What do you think?
Rate this book
The Cryptids
An invasion like no other is threatening the Silicon Valley. A cutting-edge quantum communication technology has unleashed a flood of cryptid sightings. From headless Mothmen to dog-faced cats, strange beasts are prowling the streets and emerging from the woods, spreading a deadly epidemic of mind-blindness. Children mutate into protean monsters; people are carried away by thunderbirds; and those who survive fail to recognize themselves in the mirror.
Cryptozoologist Sharon Manley, a stranger in a strange land, thinks she knows what is going on. But who is going to believe her if her information comes to her in dreams? Torn between two countries and two men, she finally embarks on a one-way odyssey into the heart of the cryptid Earth to uncover its shocking secrets. Her quest takes her to the forest of flayed bears, to the beach colonized by Mothmen, and finally to the golden city of Hell. There she has to confront the enigmatic cryptid masters and to make the choice that will determine the fate of more worlds than one.
Cryptozoologist Sharon Manley, a stranger in a strange land, thinks she knows what is going on. But who is going to believe her if her information comes to her in dreams? Torn between two countries and two men, she finally embarks on a one-way odyssey into the heart of the cryptid Earth to uncover its shocking secrets. Her quest takes her to the forest of flayed bears, to the beach colonized by Mothmen, and finally to the golden city of Hell. There she has to confront the enigmatic cryptid masters and to make the choice that will determine the fate of more worlds than one.
390 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 28, 2019
7 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
Elana Gomel
119 books70 followersBorn in Ukraine and currently residing in California, Elana Gomel is an academic with a long list of books and articles, an award-winning writer, and a professional nomad. She has taught and researched in Israel, Italy, and the US, and is known in the academy for her (purely theoretical) interest in serial killers, alien invasions, and rebellious AIs. She is the author of more than a hundred stories, several novellas, and six novels of dark fantasy and science fiction. Her latest fiction publications are the dark fairy tale Nightwood (Silver Award in the Bookfest 2023 competition) and Girl of Light, a historical fantasy.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 17, 2019
This is an amazing book. It is both fantastic, page-turning science-fiction and good literature, which do not always coincide. I do not usually read science-fiction, because too often, while making up sophisticated plots, the authors do not invest in the language. For instance, I could not plow through Dan Green's or Paulo Coelho's novels - boringly written. Elana Gomel's writing is mesmerizing from the first page onwards - the descriptions are as lush and vivid as the fantasy world they evoke. Here is just one of the many remarkable descriptions:
"Above her, lacy ferns were gently swaying in the still air that smelled of milk and blood. The ferns were exquisite; their fronds—delicate openwork of braided, knotted, twined threads. The threads were shedding ruby light like drops of blood. She remembered that she, too, was stitched with lace as elegant and intricate as this. The thousands of blood vessels in her body comprised a net of equal beauty and complexity. She lifted her grimy hand and contemplated it. Underneath this ugliness she was still beautiful: the ivory spindles of her skeleton wrapped about with the mesh of silky capillaries...".
The questions this novel asks are serious and challenging, and one feels privileged by the invitation to enter this world and share those challenges. A real intellectual pleasure.
"Above her, lacy ferns were gently swaying in the still air that smelled of milk and blood. The ferns were exquisite; their fronds—delicate openwork of braided, knotted, twined threads. The threads were shedding ruby light like drops of blood. She remembered that she, too, was stitched with lace as elegant and intricate as this. The thousands of blood vessels in her body comprised a net of equal beauty and complexity. She lifted her grimy hand and contemplated it. Underneath this ugliness she was still beautiful: the ivory spindles of her skeleton wrapped about with the mesh of silky capillaries...".
The questions this novel asks are serious and challenging, and one feels privileged by the invitation to enter this world and share those challenges. A real intellectual pleasure.
September 27, 2019
A most inventive and innovative take on body horror - the titular cryptids never fail to shock and horrify, and in the tradition of the best science fiction, the revelation of the true threat raises some pretty complex questions, with no easy answers. A real page-turner! (Justice for Malcolm Choy!)
January 19, 2022
In a world suddenly inundated with strange new creatures, only our heroine seems to have a clue what is going on. And when no one takes her seriously, she sets out to fix things on her own. No small task.
