• Forest

  • The Afterlife Investigations, Book 2
  • By: Ambrose Ibsen
  • Narrated by: Joe Hempel
  • Length: 5 hrs and 22 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (553 ratings)

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Forest  By  cover art

Forest

By: Ambrose Ibsen
Narrated by: Joe Hempel
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Publisher's summary

"You should not have answered its call...."

Professor Stephen Barlow is no longer a skeptic. Having faced the horrors of Chaythe Asylum, he turns his attention to the man responsible for the Third Ward Incident - the enigmatic Dr. Corvine - in the hopes of finding answers to his many questions.

But some things, he soon learns, are better left lost to history.

Traveling to a remote cabin in Michigan in search of the doctor and his research, Stephen finds himself descending deeper into a world of terror and madness. He and his students uncover the frightful truth about Corvine's experiments and realize that they may have unleashed something terrible in their meddling.

Forest is the second novel in the Afterlife Investigations trilogy.

The Afterlife Investigations

  • Asylum
  • Forest
  • The Occupant

©2017 Ambrose Ibsen (P)2017 Ambrose Ibsen

What listeners say about Forest

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant sequel.

I couldn't wait for this to come to audio because Joe Hempel really brought the first to life and I knew he would nail this one!

After the events of the first book, Stephen is intent on finding out more about what was released when they opened the Asylum. This time round, Elizabeth and Jake want nothing to do with it so Stephen sets off alone. But Jake soon calls him and tells him Elizabeth is acting strange. With everything Stephen learns about what Dr. Corvine was doing, it doesn't take him long to realise that Elizabeth is in serious danger.

I loved book 1 and couldn't wait to dive into this one!! This is just as good as book one, if not better!! There isn't as much supernatural happenings in this one. Instead we dive deeper into Dr. Corvines past and, to me anyway, that was much scarier!! Stephen and Jake's investigation takes them to places that were wiped off the maps. I had chills for pretty much all of the book!!

The characters are as good as ever. Stephen has grown a lot since the first book. He isn't the novice and skeptic he was back then. The deeper he goes into the doctors past and his experiments, the worse it is. Jake is his hesitant partner in crime, but again, he has grown a lot from the grunting, jealous boy he was in book 1! All the characters were well written and developed.

In all, this was such an amazing read. Ambrose Ibsen is a writer more should know about. Ever singe book I've read by him has been different and captivating. He knows how to write a scary book and when you pair that book with Joe Hempel, well, it's a winner!! Go read some of this authors work. You will be instantly hooked!!

Joe Hempel is such an easy narrator to listen to. He makes listening to books effortless!! He is always clear, always knows how to make inflections work and always, always delivers a flawless performance. He is a narrator I recommend to people because I know they will enjoy his performance.

I was voluntarily provided this audiobook for free from the author, narrator, or publisher. This in no way affected nor influenced my thoughts.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Forest

I like this audiobook. It's the second book in a series based around a group of paranormal investigators beginning with their initial case at Chaythe Asylum. Professor Barlow, leading two wayward students, embarks on the initial case to find out exactly what happened at Chaythe Asylum and if anything is still lingering behind.behind.

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8 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Forest literally leaves you dangling from the tree

Forest is the sequel to Asylum: The Afterlife Investigations, Book 1. It is a thriller, horror, paranormal story written by Ambrose Ibsen. If you have not read or listen to Asylum, STOP reading now. It is impossible to write a review of Forest without mentioning plot points from Asylum.

Stephen Barlow is an adjunct professor at an Ohio college we met in Asylum. He witnesses a student being killed by a hit and run. Shortly afterward he becomes involved with two students, Elizabeth and Jake who want to form a Spiritual Club ( paranormal not kumbaya). They investigate Chaythe Asylum and inadvertently release something evil that has been stuck there for 28 years.

As Forest begins, Stephen has decided since they released the evil from the asylum, they are responsible for trying to find and stop it. Elizabeth and Jake are significantly traumatized by the events at the asylum and refuse to help.

As in the first book, Mr. Ibsen does a nice job of creating a pervading sense of dread. Each event from the first book connects neatly to Stephen navigating a dark forest with a shadowy figure that alternates leading and following. It undoubtedly figures that escaped the asylum. What Stephen finds in the forest is more horrifying than what was discovered at the asylum. As the story progresses, Stephen, Jake, and Elizabeth face a more dangerous evil. Forest does not have the same ending as Asylum. Forest literally leaves you dangling from the tree by your fingertips with the tiger walking around the base, patiently. It compels you to get to the next book in the series as soon as possible.

