Description

A terrifying 1930s ghost story set in the haunting wilderness of the far north.

January 1937. Clouds of war are gathering over a fogbound London. Twenty-eight year old Jack is poor, lonely and desperate to change his life. So when he’s offered the chance to join an Arctic expedition, he jumps at it. Spirits are high as the ship leaves Norway: five men and eight huskies, crossing the Barents Sea by the light of the midnight sun. At last they reach the remote, uninhabited bay where they will camp for the next year. Gruhuken.

But the Arctic summer is brief. As night returns to claim the land, Jack feels a creeping unease. One by one, his companions are forced to leave. He faces a stark choice. Stay or go. Soon he will see the last of the sun, as the polar night engulfs the camp in months of darkness. Soon he will reach the point of no return – when the sea will freeze, making escape impossible.

And Gruhuken is not uninhabited. Jack is not alone. Something walks there in the dark…

Publisher Review

A genuinely suspenseful and really quite chilling tale * TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT * Dark Matter builds suspense brilliantly ... As well as a ghost story, it's a great portrayal of Svalbard and the experience of spending a winter in the Arctic. * ADVENTURE TRAVEL * Ghost stories don't frighten me much but this one did. Quite a lot, actually ... Chilling in every respect. -- Richard Madeley A genuinely terrifying tale ... I cannot recommend this novel enough, especially in these dark nights, you will certainly get more than you bargained for. I did. * SAVIDGE READS Book Blog * More than just a ghost story, this is an exquisitely told psychological thriller. Unputdownable! * WOMANS WEEKLY * A chilling period piece, Dark Matter cunningly illustrates how fear, rather than death, is the great equaliser. * INDEPENDENT * An atmospheric ghost story that would give Susan Hill a run for her money * INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY * Paver's descriptions of the topography are marvellously vivid and add to the sense of menace that suffuses the story -- Joan Smith * SUNDAY TIMES * This gripping ghost story has moments of horror and beauty * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH * Evocative, chilling and superbly unsettling, it is very good indeed. -- Sarah Broadhurst * BOOKSELLER *