The Labyrinth
- Downloads：3054
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-12-16 09:16:05
- Update Date：2025-09-23
- Status：finish
- Author：Simon Stålenhag
- ISBN：139850999X
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A world covered by ruins and ash， the remnants of an otherwordly phenomenon that has ravaged the earth’s atmosphere and forced the few survivors deep underground。 Matt， Sigrid and Charlie leave the safe harbor of the enclave for an expedition onto the wastelands of the surface world。 During their journey they are forced to confront dark secrets from the time before civilization’s fall。
Reviews
Jannik Fogt
，
Skandinavisk social realistisk retro science fiction som kun Simon Stålenhag kan lave det。 Jeg er kæmpe fan。 Hans billeder er super stemningsfulde og den korte novelle-agtige historie der akkompagnerer kunsten er skåret ind til benet。 Labyrinth er en flot anbefalelsesværdigt værk。
Jennifer Zeman
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Not a Spoiler， but kinda。 I did not see that end coming。。。。whoa。 The tremendous art along with the few words on one page is such an interesting way to tell a story。 It's like a kid's book that uses the art as much as the words to tell the story。 It is an amazing read and powerful story。 Not a Spoiler， but kinda。 I did not see that end coming。。。。whoa。 The tremendous art along with the few words on one page is such an interesting way to tell a story。 It's like a kid's book that uses the art as much as the words to tell the story。 It is an amazing read and powerful story。 。。。more
flajol
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A dark story to match the dark art。 The images are bleak， oppressive and ominous， and the story matches。
Marc
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Stalenhag's latest book （via Kickstarter） does not disappoint。 By now it's fair to say that he created his own sub-genre of sci-fi: Nordic Sci-Fi Noir？ In this book the combination of gorgeously illustrated and minimally narrated pages pulled me in pretty hard right from the beginning。 Good stuff！ Stalenhag's latest book （via Kickstarter） does not disappoint。 By now it's fair to say that he created his own sub-genre of sci-fi: Nordic Sci-Fi Noir？ In this book the combination of gorgeously illustrated and minimally narrated pages pulled me in pretty hard right from the beginning。 Good stuff！ 。。。more
La petite Marianna
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I can’t help but feel a bit cheated by the blurb， cover， and even the very title of the book。It seemed to tease a tale of exploration in a grim， eerie， post-apocalyptic world and as I was fliping the first page I was eager to plunge myself into the strange， dark lore the front cover promised to deliver （something perhaps a bit reminiscent of 'Annihilation' by Jeff Vandermeer）。 All of that though serves solely as the mere backdrop for a much different kind of story。 Well， that’s alright I guess， I can’t help but feel a bit cheated by the blurb， cover， and even the very title of the book。It seemed to tease a tale of exploration in a grim， eerie， post-apocalyptic world and as I was fliping the first page I was eager to plunge myself into the strange， dark lore the front cover promised to deliver （something perhaps a bit reminiscent of 'Annihilation' by Jeff Vandermeer）。 All of that though serves solely as the mere backdrop for a much different kind of story。 Well， that’s alright I guess， that was mostly on me （although I still think the blurb is fairly misleading）。 The actual story focuses more on themes of vengeance， violence， need of redemption and buried secrets。 That’s some powerful stuff！ Now， those are quite challenging themes and usually you: Either need some space for them to be explored properly –something which the picture book format of ‘Labyrinth’ with its minimal text doesn’t provide，Or the writing has to pack a serious punch， meaning you need to be a very skilled writer。 Sadly for me it didn’t hit the mark。 As stated above the text is minimal and the writing is quite basic， more like a summarized version of a longer story。 While it’s trying to delve into human nature and moral dilemmas， the interactions between characters are limited and somewhat simplistic and the characters themselves not fleshed out enough。 My main issue though is that these ‘shortcomings’ could have been compensated by some compelling and cleverly placed dialogue or/and monologue that would add the necessary intensity and depth。 I was strangely detached by all the drama and the narration never managed to grip me and make me actually feel or care for what was happening， even when things got sad or dark。 I’ll admit some things did peak my interest， mostly through the artwork which is beautiful and manages to give some illusion of worldbuilding。 The sceneries are atmospheric and do make you wonder and crave for more， while the dark palette and gloomy vibes give you a feeling of unease and loneliness that works really well。 I don’t know， perhaps this works better if you approach it more as some intriguing illustrations with a simple， accompanying tale to wrap it all up， rather than an illustrated story。 Unfortunately I was expecting something more though， both as a concept and as a reading experience and I do believe that if ‘Labyrinth’ was better written it could have been a real gem of a short story。 Most reviewers seem to be of the opinion that this is probably the weakest of Stålenhag books so I’ll keep in mind to check some of the other titles at some point。 。。。more
