The Siren Song of Life Beneath the Sea: Mermaids for All Ages

Sometimes, it must be said, mermaids are men. But most often they are women, and they are almost culturally universal: known as sirens, water spirits, selkies, ceags, they exist in the ubiquitous waters of our imaginations, and within our imaginations, under the churning sea. Complicated, fishy, witchy women, both lucky and unlucky. They save men and they destroy them; they make wonderful lovers and terrible wives.
~Lyz Lenz, "The Eternal Allure of the Mermaid"

Water is necessary, urgent, everywhere; it gives rise to life. It is also perilous, subject to its own laws, and contains dark and hidden depths... The myth of mermaids both explains and distances woman, that great and confounding mystery. And the appeal isn’t just for men; girls are drawn to mermaids’ wildness and beauty and power. After all, the sea creatures are the ones who get to decide if people who fall overboard will swim or sink.
~Lauren Groff, "Daughters of the Springs"

There are certainly a lot of people out there fascinated by the idea of mermaids. There are mermaid legends from around the world! Even in modern days, author Carolyn Turgeon has a blog called "I am a mermaid", and you can read her article "Neither Fish Nor Flesh" over at The New Inquiry. Entertainment Weekly called 2011 "The year mermaids swim into movies, books, fashion, and maybe your local swimming pool." You can read about "Becoming Mermaids" at the American Museum of Natural History website or as part of the Mariners' Museum's "Women & the Sea". You can have mermaids entertain you at your next party, or just go to visit the Mystic Mermaids in Denver, Canada's Halifax Mermaids, Aquarena Springs in Texas, the Austin Aquarium (Saturdays and Sundays only!), and "The Only City of Live Mermaids" in Florida - or take part in Coney Island's Mermaid Parade. (We also found a whole article devoted to "making your living as a mermaid".) There's even a Mermaid School, we've heard, and Mermaid Exercise, sometimes called "mermaiding." The National Ocean Service has a webpage called "Are mermaids real?"; Animal Planet's faux-documentary, Mermaids: The Body Found, was "Animal Planet’s most watched program until the sequel trumped it." There's a mermaid environmental movement. You can knit yourself a mermaid-tail blanket or adopt "mermaid style" for the times you need to spend outside the water - preferably while reading Mermaids and Mythology magazine.

Our own interest in mermaids began with reading Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" (though not fans of the Disney film) and seeing Copenhagen's famous statue, so we'd like to point out that the trend continues in literature. We've put together a list of mermaid fiction for all ages for those intrigued by the sirens of the seas. Sometimes the heroines of the tail (we couldn't resist!), sometimes a character in a larger story, we hope that these stories of mermaids don't send you off the deep end.

For Kids

The Sea Tiger by Victoria Turnbull

The Mermaid's Shoes by Sanne Te Loo 

Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly

Trouble at Trident Academy by Debbie Dadey [eBook] 

Kira's Quest by Orysia Dawydiak 

The Tail of Emily Windsnap by Liz Kessler 

Above World by Jenn Reese 

The Mermaid and the Shoe by K. G. Campbell 

Oliver and the Seawigs by Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre

Jasmine and the Treasure Chest: Mermaid Mysteries Series, Book 1 by Katy Kit [eBook]
  

Young Adult

Girl at the Bottom of the Sea by Michelle Tea

The Mermaid's Sister by Carrie Ann Noble

Captivate by Vanessa Garden [eBook]

Cry of the Sea by D. G. Driver [eBook] 

Oceanborn by Amalie Howard [eBook]

Descending by Holly Kelly [eBook]

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown 

The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Cordova

 
 Water by Natasha Hardy [eBook]

Into the Deep by Missy Fleming [eBook]

Lost Voices by Sarah Porter [eBook]

Just For Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

Emerge by Tobie Easton

Between the Sea and Sky by Jaclyn Dolamore 

Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs 

Adult

The Mermaid's Secret by Katie Schickel

Case of the Fickle Mermaid by P.J. Brackston

Menagerie by Rachel Vincent 

The Sea House by Elisabeth Gifford

The Mermaid of Brooklyn by Amy Shearn [eAudiobook]

Bay of Sighs by Nora Roberts 

Sailor Twain: Or, the Mermaid in the Hudson by Mark Siegel

Mermaid: A Twist on the Classic Tale by Carolyn Turgeon

Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor 
 

For more mermaid tales, try a subject search of "Mermaids - Fiction". Read more articles about mermaids on Huffington Post! Also, check out this Cochiti potter's clay mermaid, for a bit of local flavor!

Shark Week!

