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Gollitok
In a post-nuclear Eastern Europe, Hammel E Varka departs for a remote island to join a survey team cataloguing the abandoned Gollitok prison in the hopes that he will redeem his family’s tarnished reputation. After the passage across the strait leaves a team member injured, Varka quickly realizes that this survey is far from routine and that what he thought he knew about the island was a cover for more horrifying truths. As his team presses deeper into the decaying facility, hidden agendas splinter the team, and they find themselves beset with dangers beyond their worst nightmares.
294 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 24, 2023
About the author
Andrew Najberg
18 books100 followersAndrew Najberg is the author of the novel The Mobius Door (Wicked House Publications, 2023) and the forthcoming novels Gollitok (Wicked House Publishing, 2023) and The Neverborn Thief (Olive-Ridley Press, 2024), as well as the collection of poems The Goats Have Taken Over the Barracks (Finishing Line Press, 2021). In addition, his collection of short fiction, In Those Fading Stars, is due out through Crystal Lake Publishing in November 2024 and his novel Extinction Dream comes out in May 2025 through Wicked House Publishing. His short fiction has appeared in Prose Online, Psychopomp Review, Bookends Review, The Colored Lens, Utopia Science Fiction, The Gateway Review, Dark Death Things, Creepy Podcast, and is forthcoming in Fusion Fragment, Translunar Travelers Lounge, and the Gods And Globes III anthology. Currently, he teaches for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and is serving as a senior editor for Symposeum magazine.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 186 reviews
August 25, 2024
Terribly Dull!
No I didn’t finish this book and I am not sure that I am going to. Actually, I am sure. I won’t.
The book is so long and boring and it doesn’t get any better no matter how much I pray it will. It’s just a dud.
I’ve read 35% of the book and nothing’s happened. Not one damn thing. Unless you want to count Brogdonovich being stung by jellyfish a happening that is part of the horror.
I can deal with the slow pace of the book if the book isn’t so dull and boring and depressing to read.
I’m sure that someone out there likes the book. God bless you. I’m just not that person, so I’ve got to go.
One star. ✨
No I didn’t finish this book and I am not sure that I am going to. Actually, I am sure. I won’t.
The book is so long and boring and it doesn’t get any better no matter how much I pray it will. It’s just a dud.
I’ve read 35% of the book and nothing’s happened. Not one damn thing. Unless you want to count Brogdonovich being stung by jellyfish a happening that is part of the horror.
I can deal with the slow pace of the book if the book isn’t so dull and boring and depressing to read.
I’m sure that someone out there likes the book. God bless you. I’m just not that person, so I’ve got to go.
One star. ✨
October 19, 2023
I loved this gem of a horror story, with all of its oozing, pulsing, mutating descriptions of the hellscape that is Gollitok. An unusual post-apocalyptic tale, "Gollitok" is set in Eastern Europe about several decades after a nuclear holocaust left the sun blotted and people struggling to survive. There's a pervasive bleakness to the world that Najberg creates, with old Soviet era attitudes, weapons, and ideas, that pervade the landscape.
Hammel Varka is an apparatchik of the Civil Bureau, sent to lead a small survey to an abandoned island which once housed a prison camp. He is quickly confronted by the soldier Yost, who has her own hidden agenda for the secrets that the island holds. To a large extent the story reminded me of Jeff VanderMeer's Annihilation. There's a paranoid sense of greater elements at play, that people are hiding things from you, that you can't trust your senses. The landscape, the animals, the lifeforms that seem to mutate. There's a spiral staircase and a lighthouse. Did I mention the paranoia?
I found this book image on the author's website. I like it so much better than the cover version that I have:
And layered between all of that, is the bleak post-Soviet decay and paranoia of living in a lifetime in a repressive regime, one that helped destroy the world and now is in charge of rebuilding it.
The island, of course, is based upon the real Goli Otok, the infamous prison camp off the coast of modern Croatia that was once used by the brutal Yugoslavian Tito regime to torture Stalinist and other prisoners. This historical backdrop to the island, and reading about the author Najberg's own family history with the prison island, made the book that much more powerful for me.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Wicked House Publishing. My opinions are entirely my own.
Hammel Varka is an apparatchik of the Civil Bureau, sent to lead a small survey to an abandoned island which once housed a prison camp. He is quickly confronted by the soldier Yost, who has her own hidden agenda for the secrets that the island holds. To a large extent the story reminded me of Jeff VanderMeer's Annihilation. There's a paranoid sense of greater elements at play, that people are hiding things from you, that you can't trust your senses. The landscape, the animals, the lifeforms that seem to mutate. There's a spiral staircase and a lighthouse. Did I mention the paranoia?
I found this book image on the author's website. I like it so much better than the cover version that I have:
And layered between all of that, is the bleak post-Soviet decay and paranoia of living in a lifetime in a repressive regime, one that helped destroy the world and now is in charge of rebuilding it.
The island, of course, is based upon the real Goli Otok, the infamous prison camp off the coast of modern Croatia that was once used by the brutal Yugoslavian Tito regime to torture Stalinist and other prisoners. This historical backdrop to the island, and reading about the author Najberg's own family history with the prison island, made the book that much more powerful for me.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Wicked House Publishing. My opinions are entirely my own.
December 12, 2023
Survey Scandal! Bureau Official Fails to File a Report! "Give me a freakin' break! I'm finding it a tad difficult to hold a pen at the moment!" - Hammel E. Varka - The Bureau Bugler
In a post-pandemic-nuclear holocaust world, the Bureau runs the show, and mid-level official, Varka, is running a survey of an abandoned island, but is it truly abandoned?
I'm not a fan of 'lack of agency,' in characters (or in life) and watching Varka and his team mates mostly stumble from one 'death-by-a-thousand-cuts' disaster to the next as Varka's mission fell into disarray was kinda painful.
I'm also a fan of pace, and while the events of the story happen in less than a handful of days, they somehow dragged out in the telling to make the first 90% of this story a showcase in 'the-slow-burn,' technique where I was left wondering and waiting for the payoff.
And the payoff does arrive in the final chapter - but was it fully satisfying? Maybe? I'm not sure, and that makes me question giving this book 4 stars.
That said ... and yet ... and yet ... the story has a strange mesmerising quality to it ... like an overdose of Orlot...
The way I feel about this book reminds me of how I feel about Carmilla by Fanu, a book that on the surface doesn't thrill me or hit my typical points of interest, and yet it has an uncanny (a very apt word for this book) appeal beyond rational explanation.
Clever writing in a unique voice, I may well read more by this author.
Recommended, 4 'Beware the Offspring of Men,' stars
In a post-pandemic-nuclear holocaust world, the Bureau runs the show, and mid-level official, Varka, is running a survey of an abandoned island, but is it truly abandoned?
I'm not a fan of 'lack of agency,' in characters (or in life) and watching Varka and his team mates mostly stumble from one 'death-by-a-thousand-cuts' disaster to the next as Varka's mission fell into disarray was kinda painful.
I'm also a fan of pace, and while the events of the story happen in less than a handful of days, they somehow dragged out in the telling to make the first 90% of this story a showcase in 'the-slow-burn,' technique where I was left wondering and waiting for the payoff.
And the payoff does arrive in the final chapter - but was it fully satisfying? Maybe? I'm not sure, and that makes me question giving this book 4 stars.
That said ... and yet ... and yet ... the story has a strange mesmerising quality to it ... like an overdose of Orlot...
