Devilfish

I’ll be honest: *Devilfish* left me with the same creeping unease as staring into a black trench and knowing something’s staring back. Huff’s worldbuilding is masterclass economy—no infodumps, just the slow realization that Tarn’s ocean isn’t just *there*, it’s *waiting*. The story follows a diver (or is he a prisoner?) sent into the abyss on a mission that feels more like a sacrifice, and the audiobook’s pacing mirrors his descent: deliberate, inexorable, punctuated by bursts of violence that land like hammer blows. The Virtual Voice narration is… divisive. Its robotic cadence strips away warmth, which *should* feel wrong for a story about human survival—but here, it works. The lack of emotional inflection makes the rare cracks in the protagonist’s composure devastating. That said, the production isn’t flawless. The audio levels occasionally dip during quieter moments, forcing me to crank the volume, only to be jolted by sudden loudness. And while the ending is thematically perfect, it’s so abrupt it borders on frustrating—like the story *itself* got dragged under before it was done with you. Still, for an hour-long listen, it lingers like a diver’s bends. If you love your sci-fi bleak, beautiful, and merciless, this is your abyss.