As much as I loved Earthworm Gods (it was actually called Conqueror Worms when I read it for the first time) I enjoyed the sequel even more.

Why?

Because Keene has come a long way since he wrote that first book. Many other great books followed, and, even more, the Keeneverse is much more fleshed out now. As someone who has read almost everything the guy has written, minus the really hard to get limited editions, I loved how he ties this fantastic story in with his other works.

I am a bit in awe of how massive (and consistent) his mythology has become. I read somewhere that someone has mapped it all out and keeps track of all the references and cross connections and I believe it. There are tie-ins to a dozen other works.

Ok, back to EG2.

Picks up right where EG (or CW if you read it a while ago) left off. We blend some old characters with a bunch of new ones and we are finally sat down and told exactly how bad the situation, which we already knew was really really bad, is. Bleak doesn’t begin to describe it. Magical forces are at work and it most likely is waaay too late to do much about it.

The creatures get nastier, the creepiness gets amped up. We rush head long through a melting world hoping against hope to reach some place or portal of safety that may not even exist.

How long can you tread water while trying not to think of what hungry thing is rushing up below you?
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Although sequels are rarely as good as the original, Earthworm Gods II: Deluge was close. Keene follows the same format as the first book. The first third takes us back to the flooding mountain in West Virginia where we're introduced to Henry, who is trapped in the top of a grain silo and escapes to meet up with our survivors from the first Earthworm Gods. In the second third, we meet another band of survivors in a catamaran yacht. The two parties meet up with each in the climactic last third of the book. Along the way, we're greeted to more Lovecraftian-inspired monsters and themes as Earthworm Gods II evolves from a monster movie feel to one of a Lovecraft-inspired world of fantasy. Keene also ties in LeHorn's Hollow from his book, Dark Hollow, as well as slight references to characters in his zombie novels The Rising and City of the Dead. The only downside, to me, were the characters. While Keene still delivered the goods, the characters in the first EG, Teddy and Carl, were superb. Unfortunately, I didn't connect with the characters in EG II as much as I did with the ones in the first one. That's not saying that the characterization was poor. It's more of a tribute to how good those two were in the first story. All in all, I'm liking what Keene is doing with his saga and can't wait to jump into the next one to see where it leads. ( )

I rarely give 5 stars, but Earthworm Gods II: Deluge is such an excellent novel. Brian Keene returns to the world of the first book, Earthworm Gods, and delivers a frightening sequel of terrifying supernatural creatures. Creatures like shark men, starfish men, giant worms, and an ever-present and pervasive fungus that destroys even mountains.

The reader is immediately introduced to a flooding world where it is constantly pouring rain. Everything is wet, muddy, or covered in a fungus. Keene weaves the horror of this world so well that even the fungus becomes a main character.

The prose is crisp and the pace swift as the characters battle to survive in a flooded and constantly raining world. The novel is well edited and I only saw two typos, and poor editing is one of my pet peeves. I loved the characters; they were realistic enough to me that I was sad when one would die and angry when others did not. The only character I felt was shortchanged in the book was Simon. It is not explained why he was tortured nor the motivations for what he did. Since I haven’t had the opportunity to read the first book yet, I imagine his character and circumstances were a carryover from there. Otherwise, Deluge reads just fine as a standalone novel. However, now I want to read the first novel.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and recommend it. It was fun to read and some of the passages really gave me chills.

I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
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