Escaping Denver

by Teague Bohlen

An original novel based on the podcast created by Mike Howorun and Brady Roberts!

For internet sleuths, nothing beats a firsthand account—especially when it’s your own. Desperate for tangible evidence of a shadow government, monstrous creatures, and a laboratory complex built deep beneath the Denver International Airport, Jessica wrangles a gaggle of like-minded armchair adventurers to break into the facility, seeking not only validation but vindication too.

Using the Escaping Denver podcast as a loose guide, this ragtag team discovers that it’s not breaking in that’s hard—it’s getting out.

Genres: Horror, Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Mystery

292 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 5, 2025

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somewhat entertaining story but got tiresome by the midpoint of its 272 pages. I knew nothing about the podcast that the book is based on and that might have helped to understand what was going on... Apparently, there's a conspiracy theory involving Denver International, which I had known nothing about. So I googled to discovered that the airport is considered ( by some) to be a hub for "the New World Order," involving underground bunkers and tunnels.
Anyway, the story is about a team of internet sleuths going into the underground complex beneath the Denver airport. As I said, the running around gets tiresome, as the group encounters cryptids and also has to keep running away from Ukrainian (?) soldiers. I like cryptids so that held my interest...
Is this supposed to be the beginning of a series? If so, I don't think I would continue to follow it...
I felt like giving this one 2 stars but, as I said, I found it somewhat entertaining, so I'll be generous and give it 3 stars.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely preposterous while also being exceptionally fun and thrilling! If you just go with it, and don’t think too hard, you’ll enjoy reading this book.

FYI, I have not heard the podcast that this book is built around. I don’t know if that would make it better or worse. Regardless, I enjoyed myself.

[Marianne Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some very bizarre murals in the Denver DIA airport terminal. They have been there since the airport was first built. This book is a fantasy/adventure story about a small group of people who investigate a series of underground tunnels related to the murals and an army of mythical beasts who guard them. I was unable to resist this, as I lived in Denver for many years and these murals really will make a person's skin crawl. Recommended with 3 🌟 stars.
P.S. The book reports that Denver didn’t "need" this airport, as Stapleton was fully functional, but as a resident, I can promise that Denver would never have grown and prospered like it has without it.

[Cam Torrens · Rating 4 out of 5]

5-star imagination! 4-star character development. 3-star plot. If you're into underground secrets, monsters, and maybe aliens, this book could be for you!

[Teddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow!!! Escaping Denver had me on the edge of my seat.
I am familiar with the podcast that this novel is based on, and I was NOT disappointed. Action packed from start to finish.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy in exchange for my review.
Escaping Denver will be published on August 5, 2025

[Windsor Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for a review. As soon as I saw the name of this book, I knew it was referencing Denver International Airport. I used to live in Denver and the conspiracy theories about the airport were a favorite topic of discussion among residents. If you’re unaware, there are a lot of weird things about DIA. Firstly, there is a giant blue horse with red laser eyes greeting you along the highway on your drive in. Not only is this statue creepy as hell, it also killed it’s creator. There is weird art all over the airport, including a painting of a soldier brandishing a scimitar and a machine gun at a group of crying babies and women, all while wearing a gas mask. The airport even started embracing the conspiracy in their construction signs (pics in carousel). As you can imagine, I was very excited to read a fiction book about all this. Unfortunately, the book didn’t deliver on my expectations.

A group of online conspiracy theorists meet in Colorado to investigate strange reports about DIA. They cautiously make their way into the underground bunker far below the surface, and things start going wrong immediately. As they traverse the vast maze of tunnels and biodomes, the group is chased by monsters, plagued by traps, confused by terrain, and shot at by soldiers. As discombobulating as all of this is, things twist even further when the group finds out everyone in their party isn’t what they seem. Instead of receiving the answers they came for, new questions are unearthed at every turn.

I wanted to like this book so much, but it became tedious. I can only take so many pages of running and being confused. Something needs to happen to bring it all together and make it original—unfortunately, we never got there. I didn’t feel as if there was anything new happening in this book that hasn’t happened in other conspiracy novels. Nothing was surprising or original. It reminded me of Staircase in the Woods in that, we get it, they’re trapped in a scary situation. There needs to be more.

[Fran · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book on a whim at the Denver Airport. I knew - vaguely - about the many conspiracy theories about the Denver Airport, mainly about the supposed vast underground network of secret tunnels and bunkers to house the global elite, or maybe aliens, or perhaps the ever-popular lizard people. The growth of conspiracy theories in the past few years, thanks to a certain orange-hued president and his fans, feeds into or maybe out of all this. But I also knew that the Denver Airport has fun with all the ridiculous theories. So I thought maybe this book will do the same. Wrong. The characters in this book are deadly serious in their beliefs. Emphasis on the word deadly because several of them die in pretty gruesome ways, eaten by giant mutant birds or frogs, shot by mysterious, never-explained soldiers, or whatever. And then there are the characters who are not who they think they are, and again, that's never explained.

