I expected this to be a mindless trashy gore-fest, but instead, it was an actual book with a well developed story. Timing in the book seemed a bit off at times, and there were some characters who deserved to die but didn't however overall it was a fun book to read. ( )

Coco Keahi, a marine biologist from Hawaii, is the star of this creature feature. Off the coast of a Fiji island, James White has financed the building of a magnificent underwater hotel. Dolphin shows and underwater sub tours are just a few of the distractions offered to the guests. It’s opening weekend and the special guests have started to arrive just as things have started to fall apart.

This book was quite a bit of fun! Just simply saying ‘megalodon’ is fun. I’m a fan of the mysteriously appearing supposedly-extinct critter plot and watching the characters figure out they are facing a megalodon was great. Coco was just recently brought on and one of her main tasks is to drive the sub and tell the passengers all about the marine life. She and Mick (the mechanic) work to fine tune the sub, and that’s when Coco has her first hint that something isn’t right. Later, the air conditioners for the hotel get a bit sluggish, so Coco and Mick have to go clean out the cold water intake and find another clue.

The action picks up from there. The tram that takes guests from dry land to the underwater hotel suffers. Coco comes to the rescue – yes! She’s got skills and brains. Yet even as Coco tries to save the hotel staff and the guests, an adversary works against her. Not only does Coco have the world’s biggest living shark to contend with, but she also has this egomaniac that wants her dead. She definitely rises to the occasion!

There was plenty to like about this book. The big glass window showing off the natural marine life at the hotel bar sounded gorgeous! Clarissa really cared about the dolphins she trained, though I did feel a little sorry for the dolphins by the end of the book. I really liked that the cast of characters was so ethnically diverse – hooray! The last quarter of the book had plenty of action and while Coco was the main hero of the story, there were plenty of other characters doing heroic things as well. The ending was quite satisfying. Marine life goes on, despite human frivolities.

I received a copy of this book at no cost from the narrator (via Audiobook Boom) in exchange for an honest review.

Narration: Andrew Tell did a great job with this book. While the main character was female, Tell pulled off a savvy female voice for Coco quite well. There were also plenty of accents too and Tell did them all with competence. Indeed, I think Tell enjoyed narrating this book almost as much as I enjoyed listening to it. ( )

I expected this to be a mindless trashy gore-fest, but instead, it was an actual book with a well developed story. Timing in the book seemed a bit off at times, and there were some characters who deserved to die but didn't however overall it was a fun book to read. ( )