All The White Spaces by Ally Wilkes

Jo was always envious of older brothers Rufus and Francis; the freedom they were allowed while Jo had to stay at home, their shared plans for the future, particularly their intent to join an expedition to Antarctica led by famous explorer, James 'Australis' Randall. When Rufus and Francis are killed during the Great War, Jo resolves to take up their plan and journey south - even if that means stowing away.

As the expedition leaves any signs of civilisation behind, tension aboard the Fortitude increases. Despite his reputation, not everyone totally trusts him, and the weather conditions are not looking good with too much sea-ice for the time of year, but it's once the Ice proper is reached that things start to go really wrong. A fire forces the crew to leave the ship, taking sleds and heading for the base of a rival German expedition, but this is found empty, and seemingly haunted by ghosts which call men out onto the ice and into terrible danger.

Set in the early 20th century period of great Polar exploration, all The White Spaces is a story of self-discovery and -determination set against a backdrop of  icy wastes and encroaching horror. Arctic/Antarctic stories always have some sort of pull over me - the everlasting days of summer, the equally lengthy nights of winter, the necessity for self-reliance and courage against almost over-whelming odds. So naturally I loved this. The ice and its hazards, the gradually shortening days, the complete isolation are all brilliantly captured, and make the reader feel there in this last human outpost.

The horror is finely balanced - not too much left to the imagination, not too self-explanatory (for want of a better word). Maybe it grows from the men, from their deeply hidden fears or desires, or their memories of the horrors of war - maybe it truly is something lurking in that remote place - but the men's reactions to it feel honest and believable. 

It's a story for both readers of historical adventure and horror. From the historical perspective there are similarities with Shackleton's doomed frozen-in-the-ice expedition, whose outcome I half-expected this story to follow (it doesn't). In fiction, an obvious comparison is Dan Simmons' The Terror, and if you loved that, either in book or on TV, you'll love All The White Spaces, but I preferred this as it doesn't take a real-life mystery and add unnecessary 'make-believe' horror. That element is an integral part of All The White Spaces, and the story better balanced for it.