The way I feel about this book reminds me of how I feel about Carmilla by Fanu, a book that on the surface doesn't thrill me or hit my typical points of interest, and yet it has an uncanny (a very apt word for this book) appeal beyond rational explanation.
Clever writing in a unique voice, I may well read more by this author.
Recommended, 4 'Beware the Offspring of Men,' stars
July 21, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️ -NetGalley ARC
First came the viruses and plagues, then the nuclear attacks, now in post-nuclear Europe, Hammel Varka departs for a remote island to join a survey team cataloguing the abandoned Gollitok prison. Varka quickly realizes that this survey is far from routine and that what he thought he knew about the island was a cover for more horrifying truths. Experiments gone wrong at the very least, but possibly something even more horrifying than that. As his team presses deeper into the decaying facility, hidden agendas splinter the team, and they find themselves faced with dangers beyond their worst nightmares. The question isn’t whether anyone will make it out alive, but were any of them supposed to. An even paced dystopian tale that will have you guessing what’s real and what’s not.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for a chance to read this book for an honest review.
First came the viruses and plagues, then the nuclear attacks, now in post-nuclear Europe, Hammel Varka departs for a remote island to join a survey team cataloguing the abandoned Gollitok prison. Varka quickly realizes that this survey is far from routine and that what he thought he knew about the island was a cover for more horrifying truths. Experiments gone wrong at the very least, but possibly something even more horrifying than that. As his team presses deeper into the decaying facility, hidden agendas splinter the team, and they find themselves faced with dangers beyond their worst nightmares. The question isn’t whether anyone will make it out alive, but were any of them supposed to. An even paced dystopian tale that will have you guessing what’s real and what’s not.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for a chance to read this book for an honest review.
April 21, 2024
GOLLITOK [2023] By Andrew Najberg
My Review 4.0 Stars****
This apocalyptic tale was one of two “Group Read: Author Invite” selections for the month of April. The author was wonderfully generous with the club’s members and in addition to answering multiple questions, shared some fascinating personal history as well. I thought the Cover Art was stunning, and when I browsed through the discussion notes it was hardly a surprise that I was not alone.
The short teaser description on Amazon allows that the novel is set in post-nuclear Eastern Europe, and that Hammel E Varka travels to a remote island to join a survey team to catalog an abandoned Gollitok Prison. It was therefore fascinating to learn from the author that Goli Otok is a real island off the Croation Coast, and that much of the history of the place was inspired by the real stories of people across the Dalmatian Island chain. Andrew revealed that his maternal grandfather was actually a prisoner at the Goli Otok prison. Najberg freely acknowledges his love of island and isolation stories. I had read the first 25% of the book at this juncture and it was an incredibly “slow burn”. The prose was professional, clinical, and dry during the first quarter of the book, and I was rejuvenated by Andrew’s enthusiasm and candor when he answered questions and shared information about the backdrop of his futuristic horror story.
Hammel Varka, a young man from the Civil Bureau, is assigned to lead a team comprised of civilians and two soldiers to a remote island on which the notorious Gollitok Prison still stood, dilapidated and in ruins. The story takes place several decades after a nuclear holocaust which left the sun blotted. The author acknowledged that his powerful horror novel was loosely based on the real Goli Otok and the infamous prison camp off the coast of modern Croatia, It was used by the brutal Yugoslavian Tito Regime to torture Stalinists and other prisoners. The historical backdrop to the island (and the author’s own family history with the prison) rendered his fictional world, if possible, even more chilling.
The author’s narrative is written in a cold, clinical, impersonal, and professional prose style. This technique engenders a stark realism like the reader is not only privy to this investigation but standing beside Varka. The small survey team is there to learn the truth relative to reports of a disturbance on the island, its structures, and its dilapidated prison. The author’s description of the place emanates vibes which are like shards of glass serving to provide a realistic sense of place that is all too believable.
Najberg deploys the first person POV of the civilian leader Varka which is incredibly effective. It allows the reader to feel the paranoia, the uncertainties, the fears, and all of the emotions that are ratcheted tighter than a bow string. The first 25% of the novel was slow and tedious, and I had to stave off my impatience and desire for all hell to break loose, because I was sure it would. Readers are not all alike in that many readers dearly love the slow build-up to the monstrous. Me? I prefer to be hooked from the opening lines.
The pace of the story line picked up noticeably by the halfway mark, the escalation of the plot drew me in and held my attention as I matched breaths with Varka. By the THIRD DAY (72% mark) of the survey the team was mucking around in every corner and finding a hellscape of monumental proportions in every direction. The author stepped on the gas pedal and sped ruthlessly through the final stretch. I was unable to put the book down as the secrets and answers were all exposed.
The team had been informed that protective gear would be required entering and leaving the prison and its grounds because of a contagion of unknown properties. This proved to be both right and wrong intel. Poisons were not limited to their exposure to whatever contagion infected the island and the prison. The threats they faced were straight out of a Crichton novel, the bird population worse than Hitchcock could conceive, and the radiation poison a genuine death threat.
It is not my intent to issue any “spoilers” so I will just say that this small group of civilians with two assigned soldiers were subjected to unimaginable horrors and were criminally overmatched by the antagonistic environment and the enemies who inhabited it. I would add that this fascinating sci-fi novel and its post-apocalyptic dystopian background laid the groundwork for the author to create some over-the-top crazy good extreme horror as our outmanned group fought back without knowing the superiority of their foes. I liked the ending for its realism, and the fate of the main protagonist.
PREPARE FOR THE “SLOW BURN” AND KEEP YOUR SEAT FOR THE ACTION-PACKED CRESCENDO
My Review 4.0 Stars****
This apocalyptic tale was one of two “Group Read: Author Invite” selections for the month of April. The author was wonderfully generous with the club’s members and in addition to answering multiple questions, shared some fascinating personal history as well. I thought the Cover Art was stunning, and when I browsed through the discussion notes it was hardly a surprise that I was not alone.
The short teaser description on Amazon allows that the novel is set in post-nuclear Eastern Europe, and that Hammel E Varka travels to a remote island to join a survey team to catalog an abandoned Gollitok Prison. It was therefore fascinating to learn from the author that Goli Otok is a real island off the Croation Coast, and that much of the history of the place was inspired by the real stories of people across the Dalmatian Island chain. Andrew revealed that his maternal grandfather was actually a prisoner at the Goli Otok prison. Najberg freely acknowledges his love of island and isolation stories. I had read the first 25% of the book at this juncture and it was an incredibly “slow burn”. The prose was professional, clinical, and dry during the first quarter of the book, and I was rejuvenated by Andrew’s enthusiasm and candor when he answered questions and shared information about the backdrop of his futuristic horror story.
Hammel Varka, a young man from the Civil Bureau, is assigned to lead a team comprised of civilians and two soldiers to a remote island on which the notorious Gollitok Prison still stood, dilapidated and in ruins. The story takes place several decades after a nuclear holocaust which left the sun blotted. The author acknowledged that his powerful horror novel was loosely based on the real Goli Otok and the infamous prison camp off the coast of modern Croatia, It was used by the brutal Yugoslavian Tito Regime to torture Stalinists and other prisoners. The historical backdrop to the island (and the author’s own family history with the prison) rendered his fictional world, if possible, even more chilling.