I'm a little late on this, but this week is Shark Week, an annual week of shark programming on Discovery. I love sharks, so everyone always thinks that I also love Shark Week, but the truth is, I have a love/hate relationship it. Why do I love? Because sharks! Why do I hate it? Well, that's a much longer answer. In recent years, Discovery has been heavily criticized for the documentaries they show during Shark Week. Last year, the Washingtonian did a great piece on why scientists don't like Shark Week. The reasons range from Discovery focusing too much on shark attacks (which is a term scientists don't prefer) and Discovery falsifying their documentaries (the main one being "Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives," which suggested that megalodons are not extinct after all) to Discovery misleading the scientists they ask to participate in their documentaries and not including much science at all in some shows.

David Shiffman, a marine biologist studying shark feeding ecology and conservation, is one of the most vocal critics of Shark Week. Each year, he watches the shows aired during Shark Week and Tweets his comments about them. His Tweets are always fun to read, like the one he wrote about ocras and sharks.

No orca don't eat shark orca what u doin' no orca stahhhhhp #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

And this one:

"The oceanic whitetip is almost certainly responsible for thousands of human deaths" Um based on what? #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

And this one:

There is no "Mystery of the Oregon great whites." You personally not knowing something that scientists know is not a "mystery" #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

But they're also more serious sometimes, and definitely informative.

Dolphins and sharks do NOT "usually avoid each other," they're often in the same place. Why? Because there's food there. #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

Worth noting that they're "surrounded by oceanic whitetip sharks" because they intentionally went swimming in an OWT hotspot... #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

"Thousands of people have died in shipwrecks, lets imply that Oceanic Whitetip sharks killed a lot of them, why not?" #SharkWeek

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) June 30, 2016

Sometimes, reading Shiffman's Tweets about Shark Week is more fun than actually watching Shark Week. At any rate, it's always a good idea to do your own research when watching Shark Week, especially if you want to watch the shows that are the most accurate. Shiffman wrote about which shows to watch this year, so I'm hoping he'll do that again next year.

And, if you just can't get enough of sharks, here are some great titles the library has.

For kids

Zebra Sharks by Nico Barnes
The Great White Shark Scientist by Sy Montgomery
Goblin Sharks by Elizabeth Thomas

For adults

Smithsonian Channel: Shark Collection
A Pocket Guide to Sharks of the World by David A. Ebert
Demon Fish: Travels Through the Hidden World of Sharks by Juliet Eilperin

New & Novel: Nautical Fiction

A list of nautical fiction would not be complete without Moby-Dick,  The Old Man and the Sea, C.S. Forester's Hornblower books, Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt, or the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian. But it by no means begins and ends there. If you are someone who enjoys reading about maritime adventures, we have plenty of titles that should pique your interest from stem to stern!

Maggie Bright: A Novel of Dunkirk by Tracy Groot

The North Water by Ian McGuire

Hover by Anne A. Wilson

The Abduction of Smith & Smith by Rashad Harrison

Landfalls by Naomi J. Williams

The French Prize by James L. Nelson 

The Privateersman by Frederick Marryat [eBook]

B.O.Q.: An NCIS Special Agent Fran Setliff Novel by N. P. Simpson 

The Surfacing by Cormac James 

The Ghost of the Mary Celeste by Valerie Martin 

The Plover by Brian Doyle 

Rough Passage to London: A Sea Captain's Tale by Robin Lloyd  

The Whispering Muse by Sjón 

First in series

Kydd by Julian Stockwin 

Gentleman Captain by J.D. Davies 

Under Enemy Colors by S. Thomas Russell 

The King's Coat: The Naval Adventures of Alan Lewrie by Dewey Lambdin [LP]


Off-the-beaten-path 
(young adult, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and graphic novels with a seafaring bent)

The Beast of Cretacea by Todd Strasser [eBook]

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

The Terror by Dan Simmons 

The Scar by China Miéville [eBook]

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

 

The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé 

There is a fair amount of seafaring lore in the Tintin books, since one of the main characters in Captain Haddock. Volume 3 has three tales involving the sea and sailors, beginning with The Crab with the Golden Claws and ending with The Secret of the Unicorn; volume 4 begins with the sequel to Unicorn, Red Rackham's Treasure. Volume 6's The Red Sea Sharks is also a standout.

For more nautical fiction, try a subject search of "sea stories".  Want true adventures to swash your buckle? Try Sea Fever: The True Adventures That Inspired Our Greatest Maritime Authors, From Conrad to Masefield, Melville and Hemingway by Sam Jefferson. Also check out Anchors Aweigh, our nautical adventure fiction booklist, from our Booklists for Adults & Teens guide! 

