MINOTAUR

by J.M. Fickling

A professional thief finds himself on the run after a botched heist, under fire and pursued by his enemies. Upon taking a wrong turn, however, he finds himself trapped in a 600,000,000 square mile labyrinth of empty rooms and hallways. Plagued with hunger, thirst, and madness he finds himself being hunted by a creature so horrifying that it must be witnessed to be believed... And avoided at all costs.

A breakneck plunge into sheer insanity, MINOTAUR explores the realm of liminal horror and the breaking point of man; a rendition of the Backrooms that has yet to be realized until now.

112 pages, Paperback

Published April 23, 2024

Reviews

[William Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

WELCOME TO FLUORESCENT HELL. J.M. Fickling, a little known author ( hopefully this won't be the case for long) has crafted one of the most unique premises for a book I have ever seen. The set up? A thief named Ricky Watkins goes on a heist that goes wrong, and when things go south and he goes on the run, he ends up in a strange building at the end of an alley.

At first, the building is strange because it's completely empty. But then, Ricky finds that all of the rooms are the same: hallways with cheap carpet, yellow wallpapered rooms, and fluorescent lighting. As he travels through, he finds that the place is bigger on the inside, like impossibly large, complex, and the walls move. Hence the name, Labyrinth. Now, any Labyrinth must have a....

*Insert book title here*

There's something following him down there. Something dark and foreboding. Without spoiling anything, this book turns into a strange, fever dream version of liminal horror. It's uncanny, uncomfortable, creative, and absolutely riveting from beginning to end. Give this one a chance because it's such a unique concept and written in this style that really blends well with the story. I read it in one sitting. Highly recommend.

[River · Rating 4 out of 5]

I lept into this book immediately after reading Parker by JM Fickling. I really appreciate the authors writing style, good detail without dragging on and on, a creepy and uncomfortable vibe in the book and uncertainty that keeps you turning the pages. I have a decent understanding of the concept of "The Back Rooms" through online videos and such, so it was really interesting to read a book based in that area of reality. Overall i enjoyed the book and everything it had to offer.

[Desiree Horton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun, quick read! A very unique take on the “back rooms” mythology, and a stirring and creepy tale of self awareness and redemption. I enjoyed the descriptions of the endless halls with the scents and the wall paper; almost like you’re there yourself. Highly enjoyable!

[AHZ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 for this one. It had potential but executed poorly. The Minotaur entity was creative but this one is no 'Piranesi' or 'A short stay in hell'.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Minotaur is a quick, entertaining read.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[aciddelight · Rating 4 out of 5]

loooove the backrooms and love books about hell and people going insane. so naturally i loved this.

[Jay Fennec · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fresh take on The Backrooms lore, but arguably the only one to remain faithful to the original source quote. Fickling does an outstanding job with pacing and immersion for such a short read (I finished it in one sitting), so convincing that it has stayed with me ever since. I get the impression that in my mad rush through the first read I may have missed clues within the plot and will undoubtedly pick this back up in the near future. Highly recommended!