The author’s narrative is written in a cold, clinical, impersonal, and professional prose style. This technique engenders a stark realism like the reader is not only privy to this investigation but standing beside Varka. The small survey team is there to learn the truth relative to reports of a disturbance on the island, its structures, and its dilapidated prison. The author’s description of the place emanates vibes which are like shards of glass serving to provide a realistic sense of place that is all too believable.
Najberg deploys the first person POV of the civilian leader Varka which is incredibly effective. It allows the reader to feel the paranoia, the uncertainties, the fears, and all of the emotions that are ratcheted tighter than a bow string. The first 25% of the novel was slow and tedious, and I had to stave off my impatience and desire for all hell to break loose, because I was sure it would. Readers are not all alike in that many readers dearly love the slow build-up to the monstrous. Me? I prefer to be hooked from the opening lines.
The pace of the story line picked up noticeably by the halfway mark, the escalation of the plot drew me in and held my attention as I matched breaths with Varka. By the THIRD DAY (72% mark) of the survey the team was mucking around in every corner and finding a hellscape of monumental proportions in every direction. The author stepped on the gas pedal and sped ruthlessly through the final stretch. I was unable to put the book down as the secrets and answers were all exposed.
The team had been informed that protective gear would be required entering and leaving the prison and its grounds because of a contagion of unknown properties. This proved to be both right and wrong intel. Poisons were not limited to their exposure to whatever contagion infected the island and the prison. The threats they faced were straight out of a Crichton novel, the bird population worse than Hitchcock could conceive, and the radiation poison a genuine death threat.
It is not my intent to issue any “spoilers” so I will just say that this small group of civilians with two assigned soldiers were subjected to unimaginable horrors and were criminally overmatched by the antagonistic environment and the enemies who inhabited it. I would add that this fascinating sci-fi novel and its post-apocalyptic dystopian background laid the groundwork for the author to create some over-the-top crazy good extreme horror as our outmanned group fought back without knowing the superiority of their foes. I liked the ending for its realism, and the fate of the main protagonist.
PREPARE FOR THE “SLOW BURN” AND KEEP YOUR SEAT FOR THE ACTION-PACKED CRESCENDO
September 4, 2024
I absolutely enjoyed this book! It was horror, mysterious, gory, all the great things! It did start off a bit slow but when it picked up it was amazing!
Want to read
September 5, 2023Adding this to my tbr because I misread the title as "Goli otok" which was a prison island back in the days of Yugoslavia. And reading the blurb...I can't help but wonder if that exact prison was the inspiration. But yeah it seems interesting.
April 28, 2024
Gollitok, the post-nuclear, apocalyptic/sci-fi tale from Andrew Najberg, packs a lot of punch in a story just shy of 300 pages. Using the 1st person POV from our protagonist, Varka, contributes to the cold, austere atmosphere of the desolate Eastern Europe island sitting idle long after the bombs have dropped. Varka and his team are sent to the remote island to investigate the long abandoned Gollitok prison. Their mission and the events leading up to their landing are murky at best. By seeing through the limited lens of Varka, Najberg forces us to go through the story with the same blinders the protagonist is wearing. This adds to the claustrophobia and confusion. As Najberg slowly peels back the layers, we learn that not everything is as it seems. We try to figure out who is telling the truth, what secrets are hidden, and what’s the real reason they sent this rag-tag team to this god-forsaken island.
Gollitok is a well-written tale, full of atmosphere mystery. And while I enjoyed the ride, I found I wanted more. I wanted more backstory on the island, the characters, the prison. More, more, more. That’s not a bad thing. Perhaps Najberg has more up storytelling sleeve he’ll unleash on us at a later date. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
3.5 Orlot Brownies out of 5
Gollitok is a well-written tale, full of atmosphere mystery. And while I enjoyed the ride, I found I wanted more. I wanted more backstory on the island, the characters, the prison. More, more, more. That’s not a bad thing. Perhaps Najberg has more up storytelling sleeve he’ll unleash on us at a later date. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
3.5 Orlot Brownies out of 5
November 12, 2023
Gollitok by Andrew Najberg
Pub date: November 24, 2023
Genre: Dystopian Horror
Plot: Character Driven, very descriptive, single narrator
Overall:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Prose⭐⭐⭐⭐
Pacing(1=slow 5=fast)⭐⭐💫
Character Development ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Scary (1=mild 5= terrifying)⭐
Gore (1=clean 5=splatter)⭐⭐⭐
Atmosphere⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
***Caution Spoilers Follow***
.
.
.
.
.
Similar Vibe: Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer
The first thing that struck me about Gollitok by Andrew Najberg was the dystopian, post nuclear society. He absolutely nailed it with the creepy island prison setting. The foggy atmosphere and even the side characters smoking cigarettes (because why not after nuclear fallout) painted the whole scene in really rusty, bleak colors. An abandoned mine with strange bones everywhere, dead bodies in strange configurations, the appearance of baracading themselves in, the well with cement poured in it, seismic earthquakes, bizarre eyes in the ocean surrounding the island, a blast door and finally scratching noises coming from deep under the lighthouse; halfway through I was screaming at my oblivious nonreader husband, "IT'S A BALROG"! I won't confirm or deny if a Balrog exists in this book but it had that level of hold on me.
Fortunately for me, this story is a lot smarter than just copying a creature from other literature. Political suspense weaves it's way throughout the entire survey crew which is the basis of the plotline. A creeping paranoid malevolence starts to infect the reader's assumptions of what is happening as you read further. I can't overstate how well Najberg did with this mysterious atmosphere. It had me in it's grips almost instantly and held on throughout the book. The pacing is slow with loads of character development and in the end Najberg leaves some conclusions to be pieced together by the reader, which I appreciated. In the author's "thanks" note at the rear of the story he reveals that this book was inspired by his Grandfather's actual internment in the Croatian Goli Otok Prison (in operation from 1949-1989). As a history buff this impressed me even more. I can easily recommend Gollitok to anyone who enjoys atmospheric, creepy or dystopian type thrillers. Outstanding job on this book Andrew Najberg. I fecking loved it.
Pub date: November 24, 2023
Genre: Dystopian Horror
Plot: Character Driven, very descriptive, single narrator
Overall:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Prose⭐⭐⭐⭐
Pacing(1=slow 5=fast)⭐⭐💫
Character Development ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Scary (1=mild 5= terrifying)⭐
Gore (1=clean 5=splatter)⭐⭐⭐
Atmosphere⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
***Caution Spoilers Follow***
.
.
.
.
.
Similar Vibe: Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer
The first thing that struck me about Gollitok by Andrew Najberg was the dystopian, post nuclear society. He absolutely nailed it with the creepy island prison setting. The foggy atmosphere and even the side characters smoking cigarettes (because why not after nuclear fallout) painted the whole scene in really rusty, bleak colors. An abandoned mine with strange bones everywhere, dead bodies in strange configurations, the appearance of baracading themselves in, the well with cement poured in it, seismic earthquakes, bizarre eyes in the ocean surrounding the island, a blast door and finally scratching noises coming from deep under the lighthouse; halfway through I was screaming at my oblivious nonreader husband, "IT'S A BALROG"! I won't confirm or deny if a Balrog exists in this book but it had that level of hold on me.