This is a science fiction story with lots of unusual creatures in it. Some from myth and legend, others entirely alien. That certainly provides an intriguing mix of problems to deal with. The story is well written and easy to read with an intriguing setting and lots of scary critters. The characters are well done and I particularly like our heroine who is tough, smart and willing to step up to a challenge. The story as it evolves includes plenty of action and mystery which make for a very engaging combination. I was drawn into this one quickly and rather enjoyed each new discovery. Overall, it was an exciting and fun read and I look forward to more from this author.
Highly recommended
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes.
This is a science fiction story with lots of unusual creatures in it. Some from myth and legend, others entirely alien. That certainly provides an intriguing mix of problems to deal with. The story is well written and easy to read with an intriguing setting and lots of scary critters. The characters are well done and I particularly like our heroine who is tough, smart and willing to step up to a challenge. The story as it evolves includes plenty of action and mystery which make for a very engaging combination. I was drawn into this one quickly and rather enjoyed each new discovery. Overall, it was an exciting and fun read and I look forward to more from this author.
Highly recommended
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes.
April 11, 2022
I have been mourning the scifi tales of other planets I read so many of in my teens and that riveting kind of adventure. This is that book! No invading alien fleets here, no bombs of war, but something totally unique. I can't for the life of me understand how Ms. Gomel managed to create such an alien, beautiful, frightening world but she really did in a very big way! The creativity in this novel is extraordinary. The cryptids are scary, weird, beautiful, and enigmatic all at once. She explores the complex psychology of self awareness in a way that is riveting. And her characters are so real, flawed, virtuous, strong, and weak, all in harmony. I won't give away the story, as there are plot description in other reviews. I will say, if you like alien worlds, testing human limits, and flawed but steady love, then read this book!
July 20, 2025
There are some stories that are hard to believe unless you experience it for yourself. Some stories just have that “you had to be there” element. Like a cryptid sighting, for example. As a scientist, Sharon is not entirely sure if she believes a story about a cryptid kidnapping a man’s wife off of a beach, but she keeps an open mind about it. She also considers ALL of the possibilities of what would cause someone to think that they saw a cryptid. A REAL cryptid.
And if it’s real cryptids you’re after, then that’s exactly what you will get in the novel The Cryptids by Elana Gomel. In fact, the second half of this book is full of them.
But before the cryptid actually makes its grand appearance, Sharon does some investigating. She meets the man who claimed he saw the cryptid, which they call a thunderbird, kidnap his wife – and actually gets into a relationship with him after the days pass and everybody assumes that poor old wifey is dead. And during this time that she has this relationship with this man, Lester Choy, she meets his adopted father, Malcolm Choy. I really liked the character Malcolm Malcolm is a very level-headed and intelligent person who Sharon has a sort of kinship with because they are both intellectuals who see the bigger picture of what is happening with this cryptid business.
But Sharon’s relationship with Les helps her to learn that maybe he’s the reason why cryptids are suddenly roaming free on Earth now, because of something he invented.
Something on his quantum phone that accidentally sends Sharon plummeting into that other world.
After recovering from the terror and shock of being in another world, Sharon is able to ground herself and start to think logically. “She got to her feet. So here it was, the plan. She had to find Dis. How? She had no idea. But the notion that she had a goal cheered her up. And then there was the marvel and beauty of this alien wilderness, which she now allowed herself to soak up. She had fantasies of exploring Mars, Narnia, and Middle-earth as a child; now her fantasies were coming true. The land was both achingly beautiful and depressingly empty; both familiar and strange. She had left the wetlands behind and was walking toward the misty mountains. Now she was passing through the parkland, dotted with clumps of trees, many of them beginning to change color, the gorgeous wine-red, dark-rose, and gold of the foliage vivid in the bright sunlight.”
Sharon is a scientist at heart and while trying to wrap her brain around the situation she was in, she is also able to be the scientist and study her surroundings, observe and take it all in for the purpose of understanding it better. She and her former lover, Mark, share this kind of thinking, for they are both scientists. No matter how impulsively they want to turn away from and not see what there is going on in that world, they force themselves to observe, so that they can learn and understand. Still, it’s hard for her to accept seeing things like frogs with human faces and dog-faced cats.
As I read about Sharon’s explorations, I was very impressed with just how creative it was. The author must have worked very hard in creating this world. It is certainly well-written and very well done. I also felt she did well in creating a cryptic method of communication which Sharon must decipher when communicating with the heads on the wall in one room and the Rat-King in another room.
The scene where Mark is with the king and queen was unnerving. While on one hand he is repulsed by it, it also helps him to understand better what is happening.