Beneath the Waves

We've been thinking a lot about maritime life in the past few years, dating back to when Paul the Octopus was predicting World Cup winners in 2010. More recently, we have been reading about attempts to save Australia's Great Barrier Reef, which is in poor condition due to pollutant damage, the continuing infiltration of plastic into the world's oceans, New Zealand's commitment in ocean conservatation in its creation of an ocean sanctuary in "an area twice the size of [its] land mass and 50 times the size of [its] largest national park", and the presumed demise of world-record-holding freediver Natalia Molchanova.

But generally, we wonder, what is the world of the depths like?We've come up with a list of titles that we hope evoke the sea in all its beauty and mystery.

The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery

"In this astonishing book from the author of the bestselling memoir The Good Good Pig, Sy Montgomery explores the emotional and physical world of the octopus--a surprisingly complex, intelligent, and spirited creature--and the remarkable connections it makes with humans. Sy Montgomery's popular 2011 Orion magazine piece, "Deep Intellect," about her friendship with a sensitive, sweet-natured octopus named Athena and the grief she felt at her death, went viral, indicating the widespread fascination with these mysterious, almost alien-like creatures. Since then Sy has practiced true immersion journalism, from New England aquarium tanks to the reefs of French Polynesia and the Gulf of Mexico, pursuing these wild, solitary shape-shifters. Octopuses have varied personalities and intelligence they show in myriad ways: endless trickery to escape enclosures and get food; jetting water playfully to bounce objects like balls; and evading caretakers by using a scoop net as a trampoline and running around the floor on eight arms. But with a beak like a parrot, venom like a snake, and a tongue covered with teeth, how can such a being know anything? And what sort of thoughts could it think? The intelligence of dogs, birds, and chimpanzees was only recently accepted by scientists, who now are establishing the intelligence of the octopus, watching them solve problems and deciphering the meaning of their color-changing camouflage techniques. Montgomery chronicles this growing appreciation of the octopus, but also tells a love story. By turns funny, entertaining, touching, and profound, The Soul of an Octopus reveals what octopuses can teach us about consciousness and the meeting of two very different minds." -- Publisher's description.  

Ocean: The Definitive Visual Guide edited by American Museum of Natural History

"This dramatic, thought-provoking, and all-encompassing visual guide reveals the power and majesty of the seas and oceans, which cover more than two-thirds of the earth's surface. Navigate the mysteries and marvels of the deep, using a combination of breathtaking photography and expertly researched text."--book jacket. 

The Reef: A Passionate History by Iain McCalman

"A journey into the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef, as experienced by explorers, scientists, and artists The Great Barrier Reef is the most spectacular marine environment on earth, a true wonder of the world. Yet the history of our encounters with it has long been elusive. In The Reef, the acclaimed historian and explorer Iain McCalman recounts in full the dramatic story of the reef and the people who have been captivated by it for two centuries. The Reef is a narrative told through the lives of twenty intrepid souls, from Captain James Cook and his voyage across a mysterious coral maze to the world's leading reef scientist, John 'Charlie' Veron, whose personal mission is to rescue the reef from catastrophe. The extraordinary individuals in the book--not only explorers and scientists but also beachcombers, photographers, divers, and indigenous peoples and the castaways they adopted--were drawn to the reef for different reasons, but all shared one thing: a passion for this vast coral country. As McCalman explores how the reef has been seen variously as a labyrinth of terror, a nurturing heartland, a scientific challenge, and a fragile global wonder, he argues that it is only by combining science and art that we will truly appreciate how this great gift of nature has shaped us and why it demands our attention. A classic work of romantic history, blending cutting-edge science with personal reflection and gorgeous images, The Reef is a beautiful book that will speak to broad audiences for years to come"-- Provided by publisher.  

The Extreme Life of the Sea by Stephen R. Palumbi and Anthony R. Palumbi

"The Extreme Life of the Sea exposes the eternal darkness of the deepest undersea trenches to show how marine life thrives against the odds, describing how flying fish strain to escape their predators, how predatory deep-sea fish use red searchlights only they can see to find and attack food, and how, at the end of her life, a mother octopus dedicates herself to raising her batch of young. This wide-ranging and highly accessible book also shows how ocean adaptations can inspire innovative commercial products--such as fan blades modeled on the flippers of humpback whales--and how future extremes created by human changes to the oceans might push some of these amazing species over the edge."