Fortunately for me, this story is a lot smarter than just copying a creature from other literature. Political suspense weaves it's way throughout the entire survey crew which is the basis of the plotline. A creeping paranoid malevolence starts to infect the reader's assumptions of what is happening as you read further. I can't overstate how well Najberg did with this mysterious atmosphere. It had me in it's grips almost instantly and held on throughout the book. The pacing is slow with loads of character development and in the end Najberg leaves some conclusions to be pieced together by the reader, which I appreciated. In the author's "thanks" note at the rear of the story he reveals that this book was inspired by his Grandfather's actual internment in the Croatian Goli Otok Prison (in operation from 1949-1989). As a history buff this impressed me even more. I can easily recommend Gollitok to anyone who enjoys atmospheric, creepy or dystopian type thrillers. Outstanding job on this book Andrew Najberg. I fecking loved it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 21, 2023
Special thanks to NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for allowing me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Long story short, this book is amazing and my only critique is I want MORE! Andrew Najberg has written an absolute masterpiece here and the world building has led me to want more more more!
The story is in a post-nuclear society, where they have essentially lost (but trying to regain) all of the “old” technology that to us right now, is just everyday technology. The way Najberg has his characters react to some of these techs (they’re confused or only heard rumors) and the way certain titles and words to these future people have morphed from words commonplace in our time…is just genius. You can tell he is an author that has done his homework as well as thought smartly about how a future post-war society would react to things we see every day.
The island itself is spooky and there is a lot of horror going on in this story. The characters are well developed, each unique, and you root for them as the story starts to take a turn. Like I said above, my ONLY critique would be that I want more! I want to know MORE about this post-war society as a whole, I want to know every single detail about these characters, and I wish I could have another 500 pages of lore within this setting.
I really hope this book turns in to a series. Maybe not with these characters or even at this setting, but definitely within this world created. There is so much potential and I will be waiting for ANYTHING else released about this place.
Najberg is a wonderful writer. When characters are in pain, you feel it! When they are stressed out or tired, you feel the same. You root for them and worry…I stayed up wondering if they would be okay! It is a wonderful horror novel that could EASILY be turned into a multi-million dollar budget movie.
An absolute treasure to read if you’re into Horror and up for some mysterious island type vibes. I was entranced on page one and even after finishing this book, I am eager for more! 10/10 !!
Long story short, this book is amazing and my only critique is I want MORE! Andrew Najberg has written an absolute masterpiece here and the world building has led me to want more more more!
The story is in a post-nuclear society, where they have essentially lost (but trying to regain) all of the “old” technology that to us right now, is just everyday technology. The way Najberg has his characters react to some of these techs (they’re confused or only heard rumors) and the way certain titles and words to these future people have morphed from words commonplace in our time…is just genius. You can tell he is an author that has done his homework as well as thought smartly about how a future post-war society would react to things we see every day.
The island itself is spooky and there is a lot of horror going on in this story. The characters are well developed, each unique, and you root for them as the story starts to take a turn. Like I said above, my ONLY critique would be that I want more! I want to know MORE about this post-war society as a whole, I want to know every single detail about these characters, and I wish I could have another 500 pages of lore within this setting.
I really hope this book turns in to a series. Maybe not with these characters or even at this setting, but definitely within this world created. There is so much potential and I will be waiting for ANYTHING else released about this place.
Najberg is a wonderful writer. When characters are in pain, you feel it! When they are stressed out or tired, you feel the same. You root for them and worry…I stayed up wondering if they would be okay! It is a wonderful horror novel that could EASILY be turned into a multi-million dollar budget movie.
An absolute treasure to read if you’re into Horror and up for some mysterious island type vibes. I was entranced on page one and even after finishing this book, I am eager for more! 10/10 !!
August 29, 2024
This was absorbing. I love an apocalyptic dysopian survival story! Reminded me of the Alien movie where Ripley goes to the men's prison on that island
This is one of the most exciting books I've read all year for sure. It's one of those books that I just wanted to keep reading and was excited to pick it back up again. My interest was fully hooked!
Some of the descriptions are so scary and gruesome! I like the imagery of the island and the animals and this sort of mutated new world. The atmosphere was potent, grimy, and dark.
I will admit the final quarter if the book was a bit challenging to follow at times as there was a lot going on! However, that may have been my fault as I listened to this while walking/multitasking.
I could truly see myself rereading this in the future just because of how interesting it was to me and how I know there's more to glean from the story than I absorbed on the first read.
This is one of the most exciting books I've read all year for sure. It's one of those books that I just wanted to keep reading and was excited to pick it back up again. My interest was fully hooked!
Some of the descriptions are so scary and gruesome! I like the imagery of the island and the animals and this sort of mutated new world. The atmosphere was potent, grimy, and dark.
I will admit the final quarter if the book was a bit challenging to follow at times as there was a lot going on! However, that may have been my fault as I listened to this while walking/multitasking.
I could truly see myself rereading this in the future just because of how interesting it was to me and how I know there's more to glean from the story than I absorbed on the first read.
November 25, 2023
Give me a plague and post nuclear war read and I’m all in. This takes place after a global destruction of the world. A survey team is sent to Gollitok to assess and catalog the island, which had been a prison. During their stay, the team gains knowledge that other teams have been sent and have never returned. So starts the progression that is the beginning of the end of the current team. They experience horrors they could never imagine. Animals that have mutated, unexplained phenomena in the foliage that also appears mutated, cold dank skies that haven’t seen blue or sunshine since the nuclear wars.
The world building is eerie and the author does a great job with his development. He uses similes and metaphors in the most amazing way. The writing is formal as if it took place in the early 1900’s. He never repeats himself and gets to his points in wonderful ways. You know these characters by the end and root for them and their survival.
I really enjoyed this novel. It’s a slow burn, but in the most dark and sinister way.
I would like to thank #netgalley and #wickedhousepublishing for my ARC
The world building is eerie and the author does a great job with his development. He uses similes and metaphors in the most amazing way. The writing is formal as if it took place in the early 1900’s. He never repeats himself and gets to his points in wonderful ways. You know these characters by the end and root for them and their survival.
I really enjoyed this novel. It’s a slow burn, but in the most dark and sinister way.
I would like to thank #netgalley and #wickedhousepublishing for my ARC
September 10, 2023
Thank you NetGalley and Wicked House Publishing for this ARC.
This book builds a steady sense of dread from the beginning and keeps you absolutely hooked. I strongly appreciate that the author doesn't spoon-feed the reader every minute detail, but rather lets the storytelling speak for itself and allows you to discover the dreadful mysteries of Gollitok as they slowly unfurl. The writing is great, the characters were well developed, and I'll keep this novel on my highly recommended list.
This book builds a steady sense of dread from the beginning and keeps you absolutely hooked. I strongly appreciate that the author doesn't spoon-feed the reader every minute detail, but rather lets the storytelling speak for itself and allows you to discover the dreadful mysteries of Gollitok as they slowly unfurl. The writing is great, the characters were well developed, and I'll keep this novel on my highly recommended list.
September 28, 2023
Let me start out by saying that within one year, Andrew Najberg has written two of the best horror novels I’ve read in the last decade. Mobius Door was a wild ride, and Gollitok may be even better.
I would say this book is first and foremost a mystery, and a darn good one at that! The best way I could describe the premise would be to say it’s like a Roanoke mystery set on Alcatraz in a post-apocalyptic world similar to that of the Fallout games. Then factor in Government conspiracies, a potentially deadly virus, mutated fauna, and all of a sudden you find yourself waist deep in a real horror novel.
