The White Road // Sarah Lotz

How has it been so long since I’ve hit publish?

Simon, once a troubled youth turn adventure seeker, is now a barista trying to get a spooky website off the ground. The cofounder, Thierry, sends Simon spelunking in search of three bodies left behind in a cave, Cwm Pot. Guided by the unbalanced Ed, they find the bodies, just as a flash flood traps him with the bones. The intense cold and darkness, along with Ed’s corpse, terrorize Simon, but he makes it out alive with his film footage intact. The footage goes viral, against Simon’s wishes, leaving Thierry wondering how to top it. He decides on a literal approach, and sends Simon to climb Mt. Everest to film the climbers who perished in the attempt. Once there, Simon realizes he didn’t escape the cave alone, nor is he the only one haunted.

“I met the man who would save my life twice—and ultimately destroy it—on a potholed road in the arse-end of the Welsh countryside.”

With an opening line that foreboding, I was hooked. Sarah Lotz’s latest novel, The White Road, tells the tale of a doomed Simon, his ill-fated exploits, and the true weight of guilt. Lotz’s prose, though standard, is visceral and compulsory, and she absolutely nails the claustrophobic atmosphere. Both the beginning and end of the novel are excellent, and though it lags in the middle, it’s worth the journey to complete the whole thing. If you’re looking for an easy page turner* with an ending that will haunt you, give The White Road a try.

*You really do have to overlook how heinously underqualified Simon is to be climbing Everest.
**I received a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion, thank you Mulholland!