A creepy and gripping book, it kept me hooked even if it's a bit too long.
I was fascinated by the mountains and the characters. It's a horror story but it's also a love story.
Good storytelling and world building.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Rather effective horror - had a genuine and growing sense of dread whilst reading this, especially in the middle third where the situation is firmly established and Heuvelt increases the tension with repeated cranks of the (ice) screw. Different perspectives are well shaped through journals etc, and whilst I occasionally had an early “but who are you addressing this to” feeling, I forgot all about that later!
Being critical, the ending was less strong than what had gone before, but this really is a minor cavil

Echo by Thomas Olde Heuvelt.
When climber Nick Grevers is brought down from the mountains after a terrible accident he has lost his looks, his hopes and his climbing companion. His account of what happened on the forbidden peak of the Maudit is garbled, almost hallucinogenic. Soon it becomes apparent more than his shattered body has returned: those that treat his disfigured face begin experiencing extraordinary and disturbing psychic events that suggest that Nick has unleashed some ancient and primal menace on his ill-fated expedition.Nick's partner Sam Avery has a terrible choice to make. He fell in love with Nick's youth, vitality and beauty. Now these are gone and all that is left is a haunted mummy-worse, a glimpse beneath the bandages can literally send a person insane. Sam must decide: either to flee to America, or to take Nick on a journey back to the mountains, the very source of the curse, the little Alpine Village of Grimnetz, its soul-possesed Birds of Death and it legends of human sacrifice and, ultimately, its haunted mountain, the Maudit.
This book was creepy and spooky and eerie. I loved it. 5*.

Creepily compulsive right from the first chapter, Echo is a dark combination of gothic and folk horror which is so effective, it literally left me cold. Set primarily in the Swiss Alps, it captures the beauty, danger, and bleakness of the mountains perfectly, providing a backdrop for Sam and Nick’s somewhat dysfunctional love story after Sam’s worst fear comes true, and Nick nearly dies in a climbing accident.

I found Sam to be somewhat difficult to relate to, as he seems quite superficial – much more worried about Nick’s looks after the accident than he is about how Nick feels – but that’s more because he’s a jerk than any issue with the writing. Other than that, the narrative is compelling, and even though the story is told from both men’s point of view, it doesn’t lose cohesion.

I’ve personally never understood people who deliberately risk life and limb to do mad things like climbing mountains, but I think I do now, just a little bit. I assume that the author is a mountaineer, partly due to the technical detail outlined in this novel, but mostly because Nick’s passion for climbing comes across as so incredibly genuine that I can’t imagine someone who doesn’t also feel that way writing about it. However, I’m glad I read the novel on my Kindle, as I’d have been lost without the immediate access to a dictionary and Wikipedia to help with the frequent bits of jargon. It also helped to be able to translate the various languages.

At one point , I took a quick break to make a cup of tea, and when I glanced up at the kitchen window, I fully expected to see little except snow swirling in the darkness. I can’t remember the last time a horror got into my head enough to do that. On that basis alone, I will definitely be picking up more of Olde Heuvelt’s books in future.

The story starts with Sam in a race to get back to his sister, Julia. Something bad is happening and Sam's boyfriend, Nick is at the centre of it.
The story then flips back to the previous summer where an injured Nick has been rescued from a mountain where his climbing buddy has perished.
After initial treatment in Switzerland Nick is transferred to Amsterdam, where he and Sam live. However, strange things are happening and Nick is reluctant to remove the bandages that bind his head.
The action then moves to a valley in Switzerland. The locals are not welcoming once they realise that Nick came back from the mountain.

It's hard to convey the threatening atmosphere that the author has described very well, but the sense that something is going to happen and it's going to happen in a big way in all the way through the book.

A very interesting book, one I simply couldn't put down. I can't wait to see more from this author.

Thanks for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5*

Echo stars with a bang. The first pages make you hold your breath and you don't know what's going on. Cryptic, creepy and fascinating. I knew it'll be a book I'll enjoy.