Sasha
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This one’s incredibly dark， both story and visuals， and I love it for that。 The art is great as always， though I kinda miss the incredible landscape shots in this one – there are some， but ‘the Electric State’ definitely spoiled me into craving more。
Stuart Coombe
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Beautiful artwork and a short story that is equal to it。
Sean
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Have to agree with other reviewers that much of the artwork was muted， drab， and although interesting， lacking that special Stalenhag flair。 I ordered the Kickstarter book with 3 prints and even the prints they chose were some of the least compelling images from the set。 Having said that I was engrossed by the story & atmosphere， and the handful of images more in keeping with Stalenhag's signature style were worth it。 I will be ordering his other books now。 Have to agree with other reviewers that much of the artwork was muted， drab， and although interesting， lacking that special Stalenhag flair。 I ordered the Kickstarter book with 3 prints and even the prints they chose were some of the least compelling images from the set。 Having said that I was engrossed by the story & atmosphere， and the handful of images more in keeping with Stalenhag's signature style were worth it。 I will be ordering his other books now。 。。。more
Hollis Thompson
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I’m a huge fan of Stahlenhag but this one didn’t grab me like the others。 It felt more like a short story than a fleshed out， believable world。 Also the weird creatures and warped metalwork paintings almost play second fiddle to paintings of sinks filling with water。 Not what I came for！
Jesper Wiklund
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Det är väl kanske i första hand illustrationerna som Stålenhag är känd för men även berättelserna står bra för sig själva som noveller i världar som är främmande men ändå skrämmande bekanta。 Hörde att han sålt rättigheter till HBO eller liknande， det ser jag mycket fram emot。
cardulelia carduelis
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To call this a gloomy story would be an understatement。 It combines a bunch of pretty dismal themes and makes a mish-mash of claustrophobia and hopelessness。 Paintings are amazing， although reflect the gloomy palette。 But you decided to pick up a Stålenhag， so that's to be expected right？ To call this a gloomy story would be an understatement。 It combines a bunch of pretty dismal themes and makes a mish-mash of claustrophobia and hopelessness。 Paintings are amazing， although reflect the gloomy palette。 But you decided to pick up a Stålenhag， so that's to be expected right？ 。。。more
Chip
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Haunting。 Complex。 Somehow darker/grittier than Electric State or Loop。 Seems to be the opening salvo in a much longer book， but my intuition is that the rest is left up to our imaginations。 Would be thrilled to find a sequel on the way。 Well done， all around。 Now must wait for the next book （hurry up Simon！）
Lina
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3，5
ShingetsuMoon
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I received this book as part of a Kickstarter campaign。 This is a steady， slow tale of humanity and the loss of it in the apocalypse。 Two siblings and a child they took in and raised try to keep moving in a world that has long since fallen or continues to fall into decay。 It has a bit of a slow start and I wasn’t sure how well I liked the book at first。 But the second half of the plot was much stronger for me and more captivating。 It helped tie things together nicely。The artwork as always is bea I received this book as part of a Kickstarter campaign。 This is a steady， slow tale of humanity and the loss of it in the apocalypse。 Two siblings and a child they took in and raised try to keep moving in a world that has long since fallen or continues to fall into decay。 It has a bit of a slow start and I wasn’t sure how well I liked the book at first。 But the second half of the plot was much stronger for me and more captivating。 It helped tie things together nicely。The artwork as always is beautiful， haunting， and unsettling。 。。。more
Jemiah Jefferson
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Absolutely fantastic， as I expected， but as usual with Stalenhag， it exceeds expectations every time。 He's a gifted visual storyteller， and it seems he has a brilliant way with a story， too。 I read this in one sitting because I couldn't put it down， and I look forward to reading it again in the future。 Absolutely fantastic， as I expected， but as usual with Stalenhag， it exceeds expectations every time。 He's a gifted visual storyteller， and it seems he has a brilliant way with a story， too。 I read this in one sitting because I couldn't put it down， and I look forward to reading it again in the future。 。。。more
Erik