   
Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us About Ourselves by James Nestor

"While on assignment in Greece, journalist James Nestor witnessed something that confounded him: a man diving 300 feet below the ocean's surface on a single breath of air and returning four minutes later, unharmed and smiling. This man was a freediver, and his amphibious abilities inspired Nestor to seek out the secrets of this little-known discipline. In Deep, Nestor embeds with a gang of extreme athletes and renegade researchers who are transforming not only our knowledge of the planet and its creatures, but also our understanding of the human body and mind. Along the way, he takes us from the surface to the Atlantic's greatest depths, some 28,000 feet below sea level. He finds whales that communicate with other whales hundreds of miles away, sharks that swim in unerringly straight lines through pitch-black waters, and seals who dive to depths below 2,400 feet for up to eighty minutes--deeper and longer than scientists ever thought possible. As strange as these phenomena are, they are reflections of our own species' remarkable, and often hidden, potential--including echolocation, directional sense, and the profound physiological changes we undergo when underwater. Most illuminating of all, Nestor unlocks his own freediving skills as he communes with the pioneers who are expanding our definition of what is possible in the natural world, and in ourselves"-- Provided by publisher.  

The Cultural Lives of Whales and Dolphins by Hal Whitehead and Luke Rendell

In The Cultural Lives of Whales and Dolphins, cetacean biologists Hal Whitehead, who has spent much of his life on the ocean trying to understand whales, and Luke Rendell, whose research focuses on the evolution of social learning, open an astounding porthole onto the fascinating culture beneath the waves. As Whitehead and Rendell show, cetacean culture and its transmission are shaped by a blend of adaptations, innate sociality, and the unique environment in which whales and dolphins live: a watery world in which a hundred-and-fifty-ton blue whale can move with utter grace, and where the vertical expanse is as vital, and almost as vast, as the horizontal. Drawing on their own research as well as a scientific literature as immense as the sea—including evolutionary biology, animal behavior, ecology, anthropology, psychology, and neuroscience—Whitehead and Rendell dive into realms both humbling and enlightening as they seek to define what cetacean culture is, why it exists, and what it means for the future of whales and dolphins. And, ultimately, what it means for our future, as well.* 

An Ocean Garden: The Secret Life of Seaweed by Josie Iselin

In her captivating new book, artist and avid beachcomber Josie Iselin returns to the seashore to reveal the unexpected beauty of seaweed. Produced on a flatbed scanner, Iselin’s vibrant portraits of ocean flora reveal the exquisite color and extraordinary forms of more than 200 specimens gathered from tidal pools along the California and Maine coasts. Her engaging text, which accompanies the images, blends personal observation and philosophical musings with scientific fact. Like her previous books, An Ocean Garden: The Secret Life of Seaweed is a poetic and compelling tribute to the natural world and the wonder it evokes.*

*descriptions taken from Amazon.com. All other book descriptions are taken from the library catalog.  

The Riddle of the Sands by Erskine Childers

For our next book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:

The Riddle of the Sands is said to be the first espionage/thriller novel. In 1903, 11 years before WWI, Erskine Childers felt compelled to awaken Britain to Germany's growing sea power and the potential for invasion, so Britain would organize effective naval defense. The book was effective, and triggered plans for better coastal defenses. Although Childers provided a key warning to protect Britain, he later supported the Irish cause and was executed for treason.

Charles Carruthers,working at the Foreign Office, receives a letter from acquaintance Arthur Davies, inviting him to travel on his yacht to hunt ducks in the Frisian islands off Germany. Carruthers expects a luxury cruise, but upon arrival finds he and Davies are the entire crew of the far-from-luxurious Dulcibella. He soon comes to respect Davies' seamanship, and the landscape melts his condescension.

As they explore "the sands", Davies confesses his ulterior motive for having Carruthers along....Carruthers can speak German. Davies is certain they must uncover a military plot against Britain based on the tidal sands of the Frisians.

The writing is relaxed and descriptive, and the story proceeds at a slow pace, enjoyable for readers who enjoy detailed settings and gradual plot buildup. The narrative includes and frequently references maps to describe in detail how Carruthers and Davies navigate the waterways. The late season (October) is an important factor in their quest, creating many challenges and the occasional advantage due to weather.

A few suspenseful scenes qualify the book as a thriller, but this is a story to savor at leisure, not a page-turner that keeps you up late to finish. Carruthers and Davies are on a quest for evidence to back up their hypothesis and solve an intellectual puzzle (what is the signifcance of the sands?). The wealth of nautical and historical detail will delight pre-WWI naval buffs.

The Dead Cat Bounce by Sarah Graves

For our next book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:

"Dead cat bounce": stock market jargon for a small temporary rise in a stock's trading price, after a sharp drop.