Nick loves the mountains. He goes on a risky expedition with his friend Augustin who never comes back and whose body has never been found. Nick's face is destroyed. And his soul.
Sam, Nick's boyfriend decides to stay and support him, but it's not easy when there's a demon inside of your loved one.

The story explores their past, what happened in the mountains and what's happening today. Horror that can't be explained is pouring over the pages... A slow paced book that takes you through the mysterious journey, told from the perspectives of people involved.

I loved that the action takes place around Lausanne which is my favourite place in the world.

When I read the synopsis for this book ages ago I thought it sounded great. When I started to read it though I didn't feel it until about a quarter of the way through. Then I think I started to grasp the characters, the basics of the storyline, and the style. By the end of the book, I was so glad I had persevered as it became more and more addictive.

Nick is the adventurous one, he likes the mountains. His other half Sam, not so much, he prefers shopping and the little luxuries. Together they make a great couple. Nick and friend Augustine take on the challenging Maudit Peak in the Mont Blanc region of France and Italy. It was once known as the "cursed mountain" as I discovered after an internet search. This makes the story so appropriate as it gives the sinister vibe that makes up a large part of the story. Nick and Augustine went up Maudit, only Nick returned. He was not the same, he suffered severe facial injuries and he came back with something else. Is it survivors guilt or worse?

Guilt is something that Sam knows all about. He has a secret that he has lived with since he was a young boy. Something he has never told anyone.

The story of Nick's recovery and the feelings he has after coming back from the mountains are something that he feels haunts him. Sam is aware of this change, but it is darker than he could ever imagine. A series of events leave catastrophic and fatal consequences for those around Nick. It is only when Nick, joined by Sam return to the Maudit, that things become more real, some answers are found and the real horror of the mountain comes to light.

From the slower and for me slightly confusing start, this book then turned into something very addictive. The beginning flitted around a little too much and at times left me feeling a bit confused. As I mentioned earlier, I did persevere and for that, I was definitely rewarded with a story that suddenly started to make sense. Some of the things mentioned at the very beginning started to fit into place, some not until near the end.

The story of the relationship between Nick and what happened on the mountain is so atmospheric, it is haunting and gives some nice horror vibes. It does also have a really good psychological edge to it. Another relationship is that between Nick and Sam, this is one that is sort of like the heart of the story, their love for each other comes through so well amidst the chaos and misery that overshadows them from the mountain.

There is a nice local, village presence to this story, one that is easy to imagine from films, you know the ones where the pub suddenly goes quiet when a stranger walks in. Or where the villagers don't speak to you, or if they do it is only in menacingly doom and gloom tones. Talking of films, I could see this as being a good idea for a film. I will say that I am not a fan of horror films, so it is a good job it's in a book format!

This was a really good read, it has a threatening menace that gave a feel of foreboding and danger. It did have the chills for a horror or suspense novel and there is a smidgen of superstition from the local village. An unexpected but satisfying ending and a story that I would happily recommend.

This book gives you chills down the spine and not just because of its location.
When Nick awakes from a coma not only has his life completely changed but he also has lost his friend in an freakish mountain accident.
The story unfolds with Nick and his boyfriend Sam and what really happened up in the Swiss Alps and what Nick discovered whilst up there.
This is an amazing knock your socks off horror that will take you to the brink and bring you back again for more.

This is the second book by Thomas Olde Heuvelt that I have read.  Hex was the first, which I really enjoyed, as have many other readers.  But I think I enjoyed this latest book more, though I am not sure 'enjoyed' is the right word to describe my experience of this book, and it certainly is an experience.  

Echo is a story about a mountaineering trip that goes disastrously wrong.  Nick returns from the mountain badly hurt but alive.  His climbing buddy wasn't so 'lucky'.  But perhaps Nick got the short straw after all as it seems that he may have brought a dangerous and sinister part of the mountain home with him. 

