The Deep by Michaelbrent Collings

The Deep by Michaelbrent Collings
Narrator: Al Kessel
Published by Self Published / Indie on 31 May 2018
Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins
Genres: Horror
Format: Audiobook
Source: Author, Submitted

Rating Report
Story (Plot)
Performance
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2016 BRAM STOKER AWARD NOMINEE FOR BEST NOVEL

There are places we were never meant to go...

A woman searching for a sister lost at sea.
A man bent on finding lost treasure.
A mother who has lost all hope.
A maniac who believes all life exists for his pleasure.
The man who would keep them all safe.

Together, they will all seek below the waves for treasures long buried, and riches beyond belief. But those treasures hide something. Something ancient, something dark. A creature that exists only to feed on those that would enter into its realm. A creature... of The Deep.

©2015 Michaelbrent Collings (P)2018 Michaelbrent Collings

ABR received this audiobook for free from the Author, Submitted in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect our opinion of the audiobook or the content of our review.

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A mismatched group of divers go out on a dive expedition, each with his or her own secret agenda. One is in search of her sister lost at sea, a malevolent psychopath, another to forget about a broken marriage and the captain looking for lost glory.  And under the sea lies an evil that wants to consume them all.

When a dead diver is discovered with a gold coin clutched in his hand, the search for treasure takes them to dangerous depths none have the experience or equipment to properly pursue.  Greed trumps caution and the results are a disaster and unparalleled evil and horror.

There is great detail and explanation as to the technical aspects of diving and deep sea diving in particular.  This is necessary and important to the story.  The author clearly knows his stuff or has done extensive research.  The characters seem a little reckless, considering the risks, but that is mostly from the insatiable draw of their particular desires.  Most are pretty evil in their own right and you aren’t too concerned with their fates, unfortunately.

A lot is left unexplained, where the action takes place, the origin of the evil entity or why a dive expedition is in such deep water in the first place.  Once the action begins, that becomes less important and it becomes a true survival story.  Undersea adventures are very much like outer space in that the mystery and risks are so high.  Any minor mistake can easily lead to death.

The story is performed by Al Kessel.  While he is a consummate professional and his voice is a pleasure to listen to, his tone is a little too light-hearted for the mood of the story.  His voices are generally very good and easy to discern.  Excellent sound production throughout.

Many of the characters are a little too evil to be likable and the story takes a while to heat up.  But once the action begins, it is generally enjoyable and fast-paced.  There are a lot of unanswered questions once the story ends, but it seems more about the ingenuity of the characters to escape with their lives in the face of overwhelming obstacles.

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