thriller

Beached

Winner of both the Royal Palm Literary Award for Book of the Year and the Royal Palm Literary Award for Best Mystery

Marine biologist and scuba diver Meredith Cavallo’s life unravels after she finds a plastic-wrapped bundle floating on the waves off Key Largo. Curious, she pulls it onboard and finds herself sucked into a maelstrom involving an obscure legend, an 18th century shipwreck, and a modern pirate who’ll resort to murder to claim the booty first.

Thrust into the hunt for a ship with no historical record, Mer plunges into the world of nautical archaeology. But for a woman accustomed to dealing with facts, deciphering secrets proves difficult—and everyone she encounters harbors their own skeletons. A sinister betrayal sends her reeling, and even with the help of a crusty former marine salvager, a fiery professor, and her friends on the island, Mer realizes she’s in over her head. Determined to outwit the man who wants her dead, she’s certain of only one thing—treasure is trouble.

“Beached is a non-stop mystery thrill ride.” —The Big Thrill Magazine

“Browning incorporates fact with fiction...to seamlessly create a fast-moving story filled with suspenseful danger and double-dealing chicanery.” —The Key West Citizen

“As an avid diver myself, you don’t find many books that accurately convey the diving experience. [Mer Cavallo] books are great action adventure novels with fast pacing and great character development.” —M. Wheat

Note: This is the 2nd book in the series, but can be read as a standalone.

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Into the Drowning Deep

New York Times bestselling author Mira Grant returns with a novel that takes us to a new world of ancient mysteries and mythological dangers come to life.

The ocean is home to many myths, but some are deadly. . .

Seven years ago, the Atargatis set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to film a mockumentary bringing to life ancient sea creatures of legend. It was lost at sea with all hands. Some have called it a hoax; others have called it a tragedy.

Now, a new crew has been assembled. This time they’re not out to entertain. Some seek the truth. Some seek to validate their life’s work. Some seek the greatest hunt of all. But for scientist Victoria Stewart, this is a voyage to uncover the fate of the sister she lost.

Whatever the truth may be, it will only be found below the waves. However, the secrets of the deep come with a price.

Into the Drowning Deep is an irresistible thriller with the “heady brew of fascinating science, visceral horror, and, of course, the hubris of mankind in the face of the awesome unknown” (Kirkus).

“The perfect eerie October read. The writing is so lush and beautiful, while the story is filled with action and fast paced.” —Meltotheany

”Engrossing and adrenaline-fueled.”―Shelf Awareness

“Entertained and enraptured from the first page to the last.” ―Bookriot

”Absolutely delivers ... Best-selling author Mira Grant is one of today's best authors of the genre, and Into the Drowning Deep takes its place among her best work.” ―Vulture

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The Girl Beneath the Sea

Coming from scandalous Florida treasure hunters and drug smugglers, Sloan McPherson is forging her own path, for herself and for her daughter, out from under her family’s shadow. An auxiliary officer for Lauderdale Shores PD, she’s the go-to diver for evidence recovery. Then Sloan finds a fresh kill floating in a canal—a woman whose murky history collides with Sloan’s. Their troubling ties are making Sloan less a potential witness than a suspect. And her colleagues aren’t the only ones following every move she makes. So is the killer.

Stalked by an assassin, pitted against a ruthless cartel searching for a lost fortune, and under watch within her ranks, Sloan has only one ally: the legendary DEA agent who put Sloan’s uncle behind bars. He knows just how deep corruption runs—and the kind of danger Sloan is in. To stay alive, Sloan must stay one step ahead of her enemies—both known and unknown—and a growing conspiracy designed to pull her under.

“Distinctive characters and a genuinely thrilling finale…Readers will look forward to Sloan’s further adventures.” —Publishers Weekly

“Mayne writes with a clipped narrative style that gives the story rapid-fire propulsion, and populates the narrative with a rogue’s gallery of engaging characters…[A] winning new series with a complicated female protagonist that combines police procedural with adventure story and mixes the styles of Lee Child and Clive Cussler.” —Library Journal

“The Girl Beneath the Sea continuously dives deeper and deeper until you no longer know whom Sloan can trust. This is a terrific entry in a new and unique series.” —Criminal Element

“Wall Street Journal bestselling author Andrew Mayne is the absolute master of creating gutsy characters who thrive in extreme circumstances. I found myself almost gasping as I followed Sloan into the fantastical and shadowy underwater world. But I was careful to remember the first rule of scuba diving: never hold your breath.” —Liz Pearsons, Thomas & Mercer Publishing Editor

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Swimming with the Dead

Murder runs deep in this thrilling underwater investigation series featuring CSI Diver Hannah Sampson…

Hannah Sampson knows terror. Unseeable, unknowable predators that lurk in the deep. She’s a cop, an expert diver, and leader of the Denver Underwater CSI team. For Hannah, diving is nasty business in polluted lakes and frigid reservoirs where no one is ever found alive.

When her police commissioner's son is found dead pinned under the submerged wreck of a cargo ship, Sampson is summoned to the sun-drenched beaches of the British Virgin Islands to investigate. She is fully prepared to face unknowable dangers beneath the crystal-clear waters of an idyllic paradise. But the possibility of murder runs deeper and darker than the sea itself.

Whatever the victim was looking for, he found. Whatever he found was the death of him. Now, Hannah must discover for herself what lies beneath—a secret that could literally take Hannah's breath away.

Written by an avid scuba diver based in Colorado.

“Hannah Sampson is a cop, but with a twist. She’s in charge of the Denver Police Department’s dive and recovery team—retrieving evidence and investigating underwater crime scenes. For her, diving is a job, not recreation. Swimming with the Dead reminded me of the early Kay Scarpetta mysteries by Patricia Cornwell. I remember thinking when I read the first Scarpetta that it was going to make a great, long-lived series . . . the writing smooth, the heroine strong and yet vulnerable, the whole concept intriguing. . . . Ditto for Swimming with the Dead. I think it may be an even better series.” —Mystery News

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Depth Charge

Julian “Tusker” Tusk, an American archaeologist, is excavating a shipwreck half a world from home when a research boat catches fire and sinks, killing an old friend. The tragedy sets in motion a dangerous quest for truth that pulls Tusker into a sinister plot spanning 75 years, from World War II Ceylon to modern day Sri Lanka. Along the way, he matches wits with a psychopathic mercenary, discovers a long lost ship with an explosive secret, and falls for a beautiful marine biologist who is at least as strong as he is. In the end, Tusker finds that the truth may lie at the bottom of the sea, with only one way back to the surface.

Depth Charge is an old school thriller in the tradition of Fleming, Maclean, and Cussler, with an eye for detail, cunning villains, and narrow escapes. The story is full of wartime secrets, the intersection of religion and politics, and the arcane world of deep technical diving. It takes readers from the smoky halls of 1940s London to the volatile, seductive heat of Sri Lanka and sixty fathoms under the Indian Ocean. Try not to hold your breath.

Written by Jason Heaton, a tech diver The New York Times once called, “a test pilot for the world’s most illustrious undersea timepieces.” Heaton is a member of the prestigious Explorers Club and has a decade-long history of adventure, travel, wristwatch, and gear writing. His work has appeared in Outside magazine, Gear Patrol, Men’s Journal, Wired, Australian Geographic, and Hodinkee. He is also the co-host of the popular podcast, The Grey NATO.

(A special thank you to Ron Watkins for the book suggestion.)

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