This book is so sad, creepy, ominous.  I actually found a lot of it exhausting in its relentlessness. But there are a few little bits of dark humour in the story, particularly in the parts narrated by Nick's boyfriend, Sam.  Clever little wry chuckles where the reader can take a breath before the tension ramps up once more. The descriptions of the mountains and the mechanics of climbing are amazing and very detailed and are obviously well researched. This is a truly amazing story with all types of horror by the bucket load.  I really hope the book does as well as Hex did.  I will certainly be recommending it and it will stay with me for a very long time.

I used to think mountaineering sounded exciting and loads of fun.  Ha ha. Nope.

Sam Avery is american from a wealthy New York family. He is in an LGBT relationship with Nick Grevers a dutchman. They live in Holland. Nick is a mountaineer and he and a friend Augustin climb a particularly difficult mountain. Augustin never returns and Nick has horrific facial injuries.
Sam finds it difficult to cope. He and his sister Julia nearly died when they were young children at their grandparents place in the Catskills countryside near New York. Nick too is struggling knowing his once good looks have been destroyed - he is now a monster! Medical people trying to help him are left frightened and devastated.
Despite Sam's concern Nick is determined to return to the mountain as he believes he has unfinished business and the mountain is a melevolent force.
A modern day horror story. Each chapter is prefaced with a classic horror story book. I feel I was outside the ideal target age group for this book ( 20 - 40 ) but still enjoyed it.

I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Now this book threw me! When I first started to read it, it was so different in the way it was written to what I’d been reading before that I wasn’t sure I wanted to carry on reading it. However, I decided to persevere. I’m glad I did, because it turned out to be a very interesting story. It’s a love story as well as a horror. There is a LOT of reference to mountain climbing as the author does this in real life. I must admit, I skimmed a bit of it where it didn’t interest me, but overall, I am really glad I was given the opportunity to read this book! Thanks.

#Echo #NetGalley

I haven’t read Hex but had heard lots of good things about it and was looking forward to this.

The book starts off creepy and the opening chapter is gripping and wants me knowing what was happening.

Then the story goes to Nick and Sam and Nicks injuries and how he got them, was it really a fall from the mountain. There was more to this than meets the eye .

whilst the book kept me guessing and wondering what would happen next it did feel quite long and drawn out and I wondered where it was going.at some points.

Verfremdungseffekt, or the distancing effect, is usually a theatre term meaning to alienate and detach the audience from a story to create a cold, distant and uneasy feeling. It's a word I haven't thought of in years, but jumped into my head immediately when reading Echo. This novel is loaded with a quiet subtle horror that leaves a chill creeping through your body and makes you want to check the door is locked. We feel unable to connect with the characters, unable to understand them and more importantly unable to trust them at all.

Darkly curious and disturbing, this novel has an imposing and suffocating presence - every small detail the author creates may seem unimportant but slowly builds an intense atmosphere that grows with every page. One of my favourite small details was the chapter titles - each a reference to an iconic work of Gothic Literature that will inexplicably have some relevance not revealed at that point. Each character has darkness to uncover in the past and the future, secrets about the mountain and the many lives lost up there that are waiting under the ice to be revealed. Echo explores loss, life and love in a quite unique way.

This tale might be one of ghosts and darkness, but it's layered with so many themes and ideas throughout that will make you stop and think. Nicks disfigurement for one, is something that's been overused in horror in the past, but here it's not about the disfigurement but the treatment of those with one, about the masks that he uses to hide that and everything else underneath.

Told through first hand accounts, emails, reports and notes, this story has utterly enchanting and compelling sections that had me hooked in. The translation seemed flawless but the pacing was patchy and erratic - it dragged and slowed down to a glacial place in multiple places - which made this novel feel much more lengthy than it was and made it a struggle to read in certain places, especially after such a brilliantly written prologue that felt slightly out of place.

A harrowing, evocative story about all-consuming love and terrifying loss with beautiful prose - this definitely isn't for everyone but there's no denying it's unforgettable.

"If I were to look into Nicks eyes, I'd see the ocean that lay between our old life and our new one, and I had no idea how we were supposed to bridge that gap."

