The End of All Things: A Labyrinth of Souls Novel

by Matthew Lowes

Rithik is a hunter of artifacts among the ancient cities of a long-gone, advanced civilization. Infected with ghost flesh, a fatal disease caught in the ruins, he is banished from his village and must find his way in the wastelands. With the help of a mutant dog, he ventures into the post-apocalyptic underworld in search of the answers to life and death. In the dark forgotten depths, they discover extraordinary secrets and terrible dangers hidden by the catastrophic downfall of ages past. And in the farthest reaches of the labyrinth, Rithik must face the greatest enigma of all—himself. An incredible journey from the creator of the Dungeon Labyrinth of Souls tarot card game.

212 pages, Paperback

Published August 30, 2017

Reviews

[Stephen Vessels]

The End of All Things, brief as it is (a mere 207 pages), has the scope of a twelfth century Nordic saga translated into speculative fiction. Both post-apocalyptic SF and metaphysical quest, it follows Rithik, a professional scavenger afflicted with a terminal illness called “the ghost flesh,” on his search for healing. Uncertain if it really exists, he seeks a fabled cave, dwelling place of the supernatural being Yananna, who alone may possess the power to cure him.
Along the way, like penetrating historical strata, Rithik journeys through the remnants of broken civilizations, first in a desert wasteland, and later in an subterranean labyrinth that winds ever downward. He acquires two companions: Waro, a talking dog, possibly a product of biological experiments, and Laila, high priestess of an underground realm. Their interactions lend warmth to a tale laden with tragedy.
Taking its own unique place among iconic SF quest stories like William F. Nolan’s “Logan’s Run” and Robert Silverberg’s “Downward to the Earth,” “The End of All Things” is a well-written tale with a heart. The world building is deftly realized, and the lure of mystery so compelling that the book is hard to put down. Pulling off the magic trick that was a hallmark of Ray Bradbury’s works, Lowes takes you through the darkest of human potentials without letting you lose your affection for humanity. A marvelous read.

[Eric Witchey]

The End of All Things, by Matthew Lowes, scratched an itch I've been having lately. Not only was a fun ride in a new world, it continued the strong showing for Shadow Spinners Press's Labyrinth of Souls series of short novels. Matt is the designer of the game, Dungeon Solitaire, that inspired the series, so I fully expected such a creative guy to give me a good dungeon crawl. However, I'm wondering how he knew I had been binging cold war 1950s and 60s post-apocalyptic films lately. I was raised on films like Red Planet, Window in Time, Attack of the Mole Men, and The Time Machine. The main character of The End of All Things, Rithik, is an artifact hunter. He rummages through the ruins of the world that was. An incurable illness drives him to seek a cure or to die in the attempt. His adventure seeking out the death goddess who can cure him leads him into the darkness of dangerous, mutant-infested cavernous ancient shelters and took me right back to my early teens and late nights in Ohio watching old drive-in monster movies. I loved it! Lowes even sprinkled in just the lightest touch of the later film, A Boy and His Dog. This is fast read worth looking forward to.

[Elizabeth Engstrom]

This is a very fun post apocalyptic tale that takes place in the Labyrinth of Souls universe. Rithic, who suffers from a disease called Ghost Flesh, along with his talking dog companion, searches through the rubble of civilizations past, looking for that which will cure him and the civilizations to come. The Labyrinth of Souls series of novels and novellas is based upon the solitaire game with Tarot cards, written by Matthew Lowes.

[Mary Lowd]

This novel is a post-apocalyptic adventure through a complex and textured world. It kept me hooked from the beginning all the way through to the mind-bending end. Also, a note for my furry followers: while this is not really a furry book, there is a significant side character who's a talking dog.