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Think of this as a graphic novel "novella" or short story。 This book deserves the Amazon Prime treatment like they did for Tales From the Loop。 Think of this as a graphic novel "novella" or short story。 This book deserves the Amazon Prime treatment like they did for Tales From the Loop。 。。。more
Alexis Roucourt
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Oddly enough， I usually love Stålenhag for the grandiose landscape and machine art， and this one is lighter on that front with more intimate frames， all basked in gloomy haze and dark tones （which is explained by the scenario） - yet I almost enjoyed it more than the other books。 The story feels more coherent， consistent with the art， and does reach a proper conclusion。 While there are a few repeated frames， it's generous in page count and art。 It feels like a proper art book， emphasis on "book" Oddly enough， I usually love Stålenhag for the grandiose landscape and machine art， and this one is lighter on that front with more intimate frames， all basked in gloomy haze and dark tones （which is explained by the scenario） - yet I almost enjoyed it more than the other books。 The story feels more coherent， consistent with the art， and does reach a proper conclusion。 While there are a few repeated frames， it's generous in page count and art。 It feels like a proper art book， emphasis on "book" with a full narrative， a pretty dark one at that。 I was torn between four and five stars but in the end this was pretty outstanding。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Erik Wirfs-Brock
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A good adult storybook/illustrated short story。 People wandering around a blasted post-apocalyptic landscape is not anything new in either science fiction or visual art， but this quick tale of violence and grief after the apocalypse was still a satisfying package。
Mark Seemann
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After my experience with The Electric State， which I found acceptable， I was ready to move on。 When I was invited to support the Kickstarter campaign for The Labyrinth， I wasn't sure I needed a fourth instalment of Simon Stålenhag， but I decided to back the project nonetheless。I'm glad I did。In a sense， The Labyrinth is similar to previous Stålenhag works。 It's an art book with the same format as the other books， with lots of full-page and double-spread colour illustrations， and a bit of text ab After my experience with The Electric State， which I found acceptable， I was ready to move on。 When I was invited to support the Kickstarter campaign for The Labyrinth， I wasn't sure I needed a fourth instalment of Simon Stålenhag， but I decided to back the project nonetheless。I'm glad I did。In a sense， The Labyrinth is similar to previous Stålenhag works。 It's an art book with the same format as the other books， with lots of full-page and double-spread colour illustrations， and a bit of text abutting some of the illustrations。Like The Electric State， the text is a narrative。 Gone， however， is the meandering travel report。 In its stead is a tightly structured story that takes the reader to a darker place than Stålenhag has gone before。Superficially， The Labyrinth looks as though it may take place in the same universe as Tales from the Loop and Things from the Flood， but I don't think that it does。 The Labyrinth also takes place in an alternate-history version of Sweden which seems to have diverted from our own in the mid-eighties， but things have taken a much darker turn。The story， too， is grim。 As I did with previous Stålenhag books， I resolved to only read a double-page a day， so as to savour the artwork。 This proved hard to keep up， as some of the artwork is clearly intended to be viewed as a sequence of stills， almost like a graphic novel， and the story， once it gets going， is a bit of a page turner。 I wanted to turn the page to see what would happen next， but I managed to keep my discipline。As the horror of the narrative unfolded， then， I was left pondering each new turn of events。 The story definitely didn't go where I initially expected it to go， but I found it both disturbing and evocative。I wasn't too impressed with the section named Granhammar with its many pictures of dull nineteen-eighties Scandinavian furniture。 I lived through that already， and found it as dull then as I do now。 Stålenhag is fourteen years my junior， so he likely has no personal memory of that era。 I suppose for the younger generation， this might evoke the same degree of nostalgia that the fifties and sixties may do for me， but I'm personally happy to have left the eighties behind。Fortunately， the eighties nostalgia passes quickly， and the story takes its dark turns。 I was quite affected by it， and satisfied with the ending as well。 。。。more
Tom
