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The Boy in the Iron Box #3
The Hunted
Their radio is sabotaged. The wolves are gathering outside. And for the increasingly desperate mercenaries, the worst is yet to come in part three of The Boy in the Iron Box: the box is empty.
In the wake of an inexplicable disappearance, Liev and his men use their tactical skills to last the night—by going hunting. Following a small, bare footprint in the snow leads only to the realization that someone, or something, is hunting them.
From Academy Award–winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro comes The Hunted, part three of The Boy in the Iron Box, a blood-chilling series of short stories about an ancient secret that was never meant to be unleashed, featuring exclusive interior artwork. Each can be read or listened to in one breathless sitting.
In the wake of an inexplicable disappearance, Liev and his men use their tactical skills to last the night—by going hunting. Following a small, bare footprint in the snow leads only to the realization that someone, or something, is hunting them.
From Academy Award–winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro comes The Hunted, part three of The Boy in the Iron Box, a blood-chilling series of short stories about an ancient secret that was never meant to be unleashed, featuring exclusive interior artwork. Each can be read or listened to in one breathless sitting.
19 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2024
752 people are currently reading
1391 people want to read
About the author
Guillermo del Toro
158 books5,058 followersGuillermo del Toro is a Mexican director mostly known for his acclaimed films Pan's Labyrinth, The Devils Backbone, Crimson Peak and the Hellboy film franchise. His films draw heavily on sources as diverse as weird fiction, fantasy, horror, and war. In 2009, Del Toro released his debut novel, The Strain, co-authored with Chuck Hogan, as the first part of The Strain Trilogy, an apocalyptic horror series featuring vampires. The series continued with The Fall in 2010 and concluded with The Night Eternal in 2011.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 178 reviews
July 20, 2024
We have a list of questions now, and no answers.
This is the third installment of the six part 'The Boy in the Iron Box' book and the plot keeps getting better and grislier.
I don’t want to spoil it for those who haven’t yet read the first two parts, so I won’t go into details.
So far:
A group of missionaries’ plane crashed. They were attacked by a pack of wolves. They found a labyrinthine mysterious building in the middle of nowhere and a chained iron box with a statue of a boy inside.
They are isolated, hungry and cold.
And now they find their radio sabotaged and the iron box empty.
Is there someone else in the building beside the group?
Were they already in the building or have they come in from outside?
This is the third installment of the six part 'The Boy in the Iron Box' book and the plot keeps getting better and grislier.
I don’t want to spoil it for those who haven’t yet read the first two parts, so I won’t go into details.
So far:
A group of missionaries’ plane crashed. They were attacked by a pack of wolves. They found a labyrinthine mysterious building in the middle of nowhere and a chained iron box with a statue of a boy inside.
They are isolated, hungry and cold.
And now they find their radio sabotaged and the iron box empty.
Is there someone else in the building beside the group?
Were they already in the building or have they come in from outside?
July 6, 2024
Boo!
Yep, Del Toro and Hogan finally went full horror on this one and we are off to the races.
For those of you just tuning in, a group of mercenaries are traveling in a remote and mountainous area and their plane goes down and its bad, but they find a structure of some kind, a labyrinth -
What’s up with Del Toro and the lost labyrinths? I’m not complaining, just wondering about a backstory, why the fascination, etc -
and then there is a mysterious Boy who is going to cause lots of trouble.
But they have guns, they are trained operatives, so they’ll be able to protect themselves right?
Right?
Off to read the fourth in the series now.
Yep, Del Toro and Hogan finally went full horror on this one and we are off to the races.
For those of you just tuning in, a group of mercenaries are traveling in a remote and mountainous area and their plane goes down and its bad, but they find a structure of some kind, a labyrinth -
What’s up with Del Toro and the lost labyrinths? I’m not complaining, just wondering about a backstory, why the fascination, etc -
and then there is a mysterious Boy who is going to cause lots of trouble.
But they have guns, they are trained operatives, so they’ll be able to protect themselves right?
Right?
Off to read the fourth in the series now.
