What do you think?
Rate this book
The Cursed Caves
Dr Laura Rollins is a leading Taxonomist brought to the island of Tupuqa after an exciting new species is found hibernating in recently exposed caves. The research team’s objective seems straightforward - travel by sea with the new species to America, where specialist laboratories await. Unaware that their cargo is the product of an ancient curse, the crew are trapped aboard the ship with creatures that rapidly breed and evolve.
Long beach port doesn’t know what’s about to hit it…
An ancient curse.
A new species.
An evil let loose…
Long beach port doesn’t know what’s about to hit it…
An ancient curse.
A new species.
An evil let loose…
- GenresHorror
147 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 27, 2021
7 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 3, 2022
Ok. It’s been a long time since I read anything as breakneck-paced as this starter (for me) from Adam Hulse. I love that horror has so many faces, and this (and I hope the continuing novels from Adam) is a pure adrenaline-fueled creature feature, a survival novel. It takes no prisoners. It is an unashamedly gore-filled, full-color death, big-screen action novel. You read it, and it’s pretty much the horror novel equivalent of Formula One motor racing – ACTION! ACTION! DEATH! ACK!
I’m going to say straight up - I loved this. It’s so not-my-usual fare in horror novels, not that I have a usual fare, of course, but this is visual in ways that some other horror books just aren’t. I could compare it to something like Tim Meyer’s Paradise club – but for me this hit home a lot more satisfyingly – Adam steers clear in this first outing of the series, from explanations for the creatures (how are they still alive?), the parasite, the behavioral patterns of the creatures – there’s so much here that can be expanded on in the following books, that the questions the book raise are almost enough to make you buy the following books in the hope of some answers– but honestly, that’s not at all why you are going to buy the following books. You are going to buy them to dip into that manic world again to see just how badly wrong it is all going to go.
It is voyeurism done at its best, it’s a full-screen surround sound movie of a story, with the reader hanging on for dear life and watching with malicious glee (schadenfreude) as every single character you like or don’t like, gets their untimely end.
I loved the fact that no one is sacred. Everyone, likable or not, becomes fodder. The creatures don’t give a shit. It’s an eat-or-get-eaten world, and the apocalypse is here. It reminded me of Matthew Reilly’s Ice Station to a degree – it has that same big-screen non-stop action feeling to it all. It reads like a movie, you know when the unlikable characters get their comeuppance that you are going to actually be happy enough. There’s a sadistic pleasure in seeing dumb people die. This book is popcorn, it’s a well-spent Saturday evening at the cinema. It’s a blast. Great job, Adam.
The ending is sudden, and not an ending. It’s a cut-off point. The curtains swing in, and on the screen, the words “to be continued” offer no solace. You are pissed off with the damn audacity of the man. He left us in the middle of a desperate action sequence with the world hanging in the balance. No answers. Damn you, Adam Hulse. Take my money. Shut up and get out of the way as I buy book two. What a scam! Shit. There’s a book three too…
It’s pop gore, it’s self-ironic, it’s irreverent. You realize that the full story is going to be revealed over all of the books (I am a fan of this, let the readers piece things together themselves). Or I hope that is the case. I have a long memory and a list of questions just waiting on closure. Just sayin'.
This gets an easy 5 popcorn boxes (not stars. You left me hanging, Hulse) out of 5. It’s a no-brainer “buy the next novel” and if I hadn’t so many other TBRs on my list (and my obligation to read them) I would have just dived into the next one. Dammit.
I had a blast, Adam. Lovely to have read you🤜🤛
I’m going to say straight up - I loved this. It’s so not-my-usual fare in horror novels, not that I have a usual fare, of course, but this is visual in ways that some other horror books just aren’t. I could compare it to something like Tim Meyer’s Paradise club – but for me this hit home a lot more satisfyingly – Adam steers clear in this first outing of the series, from explanations for the creatures (how are they still alive?), the parasite, the behavioral patterns of the creatures – there’s so much here that can be expanded on in the following books, that the questions the book raise are almost enough to make you buy the following books in the hope of some answers– but honestly, that’s not at all why you are going to buy the following books. You are going to buy them to dip into that manic world again to see just how badly wrong it is all going to go.