Joe Hempel does a great job narrating Forest as he did Asylum. He conveys the tension and fear just as well in this book as he did in the two other Ibsen books I have listened to. While the story gets very intense, Mr.Hempel never veers in hysteria or yelling. I really enjoyed his narration. I am looking forward to hearing Mr. Hempel narrate the conclusion to this trilogy by Ibsen.
Audiobook was provided for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Good followup to Asylum

Good second part to the story. Not as good as the first but definitely has me wanting to listen to the third part. You need to listen to the first book in order to understand what is going on in this book and you don't get an ending in this one so I hope the third one comes out soon. Finally starting to like Stephen a bit but hate how for someone who is broke he is constantly eating out and wasting money.

As always the Ibsen / Hempel combo is a knockout.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fun Series

Though I liked 'Asylum' more than 'Forest,' it's hard to go wrong with both Ambrose Ibsen and Joe Hempel - two of my very favorite artists on Audible. 'Forest' picks up right where 'Asylum' left off and this series should definitely be read in order. If you like an adventure series about the paranormal, then this is the series for you!

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Creepy and spine chilling

This second book in The Afterlife Investigations series is even more creepy and spine chilling than the first. Stephen, not as sceptical or naive as in the first book, is determined to try to find out more about the entity in order to eliminate it. Elizabeth and Jake are both traumatized by what happened in the asylum and refuse to help, but are drawn in by a scary twist. Most of the action takes place in the forest, where they once again face a horrifying and dangerous entity. The narrator really brought out the creepiness with his tone and inflection. His pace and voice kept in line with what was happening and he gave each character individual voices, which added greatly to the intensity, scariness and tension of this story. Well written and narrated this audiobook will have you sleeping with all the lights on and dying for the next book so you can find out what happened.

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Creeptastic continuation!

Ok so this is book 2i in the series so make sure you hit “Asylum” first. This literally picks up the day after their adventures in the asylum and there are some big reveals and twists in this book! Same great characters as in the first book with one or two additional surprises that I did not see coming. Of course the ending is not an ending as there is one last book that needs to come to audible soon! Joe Hempel does a phenomenal job yet again with the narration. For those who have listened to other Ibsen books there is a cameo you may pick up too. Looking forward to the conclusion! I received a free review copy of this book at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Thanks!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I'm ready for The Occupant!

Wow! What a follow up book! I could not wait for The Forest audio book, after listening to The Asylum I was totally hooked on this story. The Forest has only strengthened my desire to hear this story out. Joe Hempel reads this story perfectly!! Hempel really portrays the confused college professor who is fiercely determined to figure all everything out. Hempel has this easy voice that makes listening to this book just fly by. His speaking and enunciation is clear and precise! He’s one of my favorite narrators.

The story line is great! Ambrose Ibsen and Joe Hempel create this perfect creepy feel with a gradual build up of tension. This series has been my first Ibsen books but they are so good that I’m going to have to research the authors work. I’m hooked! Dr. Corvine is a fascinating character to learn about… he was really messing with things way above his pay grade. We learn more in this book and we get a bit more into the fear that Stephan, Jake, and probably Elizabeth feel.

I’m again left waiting as patiently as I can for the next book… The Occupant! Can’t wait for more… is it too much to hope that it would be out before Halloween?

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    5 out of 5 stars
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The occupant is back!

2nd book in a paranormal trilogy...in asylum the team went into the asylum to investigate the haunting and try and get some connection to the other side. They got more than they bargained for though they did manage to get out...the downside was that the occupant got out of the asylum as well. Now the team must find out where the occupant came from what it wants and how to send it back. Will they be able to? What of the doctor? His mysterious first patient? Good luck team, and beware of the occupant. Wonderful creepy story and the narration for it is spot on. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

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Great entry to this series

I absolutely loved this. It actually creeped me out as much as the first one. The author is very good at building subtle tension. We get a lot more detail on the web that we saw was in place in the first one, and the ever present spider at the center of it does not disappoint in this one. I loved how completely outmatched the characters are by the entity. I honestly have no clue how it's going to end and it's great. The narrator is just spot on as the now-frazzled professor as well. Highly recommended, especially at this time of year just before Halloween.

I received a free copy of this at my request in exchange for an unbiased review.

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