The story unfolds to the point where the grand scheme of things is revealed in all its glory, thanks to the logical thinking of our scientists. They realize that all of this is not just about the quantum phone opening a doorway for Mothmen to get through; it goes beyond this. Something is trying to conquer all of humankind. Mark witnesses for himself what would ultimately transpire if that doorway continues to exist. And having seen it myself through this part of the book, I’ll definitely pass!
There are things about humanity that this being fails to understand, such as the human’s capacity to be deceptive and the lingering rage of a woman scorned. These are things that cannot be erased, and certainly one of the things which definitely comes back to haunt a character later in the story.
The thing that both Mark and Sharon point out is that self-consciousness, self-awareness, is what makes us human. To lose this is to lose our humanity. To surrender to the whims of an evil entity is akin to surrendering to slavery. Doing so would mean for us humans that there is no self-identity, there is no autonomy. Only lives would be lived according to the rigors of another sentient being. In essence, all of humanity would be lost.
Yes, the being in charge of that other dimension does try to imitate life in our world, as well as copy the intricacies of animal and human behavior — perhaps in an attempt to make its world attractive to the humans in this world and easier for them to adapt to life there, but it only continues to fail in its attempts. Frogs with human faces, cannibalistic humans with wrong anatomy and creatures that are a blend of two or more animals. Even the anatomy of the Mothmen is incorrect! Whoever gave it the instruction manual for creating humans and animals on Earth must have been studying life in a different dimension because it certainly isn’t this one.
The climax of this story is awesome! I could just picture the whole thing happening. It’s amazing. The whole story is absolutely amazing and I highly recommend it! I absolutely loved the story’s resolution, too. My favorite quote from that part of the book: “A redeemed sinner is always more interesting than a spotless saint.” Which of the two shall make peace with what they went through remains to be seen, but at least they have a better understanding of each other, and of the world they share.
Reading this novel was not just escaping into the world of fiction but also exploring and learning about theories and ideas. The discussion about the noosphere (and just how much it can impact our world, especially through our dreams) gave me a lot to think about and it compelled me to explore these ideas and thoughts further online. I also liked how the mirror test is explained to readers, its fallacies in determining self-consciousness are explored, how good of a test it can be to see if a human is really indeed a human and even how the mere mention of it can allow those in certain fields of research explore its usage to gain further insight. And, finally, I also liked how, in this story, the Oneiroi (not to be confused with the mythological Oneiroi) can use dreams to interact and communicate with humans. It had me wondering just what other creatures from that dimension can do the same since the noosphere continues to exist, as well as any others the characters in this story may not know about or would expect to do so (I think the hint at the end is a pretty good indication!).
The Cryptids is a frightening tale of otherworldly monsters infesting our world in the first stage of a planetary takeover by something much more evil and monstrous bent on destroying humanity. Intelligently and insightfully written, it is a novel that will keep readers guessing, wondering and thinking about where the story will go next. The many surprising twists and turns offer an entertaining and captivating read, and it is a novel sure to withstand the test of time.
And if it’s real cryptids you’re after, then that’s exactly what you will get in the novel The Cryptids by Elana Gomel. In fact, the second half of this book is full of them.
But before the cryptid actually makes its grand appearance, Sharon does some investigating. She meets the man who claimed he saw the cryptid, which they call a thunderbird, kidnap his wife – and actually gets into a relationship with him after the days pass and everybody assumes that poor old wifey is dead. And during this time that she has this relationship with this man, Lester Choy, she meets his adopted father, Malcolm Choy. I really liked the character Malcolm Malcolm is a very level-headed and intelligent person who Sharon has a sort of kinship with because they are both intellectuals who see the bigger picture of what is happening with this cryptid business.
But Sharon’s relationship with Les helps her to learn that maybe he’s the reason why cryptids are suddenly roaming free on Earth now, because of something he invented.
Something on his quantum phone that accidentally sends Sharon plummeting into that other world.
After recovering from the terror and shock of being in another world, Sharon is able to ground herself and start to think logically. “She got to her feet. So here it was, the plan. She had to find Dis. How? She had no idea. But the notion that she had a goal cheered her up. And then there was the marvel and beauty of this alien wilderness, which she now allowed herself to soak up. She had fantasies of exploring Mars, Narnia, and Middle-earth as a child; now her fantasies were coming true. The land was both achingly beautiful and depressingly empty; both familiar and strange. She had left the wetlands behind and was walking toward the misty mountains. Now she was passing through the parkland, dotted with clumps of trees, many of them beginning to change color, the gorgeous wine-red, dark-rose, and gold of the foliage vivid in the bright sunlight.”