It is voyeurism done at its best, it’s a full-screen surround sound movie of a story, with the reader hanging on for dear life and watching with malicious glee (schadenfreude) as every single character you like or don’t like, gets their untimely end.
I loved the fact that no one is sacred. Everyone, likable or not, becomes fodder. The creatures don’t give a shit. It’s an eat-or-get-eaten world, and the apocalypse is here. It reminded me of Matthew Reilly’s Ice Station to a degree – it has that same big-screen non-stop action feeling to it all. It reads like a movie, you know when the unlikable characters get their comeuppance that you are going to actually be happy enough. There’s a sadistic pleasure in seeing dumb people die. This book is popcorn, it’s a well-spent Saturday evening at the cinema. It’s a blast. Great job, Adam.
The ending is sudden, and not an ending. It’s a cut-off point. The curtains swing in, and on the screen, the words “to be continued” offer no solace. You are pissed off with the damn audacity of the man. He left us in the middle of a desperate action sequence with the world hanging in the balance. No answers. Damn you, Adam Hulse. Take my money. Shut up and get out of the way as I buy book two. What a scam! Shit. There’s a book three too…
It’s pop gore, it’s self-ironic, it’s irreverent. You realize that the full story is going to be revealed over all of the books (I am a fan of this, let the readers piece things together themselves). Or I hope that is the case. I have a long memory and a list of questions just waiting on closure. Just sayin'.
This gets an easy 5 popcorn boxes (not stars. You left me hanging, Hulse) out of 5. It’s a no-brainer “buy the next novel” and if I hadn’t so many other TBRs on my list (and my obligation to read them) I would have just dived into the next one. Dammit.
I had a blast, Adam. Lovely to have read you🤜🤛
February 19, 2022
This book reads like The Relic and the last half hour of The Lost World went out for a nice date somewhere and ended up trashing the place. After some nice mythology and world building you’re treated to some of the funnest and wild monster insanity that you’ll have a hard time topping. If you’re in need of a roller coaster ride through the Island of Dr. Moreau, this book is the little car thing you need to sit on. I don’t think that metaphor made sense. Sorry. Book rules. K thx.
January 12, 2023
Well, Holy shit! This was go, go, go from the start, fast-paced, and super entertaining.
I loved this, I was hooked from the prologue right through to the cliffhanger ending (damn you, Hulse!).
There was so much packed into this short read, 147 pages. Started out with some folklore, then terror at sea before hitting land for the second half of the story. High octane stuff throughout.
Hulse can write, though, and in such a descriptive way that he makes you feel like you're standing in rooms you really don't want to be in. There are lots of characters dropped in here and there, but Hulse has a way of making them all feel like people with somewhere to go and people to see. Little details that help round them out quickly.
Really enjoyed this, and it's quite different to stuff I normally read, so I'm really glad I picked it up.
I loved this, I was hooked from the prologue right through to the cliffhanger ending (damn you, Hulse!).
There was so much packed into this short read, 147 pages. Started out with some folklore, then terror at sea before hitting land for the second half of the story. High octane stuff throughout.
Hulse can write, though, and in such a descriptive way that he makes you feel like you're standing in rooms you really don't want to be in. There are lots of characters dropped in here and there, but Hulse has a way of making them all feel like people with somewhere to go and people to see. Little details that help round them out quickly.
Really enjoyed this, and it's quite different to stuff I normally read, so I'm really glad I picked it up.
July 29, 2022
Boy oh boy, was this ever a lot of fun.
The set-up is so smart. A remote, tribal community, where a warrior wrongs the group and is bricked into a cursed cave system. We never learn (at least in this volume) what happened to him.
Instead, we fast forward to the modern day and a team of experts visiting the newly opened cave system to extract "unique specimens" and ship them to a lab in the US for further study.
As long as nothing goes wrong, it should be fine, right?
Everything goes wrong and The Cursed Caves becomes this singular narrative of one of the experts trying to figure this situation out, while explosive, bloody set pieces ground us in the horror of just how very wrong everything is going.
A superb cliff hanger ending has left me rubbing my hands together at the prospect of reading volume two.
