What do you think?
Rate this book
Sandgroper
Geologist Aron is investigating the unexplained pinnacle formations on the West Australian Coast. A sandstorm sweeps in from the Coral Coast and brings hell with it.
- GenresHorrorShort Stories
Kindle Edition
Published February 1, 2021
13 people are currently reading
42 people want to read
About the author
Lee Franklin
8 books43 followersAustralian born Author, Lee Franklin, now resides in the idyllic Yorkshire countryside with her incredibly supportive husband, Marcelo, and three boys. After 10 years in the army, working as a personal trainer and logistics officer, Lee found her true calling in life as an Author.
Penning diverse stories Lee’s flavour is usually seeped in action horror and creature features. Her first novel Berserker-Green Hell published by Hellbound Books was a resounding success and prompted one reader to say ‘I would recommend clearing your calendar so you can devour it in one sitting.’ Published a remarkable 14 times in 4 years including a novel, novella, collaboration and many shorts, Lee shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.
Penning diverse stories Lee’s flavour is usually seeped in action horror and creature features. Her first novel Berserker-Green Hell published by Hellbound Books was a resounding success and prompted one reader to say ‘I would recommend clearing your calendar so you can devour it in one sitting.’ Published a remarkable 14 times in 4 years including a novel, novella, collaboration and many shorts, Lee shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 4, 2026
The Beginning of Chaos...
SANDGROPER
by Lee Franklin
4 stars. In a desert area of Australia, with scalding winds whipping up the sand, Damon and Albie were collecting rock samples...
Meanwhile...
Aron was setting up motion sensors in the pinnacles of the terrain...
When suddenly...
While looking through one of the lenses of his endoscope, Aron saw a large shadow cut across the lens...
Once all the sand and dust settled down...
Aron saw what appeared to be a pile of white rocks. They looked like bones...
Out of nowhere...
A violent sandstorm hit, and they all raced for their SUV. Once inside the vehicle, as Aron was brushing sand off himself...
He found a tiny bug...
A stowaway sandgroper...
While the group eyed the unusual bug, sinkholes began to appear in the sand outside the SUV, rocking and almost sinking their vehicle...
This was the beginning of the chaos that was about to happen...
This was a good little sci-fi story. Short but packed with details that might make one wonder what lurks in the vast unknown terrain of the desert.
SANDGROPER
by Lee Franklin
4 stars. In a desert area of Australia, with scalding winds whipping up the sand, Damon and Albie were collecting rock samples...
Meanwhile...
Aron was setting up motion sensors in the pinnacles of the terrain...
When suddenly...
While looking through one of the lenses of his endoscope, Aron saw a large shadow cut across the lens...
Once all the sand and dust settled down...
Aron saw what appeared to be a pile of white rocks. They looked like bones...
Out of nowhere...
A violent sandstorm hit, and they all raced for their SUV. Once inside the vehicle, as Aron was brushing sand off himself...
He found a tiny bug...
A stowaway sandgroper...
While the group eyed the unusual bug, sinkholes began to appear in the sand outside the SUV, rocking and almost sinking their vehicle...
This was the beginning of the chaos that was about to happen...
This was a good little sci-fi story. Short but packed with details that might make one wonder what lurks in the vast unknown terrain of the desert.
February 21, 2021
A group of young people is attacked by some eerie monster insects. The story started strong but soon became a bit repetitive. Who survived the attack? What about those insects? Where did they come from what happened here? There were left too many questions open in my opinion to make this story more than a short shocker. The relationship between the brothers was too stereotypical. The background of the monsters too vague (like some shadows in the sandstorm). Overall okay!
November 8, 2021
This was a great insect short story gone wild!
A small backstory:
Aron (a geologist) along with his brother Damon and friend Albie are checking out pinnacle rock formations out on the coast of Australia. They all have to make a break for their SUV when a sandstorm comes up on them, but what they don't know is that within the sandstorm are insects that are massive and they are hungry!
