H.P. Lovecraft’s impact on the horror genre cannot be escaped. The tendrils of especially his aquatic horrors are far reaching, despite the problematic nature of the man himself. So why not embrace those horrors and tell a story with some of the horrific themes, but add some elements that would quite frankly fly in the face of Lovecraft’s beliefs. Enter Megan Bontrager’s The Sea Hides its Dead which tells the tale of a anthropological team spelunking an underwater cave where secrets of the cult of the Leviathan could be unearthed.
ATONE OR DIE.
Grad student Caro has no idea what she wants to do with her life, but when an opportunity arises to act as a research assistant on an anthropological expedition for her professor and lover, Edward Beck, she doesn’t hesitate.
Beck assembles a team of academics and professionals to study the ancient sea-based Cult of the Leviathan, and the expedition descends into the sea caves where the cult are said to have dwelt.
But when the cave entrance collapses, trapping them inside, the expedition will find they are not alone in the darkness. Surrounded by strange artefacts and scattered bones, an ancient trial has been set in motion. One by one, the members of the expedition will be tested and forced to atone for their greatest sin. . . or die.
Told from the first-person point of view of Caroline “Caro” Destler who is having an affair with her married academic mentor, Edward Beck. Beck is obsesses with the aquatic cult who worship Leviathan and with the discovery of stone monoliths near a cave in Maine, he gathers a group of grad students on an expedition to learn more about it. He convinces Caro he needs her to join him, although he also has continually promised her he would end his marriage so he could be with her.
On her way to the expedition; however, Caro encounters a wounded deer on the side of the road which delays her arrival by a day. When she arrives, the expedition is underway but it isn’t long before the cave exploration takes a turn for the worse… a cave in traps the group and an immediate sense of claustrophobia envelops the story.
Trapped with only Beck to guide them, initially, the group starts to experience strange things. Hallucinations, perhaps, forcing them to relive their darkest memories. As the individuals in the group become separated and their sanity begins to wane, the darkness of the cave spreads. Not just because of the lack of light, but because of the supernatural elements of the cult, the cave, and the monoliths.
Bontrager certainly knows how to craft a horrific scene. There’s a growing sense of dread early on in the novel with the jaws snapping shut as soon as the crew becomes stuck int eh cave. I couldn’t help be find resonance and/or similarities with Neil Marshall’s wonderful subterranean horror film The Descent. The Sea Hides its Dead was a little more… wet, not just because it set in the sea, but there’s some bloody, gory scenes throughout the novel, a great example of Bontrager’s delightful skills at crafting horror. As can often be the case in horror stories, some of the more horrific elements are the human characters and Beck is no exception. Hints of that are provided early in the novel through his relationship with Caro.
Let’s get to Caro, since she’s the protagonist narrator. She’s kind of a milquetoast bland character, at least at the outset. The scene with the deer gives a glimpse into who she might be, but she seems to be more carried along by the story, a participant in what’s happening to her rather than a true proactive individual with agency. Her journey, and how she ‘awakens’ throughout the narrative is some good character development. Caro’s background is revealed in bits and pieces teasing readers until the full reveal, which I thought was handled well and made Caro an even more empathetic character, especially as her connection to one of the characters grew in strength as the narrative drove towards conclusion.
The Lovecraft element is fairly omnipresent, given the aquatic cult horror and the frame of the story. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness tells the story of an academic expedition led by a university professor headed to the Antarctica. In both The Sea Hides its Dead (which sounds like it *could* be a story by Lovecraft) and At the Mountains of Madness things don’t exactly go according to plan when the respective groups arrive at their destinations.
Bontrager is definitely a writer to watch, I enjoyed The Sea Hides its Dead a great deal, with some truly horrific scenes, a sense of place in the confines of the caves, and some character development to appreciate in our protagonist.
Recommended
© 2026 Rob H. Bedford
Trade Paperback | Run for It/Orbit
July 2026 | 368 Pages
https://megbontra.com/
Excerpt: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/orbit-books/excerpt-the-sea-hides-its-dead-by-megan-bontrager/
Review copy courtesy of the publisher