Devoured in two days. More, please!
The set-up is so smart. A remote, tribal community, where a warrior wrongs the group and is bricked into a cursed cave system. We never learn (at least in this volume) what happened to him.
Instead, we fast forward to the modern day and a team of experts visiting the newly opened cave system to extract "unique specimens" and ship them to a lab in the US for further study.
As long as nothing goes wrong, it should be fine, right?
Everything goes wrong and The Cursed Caves becomes this singular narrative of one of the experts trying to figure this situation out, while explosive, bloody set pieces ground us in the horror of just how very wrong everything is going.
A superb cliff hanger ending has left me rubbing my hands together at the prospect of reading volume two.
Devoured in two days. More, please!
February 18, 2022
A tremendously fun monster novel from Adam Hulse. When creatures are pulled from a cursed cave on an island in the Pacific, and then taken on the long boat ride to America's west coast, terror is unleashed.
The action, creepiness, vivid locations, terrifying creatures, and believable characters would make this an excellent movie. This novel moves. There's nothing static about it. That energy, coupled with the imagery and set pieces, stand out as perfectly cinematic. The creatures wreaking havoc on the boat, in particular, would be fun to see on the screen.
Hulse is a fantastic writer, and I'm looking forward to the sequel!
The action, creepiness, vivid locations, terrifying creatures, and believable characters would make this an excellent movie. This novel moves. There's nothing static about it. That energy, coupled with the imagery and set pieces, stand out as perfectly cinematic. The creatures wreaking havoc on the boat, in particular, would be fun to see on the screen.
Hulse is a fantastic writer, and I'm looking forward to the sequel!
July 13, 2022
You know how the 1st time you watched the movie aliens and you would jump when they came out of the shadows. Yeah this book is like that. It's action packed, chills, and creepy things that go bump. It's a I can't put this down need to know what happens next book. It's a trilogy so I'm read to jump into part 2.
May 8, 2022
Hugely entertaining
Dropped into the action from the start, this book is a fast paced thrill ride that does not let up for a second. The writing is excellent and the story is even better. I can't wait to read the second installment!
Dropped into the action from the start, this book is a fast paced thrill ride that does not let up for a second. The writing is excellent and the story is even better. I can't wait to read the second installment!
January 12, 2023
Starting off with a sad tale from the past that make you want to punch somebody. and then skipping ahead many years with a group of scientists messing around with something they shouldn’t be messing with. You can see their doom coming. A creature feature with unique and intriguing beasts. Lots of action and gruesome fun ensues. So exciting. On to book two.
February 7, 2022
This is a nice little creature feature that races along at 100 mph, and leaves you gagging for book two!
I really enjoyed this. It’s fast, funny, gory, and bloody relentless. Definitely could see this as a movie.
Going to be diving into the sequel soon, just need to get some popcorn first.
Two thumbs up and four stars from me.
I really enjoyed this. It’s fast, funny, gory, and bloody relentless. Definitely could see this as a movie.
Going to be diving into the sequel soon, just need to get some popcorn first.
Two thumbs up and four stars from me.
February 3, 2022
I was drawn to Adam Hulse’s, The Cursed Caves (The Tales of Tupuqa), as the premise centers on researchers unearthing a new – or possibly long extinct – species of animal in the caves of an isolated Polynesian island, Tupuqa. To me, it offered a refreshing change from the usual vampire/werewolf theme you find so often saturates the horror genre. And Hulse plays to that difference rather well, because, what would any scientist making such a discovery want to do?
Why, take them out and examine them of course. And THAT’s where the fun begins, as the blurb so succinctly reveals:
*******
Dr Laura Rollins is a leading Taxonomist brought to the island of Tupuqa after an exciting new species is found hibernating in recently exposed caves. The research team’s objective seems straightforward - travel by sea with the new species to America, where specialist laboratories await. Unaware that their cargo is the product of an ancient curse, the crew are trapped aboard the ship with creatures that rapidly breed and evolve.
Long Beach port doesn’t know what’s about to hit it…
*******
As you’ll find, nothing is straightforward about that journey back. And I have to say, it was rather fun.