July 2, 2024
Thrilling
Another addition of this continued story.
What is this boy from the iron box and how can he be stopped?
Another addition of this continued story.
What is this boy from the iron box and how can he be stopped?
July 3, 2024
The "Boy" Hunts
Review of the Amazon Original Stories Kindle eBook edition (July 1, 2024), released simultaneously by Audible Originals in audio format (July 1, 2024)
"The Boy" captures its prey. Cover illustration (which is hidden behind the title script) by Fabrizio De Tommaso for the eBook edition.
The plot develops further in this 3rd installment of "The Boy in the Iron Box" series. The nature of the creature known as "The Boy" is revealed to be more cannibalistic and zombielike in nature, and not quite as vampiric as I first suspected. The team of Russian black-ops special operators begin their hunt for a suspected intruder in their midst who may have stolen the figure from the Iron Box. They discover that it is the creature itself that is on the loose and it is now the team themselves who are being hunted.
I'm upping my rating as of this one, as it does seem to be diverging from its apparent inspiration of F. Paul Wilson's The Keep (1981). It is still soldiers in an isolated location being picked off one-by-one, but at least the mythology has its own character.
The Hunted is the third of six stories in The Boy in the Iron Box series released on July 1, 2024 by Amazon Originals & Audible Originals.
Trivia and Links
Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan have collaborated several times in the past, especially on The Strain trilogy (2009-11), which was later adapted for a TV series (2014-2017).
Review of the Amazon Original Stories Kindle eBook edition (July 1, 2024), released simultaneously by Audible Originals in audio format (July 1, 2024)
“Give me another explanation,” said Liev. “The Boy wasn’t alive.”
Radimir shook his head, searching for answers, and then said: “But was it dead?”
"The Boy" captures its prey. Cover illustration (which is hidden behind the title script) by Fabrizio De Tommaso for the eBook edition.
The plot develops further in this 3rd installment of "The Boy in the Iron Box" series. The nature of the creature known as "The Boy" is revealed to be more cannibalistic and zombielike in nature, and not quite as vampiric as I first suspected. The team of Russian black-ops special operators begin their hunt for a suspected intruder in their midst who may have stolen the figure from the Iron Box. They discover that it is the creature itself that is on the loose and it is now the team themselves who are being hunted.
I'm upping my rating as of this one, as it does seem to be diverging from its apparent inspiration of F. Paul Wilson's The Keep (1981). It is still soldiers in an isolated location being picked off one-by-one, but at least the mythology has its own character.
The Hunted is the third of six stories in The Boy in the Iron Box series released on July 1, 2024 by Amazon Originals & Audible Originals.
Trivia and Links
Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan have collaborated several times in the past, especially on The Strain trilogy (2009-11), which was later adapted for a TV series (2014-2017).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 20, 2024
3 Stars for The Hunted: The Boy in the Iron Box, Book 3 (audiobook) by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan read by Ralph Ineson.
Things are getting tense for the mercenaries. Their communication equipment is down and the wolves are closing in and it seems like something may be hunting them.
Things are getting tense for the mercenaries. Their communication equipment is down and the wolves are closing in and it seems like something may be hunting them.
October 14, 2024
Why did it take me over a week to read 20 pages?!
Not the story's fault at all - this is really getting good now!
I do find it bizarre that it's not all just put together as a novel, but I'm guessing these were released with a nice delay between each to leave you hanging a bit more.
I'm really enjoying it - creepy, gory, and rather mysterious. I'll work my way through them all eventually!
Not the story's fault at all - this is really getting good now!
I do find it bizarre that it's not all just put together as a novel, but I'm guessing these were released with a nice delay between each to leave you hanging a bit more.
I'm really enjoying it - creepy, gory, and rather mysterious. I'll work my way through them all eventually!
July 2, 2024
Well, that escalated quickly! Things went from restrained to creepy to Black Friday at Walmart (ok... the Boy is slightly less bloodthirsty than a Walmart shopper looking for a cheap TV). I like where we're going and I hope that we don't plateau anytime soon.