Najberg has the incredible ability to make even the smallest details feel grand and historic. You can feel past meeting with present in this book as every line of dialogue seems to suggest intrigue and backstory that brought me into a rich and fully realized world. He also makes great use of dialogue and descriptions. Within a few sentences, you feel like you know everything you need to know about some of these characters, have stood on rocky lifeless shores, or watched someone suffer from some of the most traumatic injuries imaginable. Gollitok has a timeless quality to it, which makes its setting feel all the more believable.
Whereas many of the scares in Najburg’s Mobius door are fantastical machinations of the imagination, many of the threats in Gollitok feel grounded, realistic, and gave me legitimate bouts of anxiety. Without getting into details, just the trip to the island alone in the first few chapters are filled with horrors that, if I were to experience them, would have me turning that boat around ASAP. That's where this book really grabs you. The initial setup feels really well grounded and established, so that when things get crazy, you believe it. And trust me, things DO get crazy.
The book does a fantastic job at several points of dropping clues to lead the reader to think they are solving this mystery, and then pulling a complete 180, leaving me clamoring to find out what the next layer of this puzzle will reveal, all without undoing any of the work that came before. The characters are complex, each one having a proper reason for the good, and bad actions they take. Like the story itself, a lot of these characters' backstories are given layers throughout the narrative that brings even the most contemptible seeming people around to at the very least empathizing with their perspective. I highly highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good horror story that isn't afraid to go in some wild directions.
Favorite quote from the book:
“Suffering is a living thing,” Yost whispers through the comm. “This is it's beating heart.”
I would say this book is first and foremost a mystery, and a darn good one at that! The best way I could describe the premise would be to say it’s like a Roanoke mystery set on Alcatraz in a post-apocalyptic world similar to that of the Fallout games. Then factor in Government conspiracies, a potentially deadly virus, mutated fauna, and all of a sudden you find yourself waist deep in a real horror novel.
Najberg has the incredible ability to make even the smallest details feel grand and historic. You can feel past meeting with present in this book as every line of dialogue seems to suggest intrigue and backstory that brought me into a rich and fully realized world. He also makes great use of dialogue and descriptions. Within a few sentences, you feel like you know everything you need to know about some of these characters, have stood on rocky lifeless shores, or watched someone suffer from some of the most traumatic injuries imaginable. Gollitok has a timeless quality to it, which makes its setting feel all the more believable.
Whereas many of the scares in Najburg’s Mobius door are fantastical machinations of the imagination, many of the threats in Gollitok feel grounded, realistic, and gave me legitimate bouts of anxiety. Without getting into details, just the trip to the island alone in the first few chapters are filled with horrors that, if I were to experience them, would have me turning that boat around ASAP. That's where this book really grabs you. The initial setup feels really well grounded and established, so that when things get crazy, you believe it. And trust me, things DO get crazy.
The book does a fantastic job at several points of dropping clues to lead the reader to think they are solving this mystery, and then pulling a complete 180, leaving me clamoring to find out what the next layer of this puzzle will reveal, all without undoing any of the work that came before. The characters are complex, each one having a proper reason for the good, and bad actions they take. Like the story itself, a lot of these characters' backstories are given layers throughout the narrative that brings even the most contemptible seeming people around to at the very least empathizing with their perspective. I highly highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good horror story that isn't afraid to go in some wild directions.
Favorite quote from the book:
“Suffering is a living thing,” Yost whispers through the comm. “This is it's beating heart.”
November 6, 2023
“From here, the whole of the bluff blocks the sun, so I’m able to see the pure blue above the island in all its glory. It’s like a dome made of some precious gem or rich silk covers the entire world. No matter what follows, for this view I am grateful.”
For fans of dystopian and body horror comes the newest novel by Andrew Najberg. Based on the true island/prison camp of Goli Otok, the author takes a place of terror and despair and twists it into a thrilling fiction that will keep the reader spellbound.
Follow along with a small survey team in a post nuclear war world. Sent to an island with a history of death and torture, the characters each seem to have been given only partial information on what truly occurred at this former prison camp. Occurrences and creatures that break the spirit, and possibly the mind can be found amongst these pages. As the mystery and conspiracy deepens, the truths seem impossible to find on the desolate rock of Albertachen.
I did find the first few chapters a little dry and lacking in action, but once the survey team ascends onto the plateau I was caught up in the overall weirdness and mystery of the island. It was a hard book to finish, mainly as I wanted to keep reading and following along with the characters. What will the Bureau do next?
If you’ve enjoyed this story, check out these tales with similar vibes as well as the author’s other work:
“Head Like A Hole” by Andrew Van Wey
“Sister, Maiden, Monster” by Lucy A. Snyder
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Wicked House Publishing for a copy!
For fans of dystopian and body horror comes the newest novel by Andrew Najberg. Based on the true island/prison camp of Goli Otok, the author takes a place of terror and despair and twists it into a thrilling fiction that will keep the reader spellbound.
Follow along with a small survey team in a post nuclear war world. Sent to an island with a history of death and torture, the characters each seem to have been given only partial information on what truly occurred at this former prison camp. Occurrences and creatures that break the spirit, and possibly the mind can be found amongst these pages. As the mystery and conspiracy deepens, the truths seem impossible to find on the desolate rock of Albertachen.
I did find the first few chapters a little dry and lacking in action, but once the survey team ascends onto the plateau I was caught up in the overall weirdness and mystery of the island. It was a hard book to finish, mainly as I wanted to keep reading and following along with the characters. What will the Bureau do next?
If you’ve enjoyed this story, check out these tales with similar vibes as well as the author’s other work:
“Head Like A Hole” by Andrew Van Wey
“Sister, Maiden, Monster” by Lucy A. Snyder
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Wicked House Publishing for a copy!
October 22, 2023
Andrew Najberg's 'Gollitok' is an original post-apocalyptic tale giving off strong "Lost" (the old TV series) and "Annihilation" (the movie based on Vandermeer's novel, not the book) vibes: a team of investigators arrive on a mysterious island somewhere in Eastern Europe (actually, in Croatia, in the Balkans), a hellish place where a prison camp for dissidents was running once; there they meet the rest of the team (a strong female of the military type included), and slowly realize their mission, to discover what's been happening in this island considered long abandoned, is actually becoming a struggle for survival. The revelations come fast and quite timely; I never got bored reading this book, which is not an entirely easy read for me since I prefer supernatural horror rather than sci-fi eco-horror. The book's strength lies in its atmosphere: a cold-era Soviet attitude pervades the book, as the story takes place some undetermined time in the future, after the bombs have fallen and civilization had to start again. Coupled with the really bleak atmosphere, this makes for an entertaining reading experience: the characters are neither very relatable nor compellingly drawn, but they grow on you, especially the narrator, the team leader. He has the most development and growth as a character (which is not to say much, but still...) Especially important I found the author's note in the back, where he reveals that the island not only actually exists, not only was it a prison camp for dissidents several decades ago, but it's heavily involved in his own family history. Perhaps this should have been put in the front: it'd have heightened the sense of realism and enhanced the poignancy of the ending.
May 6, 2024
Gollitok is the history of a joint military-civilian survey team sent to the island of Goli Otok by a fascistic government called The Bureau. The so-called “Naked Island” is site of an abandoned prison/labor/death camp, the destination for thousands of common and political regime prisoners. Led by the narrator, Hammel Varka, a bureaucrat of unflinching integrity and the moral center of the novel, the surveyors respond to the ambiguity of their mission and the evolving nature of the island prison��s threats. Varka’s group contains multiple military and civilian members with competing interests, all of whom have conflicting orders from various governmental departments, orders kept secret from the other team members. Troubles begin immediately and the horrors mount from the very beginning of Varka’s journey to Gollitok. Imagine black jellyfish with a neurotoxic venom that attacks opioid receptors in the brain, rendering morphine ineffective for treatment of the overwhelming and unrelenting pain of stings. Consider cosmic horror in the form of mutated birds, beasts, and humans; imagine blinding beings of (? radioactive) light, circling descents into living crystalized excrescences, and flights from 100-meter-tall eruptions of extradimensional madness. Without giving anything away, you’ll encounter all of this and more in Gollitok.
This is, hands down, my favorite horror novel of the first third of 2024. That Gollitok is based on the real-life prison island in the Aegean Sea added to my interest, leading me to Wikipedia (of course) and Google pictures of the actual island and remaining prison structures. Author of The Mobius Door, also from Wicked House Publishing, Andrew Najberg is a name to remember; he’s 2 for 2 in my book. Five stars, AB sez check it out.
This is, hands down, my favorite horror novel of the first third of 2024. That Gollitok is based on the real-life prison island in the Aegean Sea added to my interest, leading me to Wikipedia (of course) and Google pictures of the actual island and remaining prison structures. Author of The Mobius Door, also from Wicked House Publishing, Andrew Najberg is a name to remember; he’s 2 for 2 in my book. Five stars, AB sez check it out.
May 16, 2024
This was my introduction to Andrew's work, and I was extremely impressed with certain aspects of this book. His writing is solid, word choice is always impeccable, and he must have done some very in-depth research, that was very apparent. I had been told going in that this was a well written, slow burn. And that is completely correct. The slowness just lasted a little bit too long for my taste. It burned slowly for about 150 pages for me, then ramped up a bit, and around the 200 page mark I did find it more enjoyable. I personally would have liked a bit more editorial trimming (not for mistakes, but for content) and a quicker pace.
That being said, I think the setting of the story was very interesting. A remote island that houses a defunct prison is a fantastic place to set a post-apocalyptic dystopian tale. A group of civilians that work for "The Bureau", and a couple of soldiers are sent to survey the buildings and plateau of the island for abnormal activity. This place is extremely mysterious to the team members, and it seems as if they all have a separate agenda of what their primary mission is. This takes place in a world after a nuclear war, and the team must take strict precautions due to some sort of contagion that is running rampant on part of the island.
I think part of my disconnect with the book was due to the characters. I enjoy a more character driven narrative, and I would have loved to have learned more about the team than I was given. Again, personal preference, these were all good characters. I was pleased by the explosive climax of the story, that part was great. So, it is no surprise to me that this book has tons of 5 star ratings. Excellent writing and a solid plot make for a fantastic book, it just wasn't for me. I will definitely be checking out more of Andrew's work, he's a very skilled author, and I want to see what else he has in store.
That being said, I think the setting of the story was very interesting. A remote island that houses a defunct prison is a fantastic place to set a post-apocalyptic dystopian tale. A group of civilians that work for "The Bureau", and a couple of soldiers are sent to survey the buildings and plateau of the island for abnormal activity. This place is extremely mysterious to the team members, and it seems as if they all have a separate agenda of what their primary mission is. This takes place in a world after a nuclear war, and the team must take strict precautions due to some sort of contagion that is running rampant on part of the island.
I think part of my disconnect with the book was due to the characters. I enjoy a more character driven narrative, and I would have loved to have learned more about the team than I was given. Again, personal preference, these were all good characters. I was pleased by the explosive climax of the story, that part was great. So, it is no surprise to me that this book has tons of 5 star ratings. Excellent writing and a solid plot make for a fantastic book, it just wasn't for me. I will definitely be checking out more of Andrew's work, he's a very skilled author, and I want to see what else he has in store.
March 26, 2024
Hmmm.
I honestly expected to enjoy this one far more than I did. I guess the biggest point to me is, this is the first time I was bothered because I felt I was experiencing the story from the wrong character's point of view.
Without going into it too much, this book feels like 1984 crossed with IN THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS crossed with Vandermeer's Area X novels, but refigured into a video game setting. Basically, the island is a puzzle that has claimed many lives. The story is told through Varka's point of view, which is very much a "let's explore here and here and here" and we're treated to descriptions of the island, the mysterious facility, stairwells, etc. Like Lovecraft's Mountain of Madness, there's a lot—and I mean a LOT—of description.
Yes, it's atmospheric, and Najberg does a great job of setting both the environmental tone, as well as the political and cultural tones of a postwar/post-pandemic Eastern Europe. He's a skilled writer.
However, my issue with the story is that, until about 75% of the way in, while things that have consequences happen, they all happen off-stage, so we miss them. Instead, we're treated to some really cool scenes of weirdness that ultimately have very little consequence.
So, for much of this book, I was just waiting for something to happen, aside from, "look at that, that's awful, wonder what happened/what it is" scenes.
And this is my point. There's another character in the novel—to my mind the more interesting character, with more to lose—named Yost. And she's the one that gets to both experience the things and do the things. Again, all things we find out about afterward.
Overall, it's a good story, and I found the ending satisfying. I just wish it was less video-gamey, scout-around-and-discover-things and more of things actually happening.
I honestly expected to enjoy this one far more than I did. I guess the biggest point to me is, this is the first time I was bothered because I felt I was experiencing the story from the wrong character's point of view.
Without going into it too much, this book feels like 1984 crossed with IN THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS crossed with Vandermeer's Area X novels, but refigured into a video game setting. Basically, the island is a puzzle that has claimed many lives. The story is told through Varka's point of view, which is very much a "let's explore here and here and here" and we're treated to descriptions of the island, the mysterious facility, stairwells, etc. Like Lovecraft's Mountain of Madness, there's a lot—and I mean a LOT—of description.
Yes, it's atmospheric, and Najberg does a great job of setting both the environmental tone, as well as the political and cultural tones of a postwar/post-pandemic Eastern Europe. He's a skilled writer.
However, my issue with the story is that, until about 75% of the way in, while things that have consequences happen, they all happen off-stage, so we miss them. Instead, we're treated to some really cool scenes of weirdness that ultimately have very little consequence.
So, for much of this book, I was just waiting for something to happen, aside from, "look at that, that's awful, wonder what happened/what it is" scenes.
And this is my point. There's another character in the novel—to my mind the more interesting character, with more to lose—named Yost. And she's the one that gets to both experience the things and do the things. Again, all things we find out about afterward.
Overall, it's a good story, and I found the ending satisfying. I just wish it was less video-gamey, scout-around-and-discover-things and more of things actually happening.
October 16, 2023
4.5
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review
I'm actually at a loss for words here. I just finished reading and my mind is still racing, so I'm going to try to summarize my thoughts as best I can -
• At first, the writing style was a little hard to get into since it's a little (a lot) posh, and I'm assuming this has to do with the fact that not only is it in first-person POV but also because this book is set in a world where the characters speak to each other in a language that was supposedly created after the war so I guess it would make sense if the language felt formal. Surprisingly, this style actually works pretty great for the intense scenes.
• The horror was great; I was reading this at night and couldn't take it anymore and had to turn on a bright overhead light to continue reading because otherwise I would've been too scared to go to bed. And you best believe that as soon as I turned the light back off I ran and leaped into the bed.