Now, I’m never one to give away the plot with spoilers. But what I will say is that The Cursed Caves is a rather imaginative, well put together story that mixes science, ancient banes, mythology, and misadventure into a roister-doister tale of mishap and misery for all those concerned. It’s as character driven as it is jet propelled. And though the action is relentless, Hulse manages to keep the momentum going without the narrative becoming tedious or exhausting. In fact, it’s exhilarating, because Hulse takes a leaf out of George R. R. Martin’s book, and doesn’t insist on a happy ending. In fact, he’s rather cavalier about who lives and who becomes a mushy pile of blood and guts.
Gloriously visceral stuff. You’ll see.
(And I can’t wait to take a bite out of the next story)
Why, take them out and examine them of course. And THAT’s where the fun begins, as the blurb so succinctly reveals:
*******
Dr Laura Rollins is a leading Taxonomist brought to the island of Tupuqa after an exciting new species is found hibernating in recently exposed caves. The research team’s objective seems straightforward - travel by sea with the new species to America, where specialist laboratories await. Unaware that their cargo is the product of an ancient curse, the crew are trapped aboard the ship with creatures that rapidly breed and evolve.
Long Beach port doesn’t know what’s about to hit it…
*******
As you’ll find, nothing is straightforward about that journey back. And I have to say, it was rather fun.
Now, I’m never one to give away the plot with spoilers. But what I will say is that The Cursed Caves is a rather imaginative, well put together story that mixes science, ancient banes, mythology, and misadventure into a roister-doister tale of mishap and misery for all those concerned. It’s as character driven as it is jet propelled. And though the action is relentless, Hulse manages to keep the momentum going without the narrative becoming tedious or exhausting. In fact, it’s exhilarating, because Hulse takes a leaf out of George R. R. Martin’s book, and doesn’t insist on a happy ending. In fact, he’s rather cavalier about who lives and who becomes a mushy pile of blood and guts.
Gloriously visceral stuff. You’ll see.
(And I can’t wait to take a bite out of the next story)
February 5, 2022
This book had me a little confused at the beginning, I had no idea what was going on. As the story picked up, it reminded me of The Thing ( let's excavate and pull out dead things and yeah, that's a good idea, what can go wrong?) combined with a bit of the X-Files.
The Cursed Caves are just what they sound like: caves that have been curse, and we all know what happens when we disturb the slumber of ancient places.
It was hard for me to get a clear idea what the creatures in this book looked like. At first I thought Critters, and then I thought Chupacabra. Maybe it's really a mix of both.
I gave this book 3 stars because I did have some issue with the writing, which I won't get into here. The story is face paced and full of action. If you like the old school X- Files or creature horror, this book is one to pick up.
The Cursed Caves are just what they sound like: caves that have been curse, and we all know what happens when we disturb the slumber of ancient places.
It was hard for me to get a clear idea what the creatures in this book looked like. At first I thought Critters, and then I thought Chupacabra. Maybe it's really a mix of both.
I gave this book 3 stars because I did have some issue with the writing, which I won't get into here. The story is face paced and full of action. If you like the old school X- Files or creature horror, this book is one to pick up.
May 3, 2023
A delight read from start to finish. Ancient creatures and heroic humans leave you at the edge of your seat throughout. Hulse is an extremely talented author with a knack for action horror and creating larger than life characters you can’t help but feel instantly drawn to.
January 7, 2022
Well paced fun little horror book. Thoroughly enjoyed it and now onto book 2!
December 9, 2021
Somewhere out on the blue sparkling ocean Manuta Island holds a secret from the rest of the world. Before you can spell "Tupuqa" madness erupts and makes life at sea a living hell.
Take your sea sickness pill, lock yourself in the cabin and be sure to hang the "No pets allowed"-sign on the door. Easy cruising.
Take your sea sickness pill, lock yourself in the cabin and be sure to hang the "No pets allowed"-sign on the door. Easy cruising.
January 18, 2022
Like the schlocky 70s/80s horror flucks I used to (and still do) love, this is a well paced, fun little novel that does exactly ehat it says on the tin.
Now for the sequel
Now for the sequel
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews