Andrew Mayne is the master of stories centered around underwater diving. In Dark Dive he focuses on the police/archeological dive team of Sloan McPherson and Scott Hughes. Having read Black Coral, Underwater Investigation Unit #2 I thought that would bring me current with this book which is installment #5. While Dark Dive may be read as a stand-alone I would have been better served if I had read #3 and #4. There were many references to these previous installments that were important to understand the current dynamic.

Dark Dive strings together a bunch of interesting characters, who dive some very interesting and creepy places - sinkholes that have filled with water becoming caves that may be thousands of years old. Scary places with spaces that are more closed in, everything feels darker and more dangerous, completely antithetical to what we think of when we refer to Sunny Florida.

Mayne goes into elaborate detail about the many dive sites geography, topography and does an excellent job of creating a mood that creeped me out completely. Trudging through high grass, swamp, muck and yuck to get to these inland dive sites where panthers, bears, pythons, anacondas, alligators and worse hide and wait - the stuff of nightmares. McPherson no longer goes into the water to study Florida’s prehistory, she now dives “to recover bodies or look for traces of the most evil acts humans commit.” The stage is set, a diver known for his planning and caution, liked and respected among the dive community, goes missing. His disappearance is compounded by his misappropriated identity.

Dark Dive is a suspense driven murder mystery which includes just enough technical cave diving information. I had no problem understanding the mechanics of each dive. While it took just a bit to relate to the prologue when I made the connection it was brilliant and the extra history provided was a huge plus. Mayne has written a really good book combining so many interesting elements and subjects and leaving just the smallest doubt which is never a bad thing.

Many thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for a copy. ( )

A very good entry in this excellent series. Lots of relevant archeology and serious advanced technical dive support ( )

Don't miss the latest in this crime thriller series.

Are you a fan of crime thrillers and mysteries but looking for a unique approach? Look no further, as the members of the Underwater Investigation Unit in Florida are investigating unusual cases below the surface. Their specialty is diving for exploration, body retrieval, crime scene analysis, and other bad stuff that can be discovered in the depths. From canal to ocean to sinkholes in the marshland, the squad is on the job.

In this 5th installment, Sloan McPherson and her partner, Scott Hughes, are searching for a friend of hers, another diver, who has gone missing. Fred Stafford was apparently checking out isolated ponds or sinkholes, but his truck and some gear is found with no sign of him. When they start checking into what he might have been doing before he vanished, they find something really odd in a secret storage shed. Seems he's gotten himself mixed up in something quite unexpected.

I enjoyed this one as Sloan actually gets to use some of her archeology background knowledge. As always, the details of the dive experiences are interesting, and the reader feels as if alongside them. Although not a diver myself, I find the descriptions of the hows and whys quite absorbing. There was an instance where a line of the plot simply went nowhere, but other than that, this was a solid c narrative that kept me engrossed. I'll continue on in this series and do think it should be read in order. I like the characters and the changes they go through in their work and personal lives.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-book ARC to read, review, and recommend. ( )

I always look forward to reading the latest Underwater Investigation Unit thriller. I've learned a lot about diving in different locations-- in Dark Dive, it's sinkholes and underwater caverns-- and about the state of Florida itself. Florida seems to be the home of abandoned "pet/monsters": pythons, anacondas, Nile crocodiles... let alone the native alligators, and Sloan has to take the wildlife into account each time she dives.

The diving sequences are always riveting. You never know what's going to spring at Sloan from out of the murk, and I have to admit that I enjoy the vicarious scares. But it's not all fast-paced thrills and technical gadgetry. I wish every state in the country could have someone with the savvy of Sloan's boss, George Solar. To smooth the way for his investigators, Solar has two RVs-- one filled with lawyers ready, willing, and able to get search warrants and other legal necessities, and the second armed with CSI techs and all the lab equipment they need to avoid the interminable delays of local law enforcement backlogs. Sweet, eh?

Even sweeter is the fact that the cast of characters is just as strong as the story, the thrills, and the technology. I like Sloan's irreverent voice, and her partner Scott is increasingly figuring into the stories. In addition, there's always a one-time character whom you wish could become a recurring one. In Dark Dive, it's octogenarian Gayle Pinnesky. I just loved her to bits!

Exciting story, lots to learn, fantastic setting with a touch of the alien about it, and great characters. If you haven't already gone diving with Andrew Mayne's Underwater Investigation Unit, it's time you did!

(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley) ( )

Dark Dive by Andrew Mayne brings back divers Sloan McPherson and Scott Hughes from the Florida Underwater Investigation Unit. It is a highly recommended procedural.

Sloan and Hughes are summoned by their boss George Solar to recover a coroners van and the two bodies in it from an alligator breeding ground. After the harrowing dive Sloan had to make, their next case is that of a missing person, Fred Stafford, who is also a longtime family friend of Sloan. It seems Stafford was diving and/or treasure hunting with a group of underwater cavern junkies called the Dive Rats. It also is clear that he was diving in the many sinkholes located in Florida and his truck is found near an unmarked sinkhole. Sloan is concerned that they may be looking for a body. The investigation takes some twists and turns along the way to an exciting conclusion.

Dark Dive meets the criteria for an exciting thriller/procedural, further cementing Mayne as a dependable go-to writer for the genre. There are plenty of twists and interesting details uncovered during the investigation. Although I was pleased with the main case, there is one story line that is left unresolved and a few other questions that were left unanswered. I liked the inclusion of Hughes' ROV, remotely operated vehicle, and AI into the narrative. Dangers the team face are numerous and many of them in the wild - big cats, alligators, crocodiles, anacondas, pythons, to name a few, along with the human threats.

For those new to the series, it can be read as a standalone novel. There is enough information and background about the characters to easily slid into their world and enjoy the investigation. Thanks to Thomas & Mercer for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2024/03/dark-dive.html ( )