Caro is unsure of what to do with her life, so when an opportunity comes up that allows her to put grad school to use as a research assistant, she doesn’t hesitate. Plus she gets to spend time with her professor and lover, Edward Beck.
Beck’s team are some of the best professionals and academics, all on an expedition descending into the deep sea caves to study the ancient sea-based Cult of the Leviathan.
When the cave entrance collapses, the crew is trapped inside, and they soon find themselves in the presence of something evil. In the darkness, an ancient trial is set in motion. Each crew member will be tested and forced to atone their sins … or die.
Why we’re excited about this book:
Twisted cults and a a dark evil under the sea? Color us excited about Megan Bontrager’s latest. The author of Eye of the Ouroboros, Bontrager’s fiction has graced the pages of such publications as 30 North Literary Magazine, Cypress Dome Literary Magazine, Frontier Poetry, and Eros & Thanatos: An Anthology of Death & Desire, to name a few. With her latest, Bontrager conjures arcane rituals and strange cultists in this claustrophobic dive into the deep, dark sea. Jennifer Thorne (Diavola) calls The Sea Hides Its Dead “A thrilling cosmic horror adventure where the monsters are as much within us as without. All the joys of classic fiction are found in these pages, filtered through a modern lens that keeps it fresh and relatable. I was thoroughly obsessed with The Sea Hides Its Dead—consider me an acolyte!” and Bitter Karella (Moonflow) says: “Weird, wild, and unpredictable, Bontrager will guide you through the depths of your own personal drippy, salty seaside purgatory. You will feel the chill, the damp, the gloom, and, above all, the omniscient staring eyes of the Leviathan above!”
Releasing from Run For It 14 July 2026, The Sea Hides Its Dead by Megan Bontrager is available for pre-order now.
BOB PASTORELLA