Echo has one of the creepiest openings ever, and it really got under my skin. It starts with Julia alone in a cabin, waiting for Sam to drive through a snow storm to reach her. But she’s not alone…what happens to her you have to wait until the end to find out. I loved HEX, so I was intrigued to see if Thomas Olde Huevelt could scare me a second time, and he certainly managed that.

The horror genre has not always been kind to disfigurement. At first Sam can’t cope, he was drawn to Nick for his good looks and he feels like that person is lost. It must be a shock for all involved, and the narrative gives him time to realise he’s being a dick and you do see a loving relationship between them. The passages from Nick’s perspective shows that he both understands but is scared and alone, fearing what is underneath the bandages. At first you think that’s a metaphor, but in time you find out what his mask is holding in.

The chapters all start with a quote from a horror story, and in parts the journal style entries are reminiscent of classic horror. Nick himself has a trauma from the past, a cabin fire and his own demons to face, which mix up in his feelings of Sam and the Maudit. It’s pointed out on one occasion that if their French was better, the name of the mountain might have been a hint.

The pacing does struggle somewhat, a saggy middle which makes you wonder what else is there to tell. Nick’s account of what happened on that fateful expedition takes too much time going into technical details, like what rope he’s using. All the while they are aware of some malevolent supernatural force, yet descriptions of the terrain take precedence in his writings.

I did think the whole idea of a mountain possession was an interesting and unusual one. In the second half there are more accounts of the medical effects, and I liked the mix of modern science with the Gothic haunting elements.

The alpine choughs are depicted as death birds, come to peck out the souls of those lost to the mountain. I wasn’t quite sure about how they were kept in the village considering how it all plays out. Maybe there were just a few too many ideas mixed in.

Overall, I’m glad I read Echo, even if I was left feeling like there were creepy people standing on the stairs…

DNF at 10%

Another I got excited about from the cover and the premise. Unfortunately again I was very confused with this one, i didn’t see the link between the prologue and the rest of the book. And I couldn’t connect with any of the characters and if I forced myself to continue I would have ended up hating it.

That prologue! Amazing! I started reading this in the middle of the night and was so happy I had my partner in bed next to me. It sent chills down my spine, had me looking around the darkness of my bedroom. I was immediately captured, petrified, excited... "She cannot turn on the light. In the light, the people in the stairwell will no longer be visible—and not seeing them, while knowing they're there, is worse than seeing them." There's no way I would have ventured out of my bed. But that prologue also was perhaps too good. Because I then thought the book was going to be full of spirits and hauntings... and really, the mountain and birds were the spirit/haunting factors. Those spirits did enter the story towards the end but they were a TINY element, and we see that part from Sam's POV, so don't even witness these spirits further on.

Echo is told in alternating voices—those of Nick and Sam. Nick is a mountaineer, whereas Sam dislikes mountains. After becoming hypnotised by a mountain, with a deep need to climb it, Nick and Augustin set off to reach its peak. Only, Augustin winds up dead and Nick ends up severely mutilated. During the story, we dive into what really happened up in that mountain and what Nick is really covering behind those bandages on his face. I found it refreshing that Sam honestly struggles with the fact he found Nick's beauty to be a part of why they were together and how he deals with the facial changes. And him looking past those changes is a process we see throughout the story—a story of changes and deep love behind the horrors of this story. The image of Nick drawing a smile onto his bandages will stay with me.

It's a bit of a slow burner and very character-driven. This is seriously a great book, I just feel it would benefit from reaching certain elements a bit faster, cutting the length down. If it wasn't for the prologue, I probably would have given this book four stars. Unfortunately, the petrifying beginning left me expecting something I didn't receive. I would personally delete that section of the book from Sam's POV and add what was the prologue there instead, deleting the prologue. I think it gives readers expectations and threw me off what the story was actually about.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Echo but that has in no way influenced my review.