Thoughts:
When the sandstorm hits and the insect action begins it is a fast paced ride to the end of the book! I was pulled into the story quickly and read the book within about two to three hours as I wanted to see what was going to happen next with the insects!
I have seen some up and down reviews with this book which I suspect is because of the abrupt ending of the story and it does end like on a cliffhanger, but there is good news as there are whispers of a sequel coming which might tie up some loose ends.
So while I am waiting for the sequel to come out I will be in pursuit of more books by this author and actually have another book ready to read of this author simmering on my kindle.
Giving this short story five "Sand Shifting Screaming Insect" stars!
For more thoughts on this review, please see my blog:
https://booknookretreat.blogspot.com/...
A small backstory:
Aron (a geologist) along with his brother Damon and friend Albie are checking out pinnacle rock formations out on the coast of Australia. They all have to make a break for their SUV when a sandstorm comes up on them, but what they don't know is that within the sandstorm are insects that are massive and they are hungry!
Thoughts:
When the sandstorm hits and the insect action begins it is a fast paced ride to the end of the book! I was pulled into the story quickly and read the book within about two to three hours as I wanted to see what was going to happen next with the insects!
I have seen some up and down reviews with this book which I suspect is because of the abrupt ending of the story and it does end like on a cliffhanger, but there is good news as there are whispers of a sequel coming which might tie up some loose ends.
So while I am waiting for the sequel to come out I will be in pursuit of more books by this author and actually have another book ready to read of this author simmering on my kindle.
Giving this short story five "Sand Shifting Screaming Insect" stars!
For more thoughts on this review, please see my blog:
https://booknookretreat.blogspot.com/...
April 30, 2021
I am trying to read as many books and stories written by new people as I can for 2021 (both debut/recent authors and people whose works I have not read before).
I enjoyed this short story a lot. I got an almost immediate sense of who the characters were, pretty much fully developed and fleshed out with histories and motivations, etc. Nicely done.
It had a ton of action and really REALLY great images created. Imagery in the form of the characters' emotions and perceptions and the events. Like when one character looks up into a night sky and even though they are in dire danger, they notice the sky. Franklin writes "beauty despite the horror." And then again when Franklin writes when the MC and another character are in the midst of an escape "feeling her heart punch against her chest." Dang, that was powerful stuff to me.
The ONLY reason this is getting a 4 rating from me was the ending felt too abrupt. I wanted a bit more.
But I look forward to the day when I can delve into something else Lee Franklin has written.
I enjoyed this short story a lot. I got an almost immediate sense of who the characters were, pretty much fully developed and fleshed out with histories and motivations, etc. Nicely done.
It had a ton of action and really REALLY great images created. Imagery in the form of the characters' emotions and perceptions and the events. Like when one character looks up into a night sky and even though they are in dire danger, they notice the sky. Franklin writes "beauty despite the horror." And then again when Franklin writes when the MC and another character are in the midst of an escape "feeling her heart punch against her chest." Dang, that was powerful stuff to me.
The ONLY reason this is getting a 4 rating from me was the ending felt too abrupt. I wanted a bit more.
But I look forward to the day when I can delve into something else Lee Franklin has written.
February 3, 2022
A short tense read
Once the story got started I held my breath. For a short story you could really feel the tension and the characters terror.
I always hated the feeling of sand where it shouldn't be and while reading this I could almost feel the grit against my skin.
Once the story got started I held my breath. For a short story you could really feel the tension and the characters terror.
I always hated the feeling of sand where it shouldn't be and while reading this I could almost feel the grit against my skin.
May 22, 2021
A great little short story that packs a punch. This story has everything in only a handful of pages; love, betrayal, death, sacrifice and violence. Lee paints a great picture of the landscape and her descriptions are wonderful. This story feels like a prologue for a much longer work. I can't wait to read more from Lee Franklin.
February 11, 2021
Another great short story from Lee Franklin. Full of suspense and terror, my mind was racing on what would happen next, I couldn't read fast enough. Recommended if you like the Tremors movie, The Sand (2015) or Prey by Michael Crichton ...just shorter.
