Pierre drops out of architecture school and decides to travel to Vals in the Swiss Alps, home to a thermal springs complex located deep inside a mountain. The complex had been the subject of Pierre’s thesis. The mountain holds many mysteries; it was said to have a mouth that periodically swallowed people up. Pierre attempts to uncover the truth behind them in the secret rooms he discovers deep within the complex.
... praise for this book cannot be overstated ... From the opening pages, Swimming in Darkness grabs the reader and refuses to let go, creeping slowly through an uncanny realm where fiction and reality dance together in a haunting and unforgettable waltz.
Harari captures the atmosphere of the real baths chillingly ... Perhaps humans are just very good at fabricating things to keep us going through the ages, keep our minds alive and moving forward, keep us interested. Maybe that’s all it is. That’s okay. Harari’s contribution to this human tradition is a particularly strong one and compelling on its own and as part of something larger. Swimming In Darkness presents mysteries on all these levels that are inviting and comforting. It reminds us that there is a thrill to being human even still.
Harari creates a growing sense of dread as Pierre encounters inexplicable phenomena, townsfolk who know more than they’re willing to share, and a French writer determined to stop him from delving further into the mysteries by any means necessary ... Harari’s adept skills as a storyteller are elevated even further by his talents as a designer with a strong sense of color, as pleasantly round, cartoonish characters wander angular planes and inhabit a world filled with warm, glowing red rooms and grainy, foreboding purple skies.