Sharon is a scientist at heart and while trying to wrap her brain around the situation she was in, she is also able to be the scientist and study her surroundings, observe and take it all in for the purpose of understanding it better. She and her former lover, Mark, share this kind of thinking, for they are both scientists. No matter how impulsively they want to turn away from and not see what there is going on in that world, they force themselves to observe, so that they can learn and understand. Still, it’s hard for her to accept seeing things like frogs with human faces and dog-faced cats.
As I read about Sharon’s explorations, I was very impressed with just how creative it was. The author must have worked very hard in creating this world. It is certainly well-written and very well done. I also felt she did well in creating a cryptic method of communication which Sharon must decipher when communicating with the heads on the wall in one room and the Rat-King in another room.
The scene where Mark is with the king and queen was unnerving. While on one hand he is repulsed by it, it also helps him to understand better what is happening.
The story unfolds to the point where the grand scheme of things is revealed in all its glory, thanks to the logical thinking of our scientists. They realize that all of this is not just about the quantum phone opening a doorway for Mothmen to get through; it goes beyond this. Something is trying to conquer all of humankind. Mark witnesses for himself what would ultimately transpire if that doorway continues to exist. And having seen it myself through this part of the book, I’ll definitely pass!
There are things about humanity that this being fails to understand, such as the human’s capacity to be deceptive and the lingering rage of a woman scorned. These are things that cannot be erased, and certainly one of the things which definitely comes back to haunt a character later in the story.
The thing that both Mark and Sharon point out is that self-consciousness, self-awareness, is what makes us human. To lose this is to lose our humanity. To surrender to the whims of an evil entity is akin to surrendering to slavery. Doing so would mean for us humans that there is no self-identity, there is no autonomy. Only lives would be lived according to the rigors of another sentient being. In essence, all of humanity would be lost.
Yes, the being in charge of that other dimension does try to imitate life in our world, as well as copy the intricacies of animal and human behavior — perhaps in an attempt to make its world attractive to the humans in this world and easier for them to adapt to life there, but it only continues to fail in its attempts. Frogs with human faces, cannibalistic humans with wrong anatomy and creatures that are a blend of two or more animals. Even the anatomy of the Mothmen is incorrect! Whoever gave it the instruction manual for creating humans and animals on Earth must have been studying life in a different dimension because it certainly isn’t this one.
The climax of this story is awesome! I could just picture the whole thing happening. It’s amazing. The whole story is absolutely amazing and I highly recommend it! I absolutely loved the story’s resolution, too. My favorite quote from that part of the book: “A redeemed sinner is always more interesting than a spotless saint.” Which of the two shall make peace with what they went through remains to be seen, but at least they have a better understanding of each other, and of the world they share.
Reading this novel was not just escaping into the world of fiction but also exploring and learning about theories and ideas. The discussion about the noosphere (and just how much it can impact our world, especially through our dreams) gave me a lot to think about and it compelled me to explore these ideas and thoughts further online. I also liked how the mirror test is explained to readers, its fallacies in determining self-consciousness are explored, how good of a test it can be to see if a human is really indeed a human and even how the mere mention of it can allow those in certain fields of research explore its usage to gain further insight. And, finally, I also liked how, in this story, the Oneiroi (not to be confused with the mythological Oneiroi) can use dreams to interact and communicate with humans. It had me wondering just what other creatures from that dimension can do the same since the noosphere continues to exist, as well as any others the characters in this story may not know about or would expect to do so (I think the hint at the end is a pretty good indication!).
The Cryptids is a frightening tale of otherworldly monsters infesting our world in the first stage of a planetary takeover by something much more evil and monstrous bent on destroying humanity. Intelligently and insightfully written, it is a novel that will keep readers guessing, wondering and thinking about where the story will go next. The many surprising twists and turns offer an entertaining and captivating read, and it is a novel sure to withstand the test of time.
December 8, 2025
The book description pretty much captures anything I would say about this book. I've read multiple books from Elana Gomel in the last year and absolutely love her style, and love her kick-butt female characters. Elana has a knack for creating worlds you can't help but be sucked into. Especially in this story, the flawed characters drive the story.
Plus, who doesn't love a good horror story filled with cryptids!
Plus, who doesn't love a good horror story filled with cryptids!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews