6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
exciting police procedural, May 4, 2005
This review is from: Dangerous Depths: An Underwater Investigation (Paperback)
Police underwater diver and homicide investigator Hannah Sampson went down to the British Virgin Island as a favor to her boss who wanted someone on his team nearby during the inquiries into the death of his son there. Hannah loved it so much that she quit her job in Denver and went to work as a detective in BVI in Tortuga. After a year of living there she has a lover, good friends and a houseboat where she can look out at the sea every day.
One day she is awakened by an explosion and sees the Caribbe on fire and sinking into the water. She dives and brings up her friend Elyse Henry who lapses into a coma. Evidence points to the incident being an accident because she left her propane stove on, which apparently sparked and caught fire. Hannah's instinct tells her somebody was trying to murder her friend. In defiance of her boss' orders to leave the case alone, the determined Hannah tries to prove her instincts are correct, but almost gets killed in the process.
DANGEROUS DEPTHS is an exciting police procedural set in an exotic setting. What makes the attempt on Elyse's life interesting is that she didn't have an enemy with a motive to murder her; so readers keep wondering why as they seek along aside the heroine to find out who the killer is. Armchair travelers beware! Once you read this book, you'll want to hop at plane and visit the unspoiled British Virgin Islands.
Harriet Klausner
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dangerous Depths, June 24, 2005
This review is from: Dangerous Depths: An Underwater Investigation (Paperback)
Third in a great series. This book, in particular, will take you for a ride both above and underwater with enough twists and surprises to satisfy any reader. I have a love of diving and a healthy respect for the Sea. It is obvious Kathy Brandt does too. Through her facinating main character, Hannah Sampson, she tells a heck of a yarn, but in so doing gives us all a tast of beauty, danger, romance and the need to respect our "one earth" and its endangered species.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Some Danger with little Depth in "Dangerous Depths", September 22, 2006
This review is from: Dangerous Depths: An Underwater Investigation (Paperback)
Detective Hannah Sampson is back in her third adventure and this time dealing with what she believes was an attempted homicide. It was Sampson who was first on the scene when her friend Elyse Henry was thrown into the burning sea by an explosion aboard the boat "Caribbe." Sampson was asleep on board her own boat "Sea Bird" when the noise woke her up and she investigated. Despite her injuries due to the flames, she was able to rescue Elyse who now lies in the hospital in a coma.
For Hannah Sampson, she believes that the explosion and resulting fire were caused by foul play. Everyone else, including Chief Dun of the Tortola Police Department, believes it was just an accident. Elyse Henry, advent environmentalist especially in regards to the sea turtles and the coral reef, annoyed some of the natives in the British Virgin Islands and appealed to others. With no real evidence other than a gut feeling on Hannah's part, Dun wants her to move on to more serious and obvious matters such as who is breaking into charter boats and stealing stuff. Hannah is not about to let anything go.
What follows is a rather simplistic but enjoyable read. The second storyline of the break-ins on the charters is rather obvious as is the author's feelings on environmental issues. Frequently the narrative read stops completely as the groups are portrayed simplistically as either for or against the environment and the reader is lectured. Like the character development itself, the lectures are simplistic and cultural differences regarding native islanders are mentioned but basically ignored.
The main plot line is enjoyable however and holds a couple of minor surprises. Obviously, the author loves the area she writes about and that comes through clearly to the reader when she concentrates on her main plot and the beauty of the area. When that is in play, the story moves forward at a steady pace. Unfortunately, the lectures are frequent and not at all subtle or woven skillfully into the story and thus, stop the action and the reader cold.
The overall result is an average read at best. Simplistic on all levels, this is a pleasant diversion for a couple of hours.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2006
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