One of the most memorable books I have ever read is HEX by Thomas Olde Heuvert. I remember the storyline and the characters so clearly, despite reading it six years ago, and I recommend it to everyone and anyone who is looking for a creepy, unsettling horror novel. So you can imagine my delight when I received an advanced copy of Echo, the latest book by Olde Heuvelt to be translated into English. So much so, my planned Christmas reading was pushed aside to make room for this superbly written chilling tale.

Nick Grevers, an experienced mountaineer, is lucky to be alive following an accident which saw the death of his climbing buddy, Augustin. Nick is in a bad way, wrapped in bandages, unable to communicate verbally and horribly disfigured. Nick's boyfriend, Sam, is horrified by the news and despite his love for Nick, feels unsure about their future together. But when a terrorist attack is carried out on the hospital Nick is in, Sam realises that his life is with Nick. But Nick's experience on the mountain went beyond the horror to his face, near death and losing his climbing partner...

I am a huge fan of books set in an inhospitable environment, particularly those set in a mountain range. I also love books where we humans have to fight for survival against nature and everything it throws at us. Which made Echo a perfect choice for me. Echo is a rich and vivid tale of love, loss and supernatural horror which I thoroughly enjoyed immersing myself in. Chilling, creepy and everything you want in a spooky read, this emotional tale drew this reader in from the incredibly eerie start to the devastating finale. Reading Echo truly was an experience and one I will remember for some time to come.

It took me a while to warm to Sam. His dialogue is written very much as he would speak -  'coulda', 'hadda' - which took a little getting used to but before long, Sam's dialogue felt very normal and very natural and I began to feel great affection for him. To the point where, by the end of the novel, I was sad to say goodbye. Nick intrigued me no end. I wanted to know what happened to him and Augustin on Maudit, and why. Nick's take on things is provided via his manuscript which he sends to Sam whilst he's away in the US. Throughout the novel sections of the manuscript are provided to the reader so the gaps can be filled. The truth is slowly, gradually revealed and it made for gripping reading. The love between Nick and Sam, despite the devastation caused by the accident, is what shone through the strongest for me. It almost broke me.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Echo is a beautifully written, eerie tale of all-consuming love and heart wrenching loss. It is a slow burn of a novel which I savoured over the course of several sittings. It's not a quick read but worth every single moment you spend within its pages. I loved the way the author builds up the suspense, increasing the tension as the story moves to its climax. Olde Heuvelt has once again crafted a novel that has wormed its way under my skin. One that will stay with me for some time to come. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Echo. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Echo is the first book I've read by Thomas Olde Heuvelt and it certainly won't be my last.
I really loved the two different perspectives of both Sam and Nick.
Also the atmosphere in this book was amazing as I felt both unnerved and cold throughout the story.
One downfall about Echo is that I did find the story dragging a bit and I do think the book could have been shorter...
All in all I did really enjoy this book!
Thank you netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Given how much I loved Hex, I desperately wanted to love Echo, Heuvelt's second book to be translated into English. While it had moments of beautiful prose and was, at times, wonderfully atmospheric, this one just didn't really grab me.

Echo had a rough beginning. It didn't immediately grab me, and sometimes the translation felt clunky. From the outset, my impression of the book was skewed. Despite picking up at around the 10% mark as the atmosphere and mystery began to build, my initial impression stayed with me, making the rest of the book sadly underwhelming.

The characters were interesting, and the concept was strong, but Echo's big problem was that it was at least twice as long as it should have been. By the halfway mark, the plot began to plod and feel repetitive. There was only so much mileage we could get out of what is, fundamentally, a straightforward horror plot. Nothing wrong with simplicity - but because of the book's length, it just didn't deliver on that simplicity in a way that felt satisfying. Quite frankly, I was bored for at least half the time I spent reading it.

I would have rated Echo a bit higher for the concept and atmosphere. It wasn't a terrible book by any stretch, but I certainly didn't connect with it in a way that I often do with horror novels. While the book had a general air of spookiness and a fright-adjacent ambience, Echo's extreme length made it feel more boring and meandering than it should have.