Book Review: As Below by Lynzee Schott

This is an unsolicited review.

So, this year I have made it one of my goals to start picking up more indie books and to read more in general. I’ve found a lot of cool folks in the TikTok community and there’s no shortage of interesting-sounding books to choose from. One of the first books I grabbed is a dystopian standalone called As Below by Lynzee Schott. It’s also her debut novel.

The book takes place in an underwater bunker community, the remnants of a population that fled the destruction of the world above several generations previous. Our main character, Samara, is twenty-six and questioning everything about Foxtrot’s rote way of life. I really appreciate a main who’s not a teenager, and Samara feels very real. She embodies the resiliency of the human spirit even when encased in what seems like the only way for society to survive. Rebellion always finds a spark in certain hearts, especially when the inevitable corruption works its way through those at the top.

As Below is written in first-person and present tense, which if you know me at all, you know is one of my favorite combinations to write myself. So I appreciate when it’s done well by someone else. The pacing is solid and the tension–well, it’s tricky. At first, it seemed like it wasn’t quite building, but then I was wound tight without realizing it had hit me. The last third or so of the book is a gut-clencher. And the end is a straight gut punch that I didn’t see coming and wasn’t prepared for.

Lynzee has several themes that run throughout the story, like Samara’s “opposite side of the coin” personality with her twin brother, and those themes are consistent, believable, and appropriate. Not only that, the characters are well-done and the twists are twisty. A special nod to the lack of romance, even as a sub-plot. Some authors might’ve been tempted to try to fit it in despite whether it makes sense or not, and this book stands strong without it.

Overall, five stars. I definitely recommend As Below. Stay till the end.

As Below is available on Amazon.