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I've seen Stålenhag's work around online， and have seen the Amazon adaptation of his book Tales from the Loop， so I jumped at the chance to check out The Labyrinth， and I'm glad I did！ The art is gorgeous， the story is melancholy and has an edge to it that is left just open enough to leave the reader wondering， and overall it's easy to get pulled in and live in the world of the book for a bit。 Maybe a little tougher of a read during this pandemic than it would have been otherwise， but all the sa I've seen Stålenhag's work around online， and have seen the Amazon adaptation of his book Tales from the Loop， so I jumped at the chance to check out The Labyrinth， and I'm glad I did！ The art is gorgeous， the story is melancholy and has an edge to it that is left just open enough to leave the reader wondering， and overall it's easy to get pulled in and live in the world of the book for a bit。 Maybe a little tougher of a read during this pandemic than it would have been otherwise， but all the same I'm glad I checked it out！ 。。。more
Steef
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I see in the reviews other people left here that many are a tad disappointed in the artwork compared to the earlier works。 While I agree on some level， I must note that the story and the artwork combined has gripped me in a way the previous works hadn't。 Those earlier works gripped me in a more astounding， fascinating way。 I doubt that a second read of this book will give me the same experience， but I thought it was very well executed。 The scenes that border on photorealism （or even hyperrealism I see in the reviews other people left here that many are a tad disappointed in the artwork compared to the earlier works。 While I agree on some level， I must note that the story and the artwork combined has gripped me in a way the previous works hadn't。 Those earlier works gripped me in a more astounding， fascinating way。 I doubt that a second read of this book will give me the same experience， but I thought it was very well executed。 The scenes that border on photorealism （or even hyperrealism） aren't what we're used to， but I think they work very well here indeed， in an oppresive way。 The lack of variation in scenes even add to this。 So to me， this book was a whole new and different experience from Stålenhag （and that is something I didn't expect from this book）。 I only rate books with five stars if they really gripped me， and stayed with me once I put them away， and this is definitely one of them。 。。。more
John Ronald
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I backed this Kickstarter and received my book very recently and finally got around to reading it cover to cover。 The story is very dark in theme and tone， but also in terms of the artwork。。。。the outdoor scenes in particular use a lot of very dark paints and it is difficult to discern as much detail compared to other Stalenhag works， which is slightly disappointing。 These are contrasted with the interior scenes of the outpost， which are very stark and institutional feeling。。。very simple scenes o I backed this Kickstarter and received my book very recently and finally got around to reading it cover to cover。 The story is very dark in theme and tone， but also in terms of the artwork。。。。the outdoor scenes in particular use a lot of very dark paints and it is difficult to discern as much detail compared to other Stalenhag works， which is slightly disappointing。 These are contrasted with the interior scenes of the outpost， which are very stark and institutional feeling。。。very simple scenes of prefab plastic chairs in a hallway， etc， or still life imagery of recently used cookware that is unpleasant to look at， since it fills the beholder with the desire to clean these fictional objects。 The paintings and text work in concert to tell a more complete story， but there is still much left to the imagination。 There is no mention of the Loop or its technology per se， but there are still giant Gauss airships and military grade Mecha， and the setting is still clearly rural Sweden。 Despite the vast scope of the dystopian world presented， it boils down to a simple story of murder and revenge and the institutionalized， dehumanizing cruelty of faceless bureaucracy。 Perhaps this dystopia is merely one of the possible outcomes of the mysterious， unknowable forces （"Black Globes"） released as a byproduct of the Loop; a road taken and explored but not a final answer。In sum， I did not enjoy this story or the artwork nearly as much as I have enjoyed other works by Stalenhag， from Tales from the Loop， Things from the Flood， or The Electric State。 This work was a disappointment by comparison。 If this were Stalenhag's first piece I might give it more stars as a strong first effort， but alas。。。 。。。more
Rich Rosell
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I am a huge fan of Stålenhag， with gorgeous full page art about a time that may be now， all enduring a vaguely explained apocalypse of some sort。 With 'Labyrinth' it centers the appearance of mysterious 'black globes' and the downward spiral that propels our not quite modern day civilization。The artwork is beautiful， the story is bleak， and it is wonderfully grim and desperate。I I am a huge fan of Stålenhag， with gorgeous full page art about a time that may be now， all enduring a vaguely explained apocalypse of some sort。 With 'Labyrinth' it centers the appearance of mysterious 'black globes' and the downward spiral that propels our not quite modern day civilization。The artwork is beautiful， the story is bleak， and it is wonderfully grim and desperate。I 。。。more
Kelley May
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Like everything else Simon Stålenhag has created， this was beautiful and heartbreaking。 I’ll continue to be a huge fan。 Can’t wait to see what he does next。
Joe
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 It's bittersweet when I finish a book feeling unsatisfied because it felt too short。 The world of The Labyrinth is terribly fascinating， I just wanted more of it。 The artwork of post-apocalyptic cityscapes and a lonely research station are as emotionally evocative as in The Electric State （my favorite of the series）， but the narrative is significantly shorter than the previous books。 The alternating pieces of personal story and historical reports in TES perfectly unveiled the horror of the setti It's bittersweet when I finish a book feeling unsatisfied because it felt too short。 The world of The Labyrinth is terribly fascinating， I just wanted more of it。 The artwork of post-apocalyptic cityscapes and a lonely research station are as emotionally evocative as in The Electric State （my favorite of the series）， but the narrative is significantly shorter than the previous books。 The alternating pieces of personal story and historical reports in TES perfectly unveiled the horror of the setting gradually and gave context to the protagonists' actions， but when TL lacks any hints that there is some explanation as to what the Black Globes or megaflora are， where they came from， or what caused them to show up on Earth （even if we don't get every question answered）， it just feels arbitrary and pretentious。 Mysterious bad things happened because the plot required it。 I really hope there's a sequel book like Things from the Flood， so this darkly beautiful world and its descent into chaos can be revisited and fleshed out even more。 。。。more
Megan W。
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I loved the story， but was disappointed by the art。 Stålenhag’s talent for photorealism feels wasted on the same bland interiors and dark， muddy exteriors。 The striking， dreamlike views of his other books are absent， in large part because everything is SO hazy and washed out。 The cover image shown here on Goodreads？ Picture that in photoshop with brightness and saturation turned down 50-60% and you’ll have what it looks like IRL。 Story’s great， though。 Super dark in a way that works better for p I loved the story， but was disappointed by the art。 Stålenhag’s talent for photorealism feels wasted on the same bland interiors and dark， muddy exteriors。 The striking， dreamlike views of his other books are absent， in large part because everything is SO hazy and washed out。 The cover image shown here on Goodreads？ Picture that in photoshop with brightness and saturation turned down 50-60% and you’ll have what it looks like IRL。 Story’s great， though。 Super dark in a way that works better for plot than art。 。。。more
Russell Berg
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Such an amazing painter。 These art books tell dark and compelling post-apocalyptic story。
Liam Murphy
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After watching Tales From the Loop on Amazon， I found Simon Stålenhag。 Instantly became a fan of his art and bought into his latest kickstarter for The Labyrinth。 The book itself is a very short read， I finished it in an hour。 The best part is the imagery。 Stunning art that compliments the story and elevates the reader to new understanding of the narrative。
Robert Reese
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A post apocalyptic tale illustrated by Simon Stålenhag。 What’s not to like。 The story is grim though。
Marty H
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This was super creepy。It's basically a short story， written and illustrated by Simon Stalenhag。 He got internet famous a while back for his 80s-era alternate history paintings， where he shows little slice-of-life moments in some Nordic place that also features giant aliens and robots and weird technology。 Awesome stuff。He's done a couple books now， but this is the first I've read。 It has a few moments in it that got my heart racing， and does suuuuuuch a great job of teasing out information， just This was super creepy。It's basically a short story， written and illustrated by Simon Stalenhag。 He got internet famous a while back for his 80s-era alternate history paintings， where he shows little slice-of-life moments in some Nordic place that also features giant aliens and robots and weird technology。 Awesome stuff。He's done a couple books now， but this is the first I've read。 It has a few moments in it that got my heart racing， and does suuuuuuch a great job of teasing out information， just enough to answer a couple questions while asking a few more。 It's really well paced。I'm also just a sucker for his style。 It's part sci-fi， part horror， part Stand-By-Me / E。T。 nostalgia。 The content of the illustrations this time around is sometimes more everyday， but while that makes them less mind-bending， they're more evocative for it。 Overall， I found it really engaging， even if it only took an hour or so to read through it。 I'm sure I'll revisit it later。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Labyrinth
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Labyrinth&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Labyrinth&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0