(ARC Review) Dark Eden by Patrick Carman

DARK EDEN
Author: Patrick Carman
Source: Amazon Vine
*I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (November 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062009702
ISBN-13: 978-0062009708

Fifteen-year-old Will Besting is sent by his doctor to Fort Eden, an institution meant to help patients suffering from crippling phobias. Once there, Will and six other teenagers take turns in mysterious fear chambers and confront their worst nightmares—with the help of the group facilitator, Rainsford, an enigmatic guide. When the patients emerge from the chamber, they feel emboldened by the previous night’s experiences. But each person soon discovers strange, unexplained aches and pains. . . . What is really happening to the seven teens trapped in this dark Eden? 

When seven patients have been unable to be cured of their phobia’s, they are sent to the mysterious place called Fort Eden.  With its promise of a cure, Fort Eden takes the seven patients to the center of their phobia and confronting it head on.  


When Will and the six other patients arrive at the entrance of Fort Eden, Will sneaks off and decides he isn’t going to be apart of the therapy.  He doesn’t want to be there and he doesn’t know what to expect.  When he does sneak into Fort Eden though, he discovers mysterious rooms, cameras and puzzles to solve to find out just how Fort Eden can cure the phobias.  Will watches the other patients on the monitors from the bomb shelter. He tries to figure out how Rainsford is really curing their fears and discovers that it comes with a big cost.


I was pulled into this book from the first page.  If you decide to read the book, be aware that you can venture further into the world of Fort Eden through multimedia enhancements including audio and video as well as the written story.  While I didn’t use either of the other options, I still enjoyed the story as the written journey.  Everything you read through the story has some sort of meaning by the time you get to the unexpected ending.  Things that you don’t think are too important will come to light as a major clue in the story as well. 


If you are looking for a creepy and great new read this season, then Dark Eden will capture your interests and drop you into the fears of the seven kids. While it wasn’t my favorite of the year, it was a fun experience to read and try to figure out!