and develop complex characters makes The Mine a standout in the genre. It’s a thrilling, disturbing ride that will leave you thinking long after you’ve turned the last page. Highly recommended for fans of psychological thrillers with a horror edge.
The five protagonists—Karan, Samar, Anjali, Preeti, and Akshay—are not just experts in their fields; they are individuals haunted by dark pasts. Their journey into the mine becomes more than just a professional investigation; it turns into a personal battle with their own demons. The mine itself, with its eerie, ancient shrine, is almost a character in the story—its dark, oppressive atmosphere heightening the tension and dread.
Ray’s writing is intense and relentless, with a plot that moves at breakneck speed, keeping readers on edge. The twists and turns are unexpected, and the final reveal is both shocking and satisfying. While the book’s relentless darkness may not be for everyone, it is a compelling read for those who enjoy thrillers that delve into the darker aspects of human nature. Ray’s ability to maintain suspense and develop complex characters makes The Mine a standout in the genre. It’s a thrilling, disturbing ride that will leave you thinking long after you’ve turned the last page. Highly recommended for fans of psychological thrillers with a horror edge.
October 3, 2020
"The Mine" by Arnab Ray
•
An Unpopular Read
•
Rating : 2/5 stars
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Well it was quite the unexpected read. This book was half the thriller I wanted it to be. The Author tried very hard to bring the thrilling elements into the present scene that was unfolding inside the mining facility. But he seemed to be more focused on the past of all the character's life and how they were all related to each other. Towards the end, it felt the mining facility and the shrine was too much dramatization in order for him to convey what he wanted; which is that you always answer for your sins. But making everything so inter related made it too unrealistic. His half crazy brother didn't need to be sinister in my opinion.
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However I loved the way everything unfolded. Predictable but enjoyable. It didn't give me quite the thrill but surely kept me engaged. A mix of magical realism and destiny mixed up to create a rather interesting read.
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But yes it did have the horror element in it. I was shocked at some revelations and the killings in the way that happened.
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Which was the last unpopular book you read?
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An Unpopular Read
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Rating : 2/5 stars
•
Well it was quite the unexpected read. This book was half the thriller I wanted it to be. The Author tried very hard to bring the thrilling elements into the present scene that was unfolding inside the mining facility. But he seemed to be more focused on the past of all the character's life and how they were all related to each other. Towards the end, it felt the mining facility and the shrine was too much dramatization in order for him to convey what he wanted; which is that you always answer for your sins. But making everything so inter related made it too unrealistic. His half crazy brother didn't need to be sinister in my opinion.
•
However I loved the way everything unfolded. Predictable but enjoyable. It didn't give me quite the thrill but surely kept me engaged. A mix of magical realism and destiny mixed up to create a rather interesting read.
•
But yes it did have the horror element in it. I was shocked at some revelations and the killings in the way that happened.
•
Which was the last unpopular book you read?
May 14, 2024
I have often loved reading thrillers with a group of people locked in a place, with no way to escape. What makes this book special is how it's written by an Indian author, and that too in a setting, not usually portrayed - A Mine!
The Mine in this book is in Rajasthan and certain disturbances have made the authorities to invite five specialists to look after the condition of the mine. But when things started to go wrong, only then did the five realize that they too became the part of an elaborate plot!
From the very beginning, the novel was able to keep me curious. All five of the characters in the story seemed suspicious and everyone had something evil in them to hide. To add to that, the presence of an ancient structure in the mine cause panic and fear in the readers.
As the story progresses, we see why these five were chosen and what they have done. It is grim and certainly not for sensitive readers. But if you do enjoy thrillers set in locked spaces, then this book can surely be enjoyed.
I know that this book isn't everyone's cup of tea, but for those who enjoy a good thriller with twists and turns throughout, then this book will perfectly suit you!
The Mine in this book is in Rajasthan and certain disturbances have made the authorities to invite five specialists to look after the condition of the mine. But when things started to go wrong, only then did the five realize that they too became the part of an elaborate plot!
From the very beginning, the novel was able to keep me curious. All five of the characters in the story seemed suspicious and everyone had something evil in them to hide. To add to that, the presence of an ancient structure in the mine cause panic and fear in the readers.
As the story progresses, we see why these five were chosen and what they have done. It is grim and certainly not for sensitive readers. But if you do enjoy thrillers set in locked spaces, then this book can surely be enjoyed.
I know that this book isn't everyone's cup of tea, but for those who enjoy a good thriller with twists and turns throughout, then this book will perfectly suit you!
August 15, 2017
This was one of the finest works of suspense-driven horror that I have EVER read.
On one hand, it's a story of supernatural evil that gets unleashed by the unearthing of an inexplicable shrine inside a mysterious, and totally secret mine. Five experts are brought in by the authorities, to explain the "accidents" that had besieged the miners, and to assess the safety of the mine. Then, predictably, things go very very wrong.