It's not fun. It's not clever. And to top it off, it's not a good read. Oh, the writing is okay. Commas in all the right places and all that. But a good thriller knows to inject breaks in the action. Here, the characters fall into trouble as soon as they arrive at their mysterious (never explained!) destination (which, BTW, isn't Denver) and everything just goes from bad to worse. Almost every chapter ends with someone screaming because some horrible thing is attacking them and the next chapter begins with that person being eaten or torn apart. Nope. Not a good book. I did finish it, but only because I skimmed through the repeat attacks about half way in. I give this 1 star, because the writing shows awareness of grammar and style (and I can't see a way to give it no stars). If you really believe outrageous conspiracy theories and you enjoy nasty gore for no obvious or explained reason, then this might be the book for you. If not... don't waste your time.

[Miranda Beystehner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Escaping Denver by Teague Bohlen is a fast-paced sci-fi thriller based on the Escaping Denver podcast. While I haven’t listened to the podcast myself, I was curious about the book, especially as a Denver local eager to see how the story would explore the conspiracies tied to the area.

I enjoyed the beginning of the book, as a group of conspiracy theorists ventures to Colorado with plans to investigate a mysterious underground compound supposedly hidden beneath Denver International Airport, along with other conspiracy-laden sites. Once the team arrives, the story takes a shocking turn, and what they uncover below ground is far more intense than I expected. The book is packed with action, and I appreciated the unexpected twists toward the end.

I rated the book 3 stars. While the plot was engaging and moved quickly, I found myself wanting more background on the “why”- a deeper dive into the history and reasoning behind the events and the compound itself. Still, the non-stop discoveries and strange phenomena kept the momentum going.

I’d recommend Escaping Denver to fans of the podcast, as familiarity with it might enhance the reading experience. I’d also suggest it to readers who enjoy imaginative sci-fi/fantasy stories involving cryptids and hidden worlds.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for providing this advance reader copy.

[Jacquelyn Dohoney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so entertaining! I’ve been on an escape room story kick lately and this one definitely fit the bill! Picture your favorite creature-based conspiracy theories, add in a shadowy government entity, throw in an escape room setting, and you have Escaping Denver. I’ll be honest, I knew what who was involved in the conspiracy and why pretty early on, but man it was a fun ride watching it all play out! I really liked all the characters, even though a couple of them were absolute tools. Was there weirdness in this? 100%. The only thing I had a problem with was the… killer kangaroos. Don’t judge me. I have a major phobia of them. Have you ever seen the videos of kangaroos trying to break through a sliding glass door? Those things are terrifying! But there’s other equally cool critters that show up that had me jumping with glee, especially the herd of jackalopes. In any case, I can totally see this getting made into a movie. Would it be low budget? Probably. But I would love every second of it!

Huge thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinda of a cross between the films Resident Evil & The Cabin in the Woods. Fast paced. Sufficient character development. Just the right amount of adjectives, such that you could build your own images, without being overwhelmed like you're reading a thesaurus. No plot holes or inconsistencies jumped out at me. A bit of mysteries to be solved. A couple of twists. Overall, an entertaining read. And clearly set up for a sequel, which I'm actually looking forward to.

I picked this book up, though,because of the Denver tie-in. If you're expecting something specific to DIA you'll be disappointed. I have to think the fun rumors about DIA were just the catalyst. In fact, the only thing that bothered me about the book is when they drive by Brainard Lake, there's suddenly a mobile home park there? As a Denver resident, that took me right out of the story and it was totally unnecessary. Why mention Brainard Lake at all? Or driving into Indian Peaks Wilderness? The author lives in Denver, not sure why he didn't pick a route that was accurate. Although he did a great job of describing Ward! Beyond that portion early in the book, the location could be anywhere in the world.

[Globalt38 · Rating 2 out of 5]

A hot random mess

I'm sorry but this was a mess. I almost stopped reading it, which doesn't happen often, several times.
Take every conspiracy theory out there, every cryptid you've heard of - smash it into a great big ball and then shove it into some Bizzare gigantic underground complex in the Colorado Rockies. This complex contains every possible "unexplained" thing ever put out there - to include the Navy bomber flight that was lost in the Bermuda triangle (somehow it was all transferred thousands of miles to a giant underground hangar "museum")! This complex has been around for decades at least and is headed by the villain that is a straight copy of Sigourney Weaver's character in "The Cabin in the Woods" movie - but unlike that great homage to horror and conspiracy films, this was a poorly written highschool creative writing effort.

[Mel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a goodreads giveaway. Thank you!
I had not heard about the Escaping Denver podcast, but I’m always interested in cryptids so of course I had to check this out!
It’s a wacky, kind of cartoonish adventure but it’s a good time. Scooby doo if they were chased by guns and monsters ate people. I would have liked it more if things had consequence, and there weren’t so many convenient wrap ups. Also more about the world building, if this big facility exists under the airport, why & how???? Why would the prison bedstand unscrew? It’s not really about the airport; it’s more like a secret deadly underground zoo with the occasional office from the 80’s.
But it was entertaining, and I’m still interested in checking out the show.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, apparently there’s a conspiracy theory that there’s a secret government facility and/or laboratory beneath the Denver International Airport. There’s even a real podcast about it called Escaping Denver. In this novel, a group of five people meet online to discuss the podcast. They’re so into it that they decide to actually go there and check it out for themselves. They were in no way prepared for what they encountered.