July 1, 2024
Now things are finally picking up as the titular boy escapes his box and chaos ensues amongst the team. This is the shortest of the stories so far but, up this point it’s the best as it’s super fast, action packed, and gory. Plus, it leaves us with a massive cliff hanger that makes me want to jump right into book 4.
July 31, 2024
Fun cheesy horror.
July 1, 2024
Aaahhh what a Cliff hanger ending! Honestly I’m loving these short reads, the authors are packing so much into them, they are making me feel so tense as I’m reading them, it’s great!
July 6, 2024
Welcome to Chapter 3. It's crazy that each of these books is just another chapter in the story. In this chapter, the team begins to realize what they are facing even though it is beyond their comprehension. The logical team leader, Liev, can't even imagine what's going on until he comes face to face with the horror. And what happened to Avva?
December 1, 2024
Tiny Monster
The Russian Special Forces team, trapped in an arctic maze have found themselves in over their heads. The evil looking little boy statue has disappeared and someone destroyed their radio.
Who was here in this deserted place with them besides the wolves?
Five star horror serial. I’m definitely finishing this.
The Russian Special Forces team, trapped in an arctic maze have found themselves in over their heads. The evil looking little boy statue has disappeared and someone destroyed their radio.
Who was here in this deserted place with them besides the wolves?
Five star horror serial. I’m definitely finishing this.
November 27, 2024
"Yuri came to consciousness in utter distress. He was in motion, a strange, backward motion, being dragged and unable to see."
Well here's #3, the wheels are off now and we're going full horror with a side of yuck! Hold on to your stomach contents!
Well here's #3, the wheels are off now and we're going full horror with a side of yuck! Hold on to your stomach contents!
January 15, 2026
die sind alle so dumm and i love it
July 7, 2024
The small group of men quickly grows smaller. Everything is against them and they are starting to realize something is very wrong. They found a crude shelter with no heat, so they’re freezing. They have limited supplies and ammunition. No one knows where they are and now their only radio has been destroyed The wolves are still waiting outside, but what is killing them may be inside with them. And the box that was chained is now empty. This chapter was short and very violent. Still very mysterious. No explanation yet on what it really is that’s hunting them. I am loving this story.
August 22, 2024
The suspense was ramped up in this installment. Slowly we are losing members of the team and it's tense as accusations are thrown between a few of the survivors as they figure out who is doing the killing. The twist at the end was good and I have some theories of what this Boy could be and look forward to the next one.
July 7, 2024
Book 3 of The boy in the Iron Box series, the boy is slowly picking the mercenaries off one by one. The boy is inside and the wolves are waiting outside. Intense series. Chuck Hogan and Guillermo Del Toro work so well together. I’m enjoying this series very much.
July 19, 2024
Great, now we have zombies.
July 21, 2024
Wasn’t it the Tin Man who wanted a heart above else? He may have some competition.
July 21, 2024
Now we’re talking!!!
July 1, 2024
Great Episodic Story!
It's more like reading chapters in a book, but that's how serial novels are. Del Toro and Hogan have created great characters and a creepy setting to tell their frightening story.
It's more like reading chapters in a book, but that's how serial novels are. Del Toro and Hogan have created great characters and a creepy setting to tell their frightening story.
July 14, 2024
This is a brilliant collection of six books written as an Amazon Original Story, which, when put together, make up the whole novella, The Boy In The Iron Box.
Consisting of Falling Down, The Pit And The Box, The Hunted, Risen, Siege and Encounter.
I've been trying to get back to the love of my youth - horror! And this was such a great choice for my next read.
Being a novella, we really need a swift introduction to make sure that we're all invested right from the off and this first book does this to perfection.
We meet all the characters as they're travelling to a mission - all mercenaries and all well used to dangerous situations.
When things go wrong and the plane crashes, the team have to find a way to survive the conditions until help arrives and they make their way to an odd structure for shelter.
Given their job, the men were definitely not the type of people that I could relate well to, but the dynamics of the group help us to integrate and I liked how we were given extra background information about each member of the team.