On the other hand, this is a story of deep and disturbingly human evil. As one character after another went through his or her individual hell, befitting the evil inflicted upon others by himself, or herself, we started realising what a unique purgatory, with all possible layers, have been created by the author, for us.
Above all, the book was absolutely unputdownable.
The only reason behind me dropping one star is the mind-numbing pain & shock caused by the ending, which could have been different, easily.
Even then, Recommended, obviously.
On one hand, it's a story of supernatural evil that gets unleashed by the unearthing of an inexplicable shrine inside a mysterious, and totally secret mine. Five experts are brought in by the authorities, to explain the "accidents" that had besieged the miners, and to assess the safety of the mine. Then, predictably, things go very very wrong.
On the other hand, this is a story of deep and disturbingly human evil. As one character after another went through his or her individual hell, befitting the evil inflicted upon others by himself, or herself, we started realising what a unique purgatory, with all possible layers, have been created by the author, for us.
Above all, the book was absolutely unputdownable.
The only reason behind me dropping one star is the mind-numbing pain & shock caused by the ending, which could have been different, easily.
Even then, Recommended, obviously.
December 16, 2021
I was skeptical about this book at first - I had assumed that this would be another hero-solves-religious-mystery-and-saves-the-world classic Dan Brown rip off. But this book truly left me stunned. It has been a long time since I read a book that I couldn't truly put down. The Mine by Arnab Ray is full of unexpected twists and shocking revelations every few pages. The book is tough, cruel and straightforward with it's story and characters. And the character development of all the characters is simply marvelous. But my favorite part was the ending. Usually such books which start off with such excellent writing, end in a hurry where the author tries to close the lid quickly. But Arnab Ray did not only just close the lid, he calmly finished it off with a neat, sinister little bow on top. The plot twist in the ending few pages really left me dumbfounded.
5/5 for The Mine by Arnab Ray. Would definitely recommend everyone to read this book atleast once!
5/5 for The Mine by Arnab Ray. Would definitely recommend everyone to read this book atleast once!
August 28, 2021
I read the back-description on the book and went like, “finally, we have an author focusing on Indian History (which, I think, is highly marginalized) & the booby traps it has to offer”. By this, I expected this book to undo the scars inflicted by Indie Jones & troupe.
But, something else unwinds - sex, gore, psycho-drama, and, did I mention sex? Come on, the tapestry of Indian history is rich. The shrine, the cave, the by-default mysticism that’s used to rationalize everything, from politics to policies, should have been enough to make this more compelling for the Hollywood, as well as Red Chillies Entertainment.
I’ve read this kind, time & again - Stephen King’s small town books, where, per capita, everyone’s a murderer.
But, something else unwinds - sex, gore, psycho-drama, and, did I mention sex? Come on, the tapestry of Indian history is rich. The shrine, the cave, the by-default mysticism that’s used to rationalize everything, from politics to policies, should have been enough to make this more compelling for the Hollywood, as well as Red Chillies Entertainment.
I’ve read this kind, time & again - Stephen King’s small town books, where, per capita, everyone’s a murderer.
August 25, 2019
Too many questions remains unanswered. Though Samar Bose's part of the tale was well spun, the remaining story is just macabre and useless gore. A team of five is called on to investigate a trouble in a Mine, and then one-by-one almost all of them gets butchered for their past sins. It's not clear why only these five were chosen ? Why did someone want to spend a fortune for just killing these people ? What actually happens to the crowd working in the Mine ? Though an engaging read but the end is too unfinished.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 25, 2024
4.5 ⭐️
this thriller is so mind boggling, it keeps you on your toes and you just want to keep reading. I actually could not put this down, once I got reading and had to pull an all nighter just to finish this and I will say it was WORTH IT.
This story teaches us so much about Karma and just how life in general is so precious. The way everyone in this book had their moments before dying, they were all sinners and they deserved it but those dying episodes are cruellllll
Looking forward to read more from the author
this thriller is so mind boggling, it keeps you on your toes and you just want to keep reading. I actually could not put this down, once I got reading and had to pull an all nighter just to finish this and I will say it was WORTH IT.
This story teaches us so much about Karma and just how life in general is so precious. The way everyone in this book had their moments before dying, they were all sinners and they deserved it but those dying episodes are cruellllll
Looking forward to read more from the author
April 3, 2019
Gripping thriller with a fitting plot twist.
Very good thriller which kept me glued till the end. It explores the boundaries on the dark side of human minds which is disturbing to say the least. The story is very well paced, characters well built and language is simple. Arnab is a master storyteller and this is a good example of that. The final turning point of the story is a true surprise . That's what makes it a worthwhile read. Recommended.
Very good thriller which kept me glued till the end. It explores the boundaries on the dark side of human minds which is disturbing to say the least. The story is very well paced, characters well built and language is simple. Arnab is a master storyteller and this is a good example of that. The final turning point of the story is a true surprise . That's what makes it a worthwhile read. Recommended.
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