• A lot of the book kept me second-guessing my theories about what was going on with this island, but at around the halfway point I started to wise up and even though I knew what the reveal was gonna be, it was still terrifying. The ending sequence felt slightly over-the-top and there were still a lot of loose ends when it comes to explanations of what exactly is going on, but I feel like that's intentional, which is fair, but I would've loved to know more about what happened here.
All in all, pretty great book as far as horror goes, and I would recommend this book to anybody who was let down by The Troop by Nick Cutter (as I was) because this book is pretty much everything I could want out of a trapped-on-an-abandoned-island-and-something-is-trying-to-kill-us type book. Or, even if you are a fan of The Troop, good chance you would like this one too. Either way, great read.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review
I'm actually at a loss for words here. I just finished reading and my mind is still racing, so I'm going to try to summarize my thoughts as best I can -
• At first, the writing style was a little hard to get into since it's a little (a lot) posh, and I'm assuming this has to do with the fact that not only is it in first-person POV but also because this book is set in a world where the characters speak to each other in a language that was supposedly created after the war so I guess it would make sense if the language felt formal. Surprisingly, this style actually works pretty great for the intense scenes.
• The horror was great; I was reading this at night and couldn't take it anymore and had to turn on a bright overhead light to continue reading because otherwise I would've been too scared to go to bed. And you best believe that as soon as I turned the light back off I ran and leaped into the bed.
• A lot of the book kept me second-guessing my theories about what was going on with this island, but at around the halfway point I started to wise up and even though I knew what the reveal was gonna be, it was still terrifying. The ending sequence felt slightly over-the-top and there were still a lot of loose ends when it comes to explanations of what exactly is going on, but I feel like that's intentional, which is fair, but I would've loved to know more about what happened here.
All in all, pretty great book as far as horror goes, and I would recommend this book to anybody who was let down by The Troop by Nick Cutter (as I was) because this book is pretty much everything I could want out of a trapped-on-an-abandoned-island-and-something-is-trying-to-kill-us type book. Or, even if you are a fan of The Troop, good chance you would like this one too. Either way, great read.
November 27, 2023
This was an eerie horror novel based on an actual prison island off the coast of Croatia. The time - forty years in the future after a worldwide nuclear holocaust. Pandemic to follow, anyone?
A small group of mixed government and military individuals is sent to Gollitok for varying reasons, it is found during the course of their grueling and deadly time on the island.
Great story, great imagery. Loved the dark atmosphere throughout. I highly recommend.
I received this book from Net Galley and Wicked House Publishing. All opinions are my own.
A small group of mixed government and military individuals is sent to Gollitok for varying reasons, it is found during the course of their grueling and deadly time on the island.
Great story, great imagery. Loved the dark atmosphere throughout. I highly recommend.
I received this book from Net Galley and Wicked House Publishing. All opinions are my own.
January 22, 2024
I was very into this book for a good 75% of the story. I was sure it was going to be in my top reads of the year. Then it just fell apart at the end. Fumbled at the 1 yard line.
April 21, 2024
I was anticipating this book for over a year. The main reasons were that it gave Southern Reach Trilogy vibes and the setting is post nuclear war Eastern Europe (it did not disappoint on either front).
We see the world through the eyes of a bureaucrat who thinks he's been given a hard assignment to prove his worth for a promotion. It looks tough but doable: a survey of an island that 40 years ago was a one-way journey prison island.
The territory expected to be contaminated, but with what is to be discovered. Our protagonist is a team lead, and soon after arriving on the island, we meet the whole team.
Very fast, we realize that everyone on the team has their own reasons to be here and is sent by different departments with contradicting missions. So, not only is the setting hostile and unknowable, but you can't trust anyone. What a dream team, and a project to die for, lol.
After reading the book, I kind of realized why Southern Reach was a trilogy. When crafting something so unique, it's hard to explore all the possibilities within one book. At least that's what I felt reading the final words in Gollitok. So much more I need to know!
But it's also realistic - visiting a place that tries to kill you while you are unprepared is not something you can explore for too long. We get a glimpse of what was there, with a lot left to imagine. There's no "Aha!" moment when a hero finds one document that explains everything.
This also adds Gollitok a Lovecraftian vibe, as the entity(ies) that surround us are quite beyond clear comprehension.
I was also interested in how the post-nuclear explosion world was depicted. As someone living in Ukraine, it's a possibility we've been considering for quite some time. As a civilian who has only read about it on a surface level, I can confirm that it seems realistic!
My main complaint with the book is that the first three-quarters are paced to feel like a gnawing, passive dread, while the last quarter is a dynamic survival against everything that wants you dead on the island (which is literally everything).
Somebody in the reviews earlier mentioned its likeness to 1984, but honestly, with the setting in Eastern Europe, it aligns perfectly with KGB methods and structure. I also quite enjoyed everything here that mentioned bureaucracy and laughed at how on point the depiction was.
I'll definitely check out other books by this author and will also be among the first people in line if they decide to write more books on Gollitok.
And as a cherry on top, here are my favorite quotes! 📖
🔖“I just wanted to bring them some accountability, even if it was for something that happened forty years ago.”
“I don’t know that it would change anything,” I say.
“That’s not why you try"
🔖"...advancement and fame only come from the Bureau when you are at the center of an atrocity. It’s not that I’d never had reason to suspect this before, but sometimes you only imagine what you want to see when you gaze through the window into the darkness. It’s a very different view from the other side of the glass."
🔖“If we die, damn well know my ghost will file a complaint report.”
🔖"Perhaps he simply considers how to relay the most recent events in the reports he will file if we make it out of here alive. Fortunately, it seems everyone agrees we’re all going to die here, so maybe the paperwork is irrelevant. No. Not irrelevant. Someone else’s"
We see the world through the eyes of a bureaucrat who thinks he's been given a hard assignment to prove his worth for a promotion. It looks tough but doable: a survey of an island that 40 years ago was a one-way journey prison island.
The territory expected to be contaminated, but with what is to be discovered. Our protagonist is a team lead, and soon after arriving on the island, we meet the whole team.
Very fast, we realize that everyone on the team has their own reasons to be here and is sent by different departments with contradicting missions. So, not only is the setting hostile and unknowable, but you can't trust anyone. What a dream team, and a project to die for, lol.
After reading the book, I kind of realized why Southern Reach was a trilogy. When crafting something so unique, it's hard to explore all the possibilities within one book. At least that's what I felt reading the final words in Gollitok. So much more I need to know!
But it's also realistic - visiting a place that tries to kill you while you are unprepared is not something you can explore for too long. We get a glimpse of what was there, with a lot left to imagine. There's no "Aha!" moment when a hero finds one document that explains everything.
This also adds Gollitok a Lovecraftian vibe, as the entity(ies) that surround us are quite beyond clear comprehension.
I was also interested in how the post-nuclear explosion world was depicted. As someone living in Ukraine, it's a possibility we've been considering for quite some time. As a civilian who has only read about it on a surface level, I can confirm that it seems realistic!
My main complaint with the book is that the first three-quarters are paced to feel like a gnawing, passive dread, while the last quarter is a dynamic survival against everything that wants you dead on the island (which is literally everything).
Somebody in the reviews earlier mentioned its likeness to 1984, but honestly, with the setting in Eastern Europe, it aligns perfectly with KGB methods and structure. I also quite enjoyed everything here that mentioned bureaucracy and laughed at how on point the depiction was.
I'll definitely check out other books by this author and will also be among the first people in line if they decide to write more books on Gollitok.
And as a cherry on top, here are my favorite quotes! 📖
🔖“I just wanted to bring them some accountability, even if it was for something that happened forty years ago.”
“I don’t know that it would change anything,” I say.
“That’s not why you try"
🔖"...advancement and fame only come from the Bureau when you are at the center of an atrocity. It’s not that I’d never had reason to suspect this before, but sometimes you only imagine what you want to see when you gaze through the window into the darkness. It’s a very different view from the other side of the glass."
🔖“If we die, damn well know my ghost will file a complaint report.”
🔖"Perhaps he simply considers how to relay the most recent events in the reports he will file if we make it out of here alive. Fortunately, it seems everyone agrees we’re all going to die here, so maybe the paperwork is irrelevant. No. Not irrelevant. Someone else’s"
February 28, 2024
O.M.Gollitok y’all! This book is something else! It’s intelligent, cosmic, and dripping with unsettling atmosphere. It’s fully anxiety-inducing, keeping the tension constantly wound up tight. There’s a little hint of The Southern Reach, but it is definitely its own non-standard-issue murder bird.
I am enamored with the way Najberg uses language; he makes beautiful word choices and has this affecting not-of-this-time rhythm in his sentence construction that reminds me of the way I feel about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock stories, which is about as high a compliment as I can give. It really gave life to the setting and the story, and the what-in-the-Sam-Hill-is-going-on-here mystery behind the mission kept me on the hook.
And about that setting! I could picture every corner of this island vividly, which won’t stop me from begging for maps anyway, because I love them, and I ALWAYS want them, but in this case, I actually didn’t NEED them. The uncertainty, and the sense of wrongness and unknown danger of the island was constantly palpable. It was also fascinating to learn that it was a real place with a connection to Najberg's family.
And finally, the characters. These people were fully three-dimensional – complex, fascinating, and motivated by their own impenetrable agendas. I was constantly worried about how much there might be to fear from within the team itself.
So yeah, I loved Gollitok. I already got The Mobius Door on Audible, which I plan to listen to as soon as the Brawl books are announced. And with ARC reviews referencing The Chronicles of Narnia and Neil Gaiman, I can't wait to read The Neverborn Thief!
I am enamored with the way Najberg uses language; he makes beautiful word choices and has this affecting not-of-this-time rhythm in his sentence construction that reminds me of the way I feel about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock stories, which is about as high a compliment as I can give. It really gave life to the setting and the story, and the what-in-the-Sam-Hill-is-going-on-here mystery behind the mission kept me on the hook.
And about that setting! I could picture every corner of this island vividly, which won’t stop me from begging for maps anyway, because I love them, and I ALWAYS want them, but in this case, I actually didn’t NEED them. The uncertainty, and the sense of wrongness and unknown danger of the island was constantly palpable. It was also fascinating to learn that it was a real place with a connection to Najberg's family.
And finally, the characters. These people were fully three-dimensional – complex, fascinating, and motivated by their own impenetrable agendas. I was constantly worried about how much there might be to fear from within the team itself.
So yeah, I loved Gollitok. I already got The Mobius Door on Audible, which I plan to listen to as soon as the Brawl books are announced. And with ARC reviews referencing The Chronicles of Narnia and Neil Gaiman, I can't wait to read The Neverborn Thief!
February 23, 2024
This one was really good. It was slow in the beginning, but once things started happening, it got crazy. This gave me cool video game vibes. Like Resident Evil on an island. I loved the abandoned prison atmosphere 😀
April 27, 2024
This was a phenomenal book! I wasn't too sure about it, due to the vague description, but about two chapters in I knew it was going to be a good one. The last quarter is a bit exhausting due to the non-stop action, but the life or death drama is perfectly described by the author. I still have a million questions, as do the main characters, but man great read, and a perfect ending.
December 26, 2023
Thank you, Netgalley, and Wicked House Publishing for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
This is a post-apocalyptic horror book based on a real location. A group is conducting a small survey of what should be a deserted island after a nuclear fallout. The island was home to a prison, and not only are you uncovering details about the island but also finding that everyone on the team has their own agendas. I felt that this was a slow burn horror, but it is worth it.
This is a post-apocalyptic horror book based on a real location. A group is conducting a small survey of what should be a deserted island after a nuclear fallout. The island was home to a prison, and not only are you uncovering details about the island but also finding that everyone on the team has their own agendas. I felt that this was a slow burn horror, but it is worth it.
August 31, 2024
First of all, I love that the setting takes place in Eastern Europe (Croatia). I tend to enjoy horror stories that take place outside of the United States and my native island of Puerto Rico. It adds a different variety to the story.
This is a slow-burn story, but I have to tell you it's necessary to build up to a more dramatic ending. For a post-apocalyptic story, a good backstory is needed. A man heads to an island where an abandoned prison is located, only to find many dark secrets hiding inside. Hidden agendas threaten to break up the survey team as the dark secrets hidden become their worst nightmares.
When I got to the end, everything from the beginning connected really well. The ending is quite dark but satisfying. The setting is bleak and dark, but that is to be expected from a story that takes place in a post-nuclear setting. Andrew did a wonderful job capturing that essence. I also enjoyed that Andrew captured his Croatian heritage. I have a friend who is an author who lives in Croatia, so this was an awesome treat. Loved it!
This is a slow-burn story, but I have to tell you it's necessary to build up to a more dramatic ending. For a post-apocalyptic story, a good backstory is needed. A man heads to an island where an abandoned prison is located, only to find many dark secrets hiding inside. Hidden agendas threaten to break up the survey team as the dark secrets hidden become their worst nightmares.
When I got to the end, everything from the beginning connected really well. The ending is quite dark but satisfying. The setting is bleak and dark, but that is to be expected from a story that takes place in a post-nuclear setting. Andrew did a wonderful job capturing that essence. I also enjoyed that Andrew captured his Croatian heritage. I have a friend who is an author who lives in Croatia, so this was an awesome treat. Loved it!
November 8, 2023
Gollitok by Andrew Najberg is a brutal nightmare of a tale set in a distant (hopefully) post-apocalyptic future where life is hard and unyielding. a survey team is sent to Gollitok, one where each member is given a different objective and/0r has their own personal agenda in play. shortly after the start of the mission, a team member is injured and things only go from bad to worse.
Gollitok is a fast-moving horror story that evolves thoughts of a Siovet Alien, where no one can be trusted and the monsters of the human variety may be just as dangerous as the supernatural ones. the plot was twisty and satisfying.
highly recommended.
4 stars out of 5.
Gollitok is a fast-moving horror story that evolves thoughts of a Siovet Alien, where no one can be trusted and the monsters of the human variety may be just as dangerous as the supernatural ones. the plot was twisty and satisfying.
highly recommended.
4 stars out of 5.
November 11, 2023
*I received an e-ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you!
The premise of this book interested me immediately. A team sent to survey an abandoned island prison in a harsh post-apocalyptic world? Sign me up! This book did not disappoint. From the very beginning, there is a sense of "wrongness" and it only continues to increase. Who is trustworthy? What is really going on Gollitok? Well written and fast paced. I will definitely be checking out more by Najberg.
The premise of this book interested me immediately. A team sent to survey an abandoned island prison in a harsh post-apocalyptic world? Sign me up! This book did not disappoint. From the very beginning, there is a sense of "wrongness" and it only continues to increase. Who is trustworthy? What is really going on Gollitok? Well written and fast paced. I will definitely be checking out more by Najberg.
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