Under the Surface

Diana Urban

YA Survival Thriller

An epic survival-thriller about four teens who get lost in the Paris catacombs for days—a gripping and propulsive story of love, danger, betrayal, and hope… even when all seems lost.

Ruby is terrified to cave to her feelings for Sean and risk him crushing her heart.

Sean is pumped to spend a week with Ruby in Paris on their senior class trip, and he’ll wait however long until she’s ready to take things further.

But when Ruby’s best friend sneaks out the first night to meet a mysterious French boy, Ruby goes after her with two classmates, but caves to another temptation: attending mystery boy’s exclusive party in the Paris catacombs, the intricate web of tunnels beneath the city, home to six million long-dead Parisians. Only they never reach the party.

Underground, as something sinister chases them, they get lost in the endless maze of bones, uncovering dark secrets about the catacombs… and each other. And if they can’t find a way out, they’ll die in the dark beneath the City of Light.

Aboveground, Sean races to find the girl he loves as a media frenzy over the four missing teens begins.

From award-winning author and rising YA star Diana Urban comes a twisty tale of four teens lost in the dark beneath the City of Light and the race to find them.

-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.

Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.

My Opinion

(4.5 / 5) Teens getting lost in the Paris catacombs? Say no more! I knew I needed this one but had no idea how much I’d love it. This filled all my spooky and adventurous needs.

Ruby is visiting Paris with her friends and school for their senior class trip. One night, they break the rules and escape the hotel to go to a local party. The party is secretly in the catacombs and seems to be exactly what their Paris dreams are made of. However, they never make it to the party. Through a series of events, they get lost. Lost with all the dead, their bones and all the dark secrets kept in the miles and miles of tunnels underneath the city.

“You’re not going to die. You’re a badass bitch. And once we get through this, we’ll be one step closer to home.”

This one had me on the edge of my seat. The Paris catacombs themselves are fascinating but having the teens lost and experiencing life-threatening situations made it even more fun. I loved the dark secrets, the reveals and the many twists and turns this one took. I highly recommend this to YA lovers who love dark mysteries and lots of excitement!

General content summary: F words= 10

Some language

Alcohol (some underage, multiple)

Parent death (previous, childbirth, another has both parents dead)

Human bones (multiple)

Writing on the wall is blood 

Night terrors (screaming)

Intimacy (m/f kisses)

F/F teen relationship and kiss

Corpse (few details, smell)

Talk of cults 

Undressed down to underwear 

Near drownings (intense moments)

Death (drowning and  CPR, beaten to death, head bashed in)

Physical violence (knife to throat, hit head with a rock, weapons, fist fight, broken bone, gunshot)

Spiders (arachnophobia)

Captivity 

Sedative given unwillingly 

**Any quotes have been taken from the advance readers copy and may or may not be in the final, published copy.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for the copies!

The book releases August 13, 2024.

**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.