Learning about Liev, the leader's home life - Avva and Timur being brothers and the determined loyalty and respect amongst the whole group. This made me feel more connected too.
I loved the way this set off at a great pace right from the first page. The isolated and bleak setting was well described and sucked us straight into this creepy atmosphere.
This level of detail ran through each book which built up the tension and suspense and had me on edge right to the last line!
Each book adds a new layer to the story, filling us with both despair and hope and leaving us with questions and dangling on a mini cliffhanger at each break.
And that ending! Well you'll have to grab a copy and let me know what you think!
I loved both the format and the writing style of these books and would definitely recommend them to all lovers of the genre - and if you're new to horror, this would be the ideal first read! Enjoy!
Consisting of Falling Down, The Pit And The Box, The Hunted, Risen, Siege and Encounter.
I've been trying to get back to the love of my youth - horror! And this was such a great choice for my next read.
Being a novella, we really need a swift introduction to make sure that we're all invested right from the off and this first book does this to perfection.
We meet all the characters as they're travelling to a mission - all mercenaries and all well used to dangerous situations.
When things go wrong and the plane crashes, the team have to find a way to survive the conditions until help arrives and they make their way to an odd structure for shelter.
Given their job, the men were definitely not the type of people that I could relate well to, but the dynamics of the group help us to integrate and I liked how we were given extra background information about each member of the team.
Learning about Liev, the leader's home life - Avva and Timur being brothers and the determined loyalty and respect amongst the whole group. This made me feel more connected too.
I loved the way this set off at a great pace right from the first page. The isolated and bleak setting was well described and sucked us straight into this creepy atmosphere.
This level of detail ran through each book which built up the tension and suspense and had me on edge right to the last line!
Each book adds a new layer to the story, filling us with both despair and hope and leaving us with questions and dangling on a mini cliffhanger at each break.
And that ending! Well you'll have to grab a copy and let me know what you think!
I loved both the format and the writing style of these books and would definitely recommend them to all lovers of the genre - and if you're new to horror, this would be the ideal first read! Enjoy!
September 27, 2024
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Phone: 098 439 8527
Địa chỉ: Phường Đình Bảng, Thị xã Từ Sơn, Bắc Ninh
Email: gaigoi28.net@gmail.com
#gaigoi28, #gaigu28, #gaigoi28.tv, #gaigu28.tv
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July 12, 2024
The Boy in the Iron Box by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan
Split into six chapters we follow a group of mercenaries as they try to survive an unspeakable and unknowable evil in an ancient temple built to imprison this unstoppable demon.
Falling Down
Plane crashes and the survivors make their way to a monument that they saw during the plane going down.
The Pit and the Box
One of the soldiers finds a chest in the ancient monument and of course opens it hoping for treasure
The Hunted
The team search for their missing team mate and find something unexpected.
Risen
Fallen comrades become the enemy whilst the remaining try desperately to stay alive
Siege
The soldiers plan to stay alive and make plans to fight the unknown.
Encounter
The last battle between good and evil. Will good prevail?
Sold as six interweaving stories it is in fact six chapters of the same story so a little cheeky of Amazon to sell in parts. Overall it is a single short story. I enjoyed it immensely and definitely recommend. There is plenty of blood and gore as well as creepy, scary moments. As you would expect very similar in style to The Strain series.
Split into six chapters we follow a group of mercenaries as they try to survive an unspeakable and unknowable evil in an ancient temple built to imprison this unstoppable demon.
Falling Down
Plane crashes and the survivors make their way to a monument that they saw during the plane going down.
The Pit and the Box
One of the soldiers finds a chest in the ancient monument and of course opens it hoping for treasure
The Hunted
The team search for their missing team mate and find something unexpected.
Risen
Fallen comrades become the enemy whilst the remaining try desperately to stay alive
Siege
The soldiers plan to stay alive and make plans to fight the unknown.
Encounter
The last battle between good and evil. Will good prevail?
Sold as six interweaving stories it is in fact six chapters of the same story so a little cheeky of Amazon to sell in parts. Overall it is a single short story. I enjoyed it immensely and definitely recommend. There is plenty of blood and gore as well as creepy, scary moments. As you would expect very similar in style to The Strain series.