You could pick up a free copy, all you have to do is subscribe to Lee's newsletter.
You could pick up a free copy, all you have to do is subscribe to Lee's newsletter.
February 11, 2021
Fast, well-paced horror story. You can get it for free just for signing up for Lee's newsletter. It's a win-win for you.
February 25, 2021
Another quick, dark read from Lee Franklin. With this and Nang Tani under my belt I'm looking forward to checking out the Berserker books.
May 24, 2021
A fast paced short story that delivers! Non stop adrenaline read. Watch out for the sandgropers!
February 21, 2021
Another blast of thrilling terror from Lee Franklin!
A small group is out on the Australian Coast investigating some unexplained formations when a sandstorm sweeps in bringing a new danger with it.
Before you read, and if you don't already know, Google what a sandgroper and a Toyota Hilux looks like.
I was absolutely captivated from the get go, what a great short story. In such a short amount of time, she has packed in such a beautiful and terrifyingly descriptive atmosphere, a strong sense of the characters, and an engaging monster tale.
If you want your heart to race, and like creepy creatures, killer animals or insects, check it out! You won't be disappointed!
A small group is out on the Australian Coast investigating some unexplained formations when a sandstorm sweeps in bringing a new danger with it.
Before you read, and if you don't already know, Google what a sandgroper and a Toyota Hilux looks like.
I was absolutely captivated from the get go, what a great short story. In such a short amount of time, she has packed in such a beautiful and terrifyingly descriptive atmosphere, a strong sense of the characters, and an engaging monster tale.
If you want your heart to race, and like creepy creatures, killer animals or insects, check it out! You won't be disappointed!
February 14, 2021
Reminded me a little of the movie "Tremors" with "Empire of the Ants" thrown in. With sand, of course. A butt-load of sand.
May 1, 2021
This is a great little creature feature, I liked it
February 28, 2021
That was a fantastic quick read, fast paced, edge of the seat stuff!!
February 18, 2021
Didn't do much for me...
April 4, 2021
I wasn’t sure what to expect as I’ve heard a lot about this author. I really liked it. Fast paced, easy to read and a great story. My only problem with it was it was too short. I want to know more! So perfect for reading in your lunch break or if you have a spare 15 minutes. Look forward to reading more from Lee Franklin.
February 24, 2021
Read this little bite of amazingness from, Lee Franklin, during my lunch break. Short, but bleak, just the way I like them. Makes me hate bugs even more. And sand. And sand bugs. **Shiver** Anyway, if you haven’t checked it out, make sure you do! It’s a hell of a tale.
May 1, 2021
Wonderful, visceral horror - loved it!
Read
November 27, 2024DNF cause on my kindle and phone it’s sideways????
February 27, 2021
Bad Formatting
It may have been a download error, but the book came with its pages displayed sideways.
The story itself is short with lots of monster action, but the story is told in first person. This makes the story illogical as the ending defeats the concept of a first person narrator.
It may have been a download error, but the book came with its pages displayed sideways.
The story itself is short with lots of monster action, but the story is told in first person. This makes the story illogical as the ending defeats the concept of a first person narrator.
January 5, 2022
Short and Dark.
Really interesting story, well put together idea. Shame that the formatting is horrendous and steals the impact from the book. The layout makes no sense and the breaks makes it hard to read. I found the characters interesting yet it was hard to really get into it.
Really interesting story, well put together idea. Shame that the formatting is horrendous and steals the impact from the book. The layout makes no sense and the breaks makes it hard to read. I found the characters interesting yet it was hard to really get into it.
September 30, 2021
Oh dear!
This is ok if you like reading the bookshops standing on your head. It's all Upside down, and therefore impossible to read!
Also, 2-3 lines per page???? What is going on??!!?
This is ok if you like reading the bookshops standing on your head. It's all Upside down, and therefore impossible to read!
Also, 2-3 lines per page???? What is going on??!!?
August 15, 2021
An entertaining tale
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews