The Cavern

I believe I got this on an Audible 2 for 1 sale and I definitely grabbed it solely off the cover. The narration was pretty good, very Australian with no ridiculous female voices thankfully (done by Shaun Grindell). 
This book starts off with literally no set up. It continues that way through the entire book. There isn't a single ‘unnecessary' word in this book, the author didn't fluff at all. There's no thoughts or emotion added in, it's just directly what actions are happening. I can usually respect that decisive style for writing when an author does it, it usually means there's nothing repetitive, but I have to say it doesn't really work in this for me. A cavern opens up and groups of divers are willing to pay a lot of money for the chance to dive it before it's been mapped or attracted tourists, but there's something down there...they aren't alone. 
The big bad of the story is supernatural and oozing lore that the author simply didn't write? I asked myself why so many times that I actually would rewind scenes. Without that giant piece to connect, the interconnected twists and drama fell pretty flat. 
Still, a good monster horror. The beast itself is described but left for your imagination for the most part which I appreciated. It's creepy and dangerous, and the novel has some good gory beats. 
Personally a 3/5* for me. 

A fun little creature feature! Felt like watching one of those one off monster horror movies. It's not super dead, and has pretty average writing but overall is a fun creepy little read.

An expedition into a cave goes horribly wrong...

Don't know how accurate the caving stuff is, not into that, but the horror certainly is there. Real tension isn't usually found in these things, but it is here...

That is accomplished by how brutal and descriptive the violence is. It's gone over in detail, and it's gory and that's great. These characters, mostly young thrill-seeking types, are really gonna get it. They are all likable enough I had only one problem with them... how dumb they are going forward at one point in the book when they find a creature that there is no way you'd continue on with knowing about. Nope.

Most of the story is seen through the character of Sam, a paramedic and rock climber who goes along with this group after hooking up with Ellie. But there are lots of characters and they are handled well, as they deal with this creature and town and its history.

Of course, it's the creature that steals the show, The Miner's Mother is a shape-shifting being that is slowly given background as it goes on. This was perfectly paced and doesn't reveal too much, too fast, but you definitely learn much about the monster. The mix of old townsfolk legends and other explanations for her were creepy and well done throughout the story.

Tight spaces, underwater scenes, and incredibly gory. A great horror story.