January 21, 2025
This six-part novella released by Amazon and free from the Prime Reading library was a fun diversion into the horrors of a Siberian undercover mission that turns into an unexpected supernatural zombie survival thriller. When their plane crashes attempting to infiltrate Russia for some unclear mercenary goals, six intrepid fighters find themselves fighting for their lives in the snowy tundra. They find a safe haven in the show; a strange shrine like manmade structure that seems to have been built by ancient superhumans. There are dusty bones guarding this place, and the unexpected horrors that come when an iron box is discovered at the bottom of a pit reveals unimaginable terrors for the surviving crew. A really fun read that was a blast to fly through, this is a supernatural horror that isn’t for the weak of heart. Perfect for bite-size dips into a completely different world similar to and perfect for fans of The Thing.
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January 28, 2026Their radio is sabotaged. The wolves are gathering outside. And for the increasingly desperate mercenaries, the worst is yet to come in chapter three of The Boy in the Iron Box : the box is empty.
In the wake of an inexplicable disappearance, Liev and his men use their tactical skills to last the night—by going hunting. Following a small, bare footprint in the snow leads only to the realization that someone, or something, is hunting them.
From Academy Award–winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro comes The Hunted , chapter three of The Boy in the Iron Box , a blood-chilling serialized novel about an ancient secret that was never meant to be unleashed, featuring exclusive interior artwork. Each chapter can be read or listened to in one breathless sitting.
September 19, 2024
“This place. You called it a grave. Or was it built to hold him? To venerate him?”
Liev is very concerned. The Boy in the chest is gone.
The broken radio. Oleg’s arm.
Liev, while still maintaining logic, accepts a hard truth: The men are not alone.
The violent blizzard outside continues.
The footprints in the snow. Barefoot.
With Oleg laid up, Radimir steps up more to assist Liev.
Avva’s body—are Timur’s eyes playing tricks on him?
Search mission.
Radimir and Liev see the Boy…in action.
Strong suspense writing, but Yuri’s POV is gratuitous and completely unnecessary. That material is covered in Liev and Radimir’s segments. The excessive gore and shock value is something one would expect from lesser authors.
“You were right.”
“Right about what?”
“We should have chopped off its head as soon as we saw it.”
Liev is very concerned. The Boy in the chest is gone.
The broken radio. Oleg’s arm.
Liev, while still maintaining logic, accepts a hard truth: The men are not alone.
The violent blizzard outside continues.
The footprints in the snow. Barefoot.
With Oleg laid up, Radimir steps up more to assist Liev.
Avva’s body—are Timur’s eyes playing tricks on him?
Search mission.
Radimir and Liev see the Boy…in action.
Strong suspense writing, but Yuri’s POV is gratuitous and completely unnecessary. That material is covered in Liev and Radimir’s segments. The excessive gore and shock value is something one would expect from lesser authors.
“You were right.”
“Right about what?”
“We should have chopped off its head as soon as we saw it.”
September 23, 2025
With the upcoming feature adaptation of this series coming to Netflix I thought I'd read the written word before it premiers. It gets better with each new installment. Each book in the 6 book series seems to average around 30 pages each.
'Their radio is sabotaged. The wolves are gathering outside. And for the increasingly desperate mercenaries, the worst is yet to come in part three of The Boy in the Iron Box: the box is empty.
In the wake of an inexplicable disappearance, Liev and his men use their tactical skills to last the night—by going hunting. Following a small, bare footprint in the snow leads only to the realization that someone, or something, is hunting them.'
'Their radio is sabotaged. The wolves are gathering outside. And for the increasingly desperate mercenaries, the worst is yet to come in part three of The Boy in the Iron Box: the box is empty.
In the wake of an inexplicable disappearance, Liev and his men use their tactical skills to last the night—by going hunting. Following a small, bare footprint in the snow leads only to the realization that someone, or something, is hunting them.'
Displaying 1 - 30 of 178 reviews