Deep in the bowels of the airport live all the deadly cryptids you only read about in folklore. And let’s just say, not all of our main characters make it out alive. What a thrill ride! This was one of the most entertaining, creepy, surprising, and informative reads of the year for me. I loved learning about all the crazy conspiracy theories and mythical creatures out there. It was fast-paced, exciting, and full of interesting characters. Five stars for me.

Thank you @BlackstonePublishing for my advanced copy.

[Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Escaping Denver is a novel by Teague Bohlen, based on the popular narrative podcast of the same name created by Mike Howorun and Brady Roberts. The book takes the widely known conspiracy theories about the Denver International Airport—tales of secret bunkers, monstrous creatures, and a shadow government—and turns them into a fast-paced sci-fi horror thriller.

And now for the bad news. I found the concept of reading what originally was part of a podcast to be an extreme challenge. Mainly because the story was a jumbled mess that made reading it a challenge. Getting to the end was the best part.

[Carol Palmer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have heard about the conspiracy theories about Denver International Airport, so I thought this would be an informative and hopefully fun read about them.
I think it would have helped to listen to the Escaping Denver Podcast before reading this book. Why do they go in near Ward, Colorado? That place is over 58 miles from the airport. All that empty space below ground? I guess secret cabals have endless cash to pay for all the empty underground office space. If you want to learn about the conspiracy theories about Denver International Airport, don't read this book, but watch out for those internet sinkholes.

[SPENCE5280 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I moved out to Denver in 2017 and the conspiracy theories about the crappy airport poured in from day one. A book that put some imagination behind the whacked-out theories excited me when I spotted this. A place I dread being given some life would be great but instead I got a literal web of deceit. The airport is barely a thought in this story. I got more landmarks that I've been to and no action close to what's happening in this book. This made me go "Oh yeah imagination" unfortunately the constant cliff hanger attempts on the chapters killed this book for me DOA.

This could use a heavy rewrite just my opinion though

[Meg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was so bad. I mean the writing was fine, but the actual book???? God.

Don’t bother if you haven’t listened to the podcast; there’s zero world-building, zero background; they I guess just assume you have listened to the podcast and know exactly what’s going on because of that.

I picked this up because I thought it would have some cool fun weird stuff about the airport an the conspiracy theories and instead it was just ridiculous and also felt like I watched the last half of a season of a tv show and missed the entire first half.

[Timmi Lasley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, if you're looking for a serious look at the conspiracies surrounding Denver airport, look elsewhere. If you're looking for super fun, action packed horror novel filled with cryptids and a few decent jokes ding ding ding! This is for you. Near the end it was Lost (the tv show) levels of wth (which, to me, is a good thing). I really had fun with this book. Truthfully I'd give this book a 4 star rating, but it gets 5 from me here because A) eff the haters and B) I'm from Colorado and live in Denver so I'm choosing to be biased as hell 💖

[Brie Chapman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This took me way too long to read (Christmas time, what can ya do!).

I had no idea this was based on an actual podcast. Thought the podcast was made up for the book. Oops. That being said, I think had I familiarized myself with the backstory beforehand, the “why” would’ve made much more sense.

It was an ok read. A face-past thriller filled with monsters. Unrealistic and entertaining. Not my favorite, not the worst. Felt as though there were several plot holes.

[Avri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this book at the Denver airport and bought it on a whim because I love the airport conspiracy theories. I was so pleasantly surprised with how entertaining and fast paced it was. It had so much lore all looped together in a nice and cohesive way. Only took one star off because the writing could’ve been a bit better. I definitely want more though!

[Kim Bragado · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe I would have liked this better if I had listened to the podcast first, but I didn't know about the podcast and went in blind. Overall I didn't care for any of the characters and it felt like really lazy writing.

[Diana Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Team of strangers meet in Ward, CO and go underground. They realize the fate of their lives is deeper than the superficial painting we know of it. Hell under denver.
Female lead doesnt drive and has male best friend who always seems to know more than she does.

[Ryan Hillis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Slow and dull.

[Chan L · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the integrated conspiracies of the Denver Airport but the actual story just went downhill halfway through the book…

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little rough reading sci-fi but still entertaining read, with some surprises.

[Jimmie Koch · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not for me. The story felt forced the characters were not intriguing or likable.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt very rushed - needed more character development and relied heavily on the reader having listened to the podcast.

[Craig Duff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on the podcast of the same name, although a different story, this was a great read to supplement the podcast!

[Andy Janes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much like the podcast, it wasn't great, but I still enjoyed it. Mostly fun (if some annoying characters) and good twists at the end.

[Jacob Kingsley · Rating 2 out of 5]

A conspiracy theorist, grown adult Willy Wonka. Had a fairly large plot twist towards the end, but unfortunately was not disguised very well and was easily anticipated 🙃