The Dead Cat Bounce is the first installment of the Home Repair is Homicide series, set in Eastport Maine, the easternmost US city, in the modern day. Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree has traded her fast-track life as an investment analyst for 'fat cats' including high-level mobsters, and escaped her marriage with an egotistic, narcissistic brain surgeon, for a more peaceful life in Maine with her son Sam. Returning from a business trip, she found and impulsively purchased a 200-year-old home, which requires endless repair. She has a new and rewarding relationship with Wade, a boat pilot, and a new best friend Ellie, a calm and steady "down easter" (lifetime local). When a shady millionaire with local roots is murdered, and her best friend Ellie confesses to the murder but asks Jacobia to investigate, of course she must. What she doesn't expect are the threats followed by serious attempts on her life and her son Sam's, including burning her house. Complicating matters further is the unexpected appearance of her ex-husband the brain surgeon with his latest young girlfriend, in his latest attempt to dictate their son's life. Jacobia prevails due to her loyalty and integrity. Look forward to many more in this series.

One of Those Malibu Nights by Elizabeth Adler

For our next book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:

One of Those Malibu Nights, first book in the Mac Reilly series, is set in modern-day Malibu, Baja California, Palm Springs, Rome, Cannes, and the French countryside. The story's characters belong to the "jet set": Hollywood stars and moguls, millionaires with mansions, and the people who work for them. Protagonist Mac Reilly is a television actor private eye. His girlfriend Sunny (Sonora Sky Coto de Alvarez) wishes Mac would propose.

Mac lives in a Malibu Colony bungalow with his dog Pirate, rescued from a highway. While strolling on the beach late at night, Mac hears a woman scream and goes to help. She shoots at him and he flees. Next day millionaire Ron Perrin, in whose house the woman screamed, denies the event but wants to hire Mac to discover who has been following him. Allie Ray, the movie star wife Ron is divorcing, also wants to hire Mac to discover who has been following her, and sending threatening notes.

While he is vacationing in Rome with Sunny, Mac encounters the woman who had screamed and shot at him in Malibu. Marisa tells him she is Ron's fiancee, flaunts a huge diamond ring, and asks Mac to find Ron, who has disappeared.

When Mac returns from Rome, Ron's right-hand man Sam Demarco also asks Mac to find Ron, and to find out what the FBI wants from Ron.

Famous movie star Allie Ray had humble beginnings, and she is lonely surrounded by luxury. She plans to return to being Mary Allison Raycheck one day. But first she must do her job: appear in Cannes at her film release party.

Mac meets another PI who thinks Ron killed his girlfriend. Sunny and Mac travel to Palm Springs looking for clues and find a body. They investigate all the people in Ron's and Allie's lives, wondering who might carry a grudge.

Allie Ray escapes fame & fortune to the French countryside, where she works in a restaurant. She becomes interested in a local landowner, but still misses and loves her husband.

Sunny goes on trip by herself to Baja CA and finds Ron, but then loses him.

Sunny and Mac go back to Rome, where they find another body. One of Allie's friends tells Sunny where Allie is, just before a newspaper reporter tells the world. Mac finally learns who the killer is, and races to save Allie and Sunny in France.

I found the book shallow and many descriptions melodramatic. It likely appeals to readers who follow movie stars and celebrities. The author uses dogs and their relationships with their owners to illustrate shallow lives as well as true-blue characters. Mac and Sunny will continue investigating together and jet-setting around the world, but I don't plan to read any more of the series.

The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

For our next book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:


First of a new series starring forensic archaeologist Doctor Ruth Galloway, The Crossing Places is infused with the haunting atmosphere of the Saltmarsh, a landscape at the edge of the sea that is half land, half water, and continually shifts with the tides, where Iron Age prehistoric inhabitants constructed a sacred henge circle.

Ruth makes her home in a cottage at the edge of the lonely and elemental Saltmarsh, and teaches at nearby University of North Norfolk. She enjoys her solitude and the companionship of her cats. Ten years ago she participated in the archaeological dig that discovered the Saltmarsh henge circle. That magical summer of discovery remains a favorite memory, and the friends from that time are still part of her life.

Detective Harry Nelson is haunted by a missing-child case ten years ago. When a child's body is discovered in the Saltmarsh, he wonders if it could be from his old case. He enlists Dr. Galloway's professional assistance as a bone specialist. She dates the bones as Iron Age, 2 thousand years old, and suspects the body has a significant connection with the Henge Circle across the tidal marshlands.

When a second child goes missing, Nelson asks for Ruth's help interpreting clues from the original case. Ruth sees archeaological ties to key people from her special Henge Circle discovery summer. Then Ruth herself is endangered; to survive she must help Nelson identify the killer.

Ruth is a spunky independent protagonist with a common-sense approach. Her kind heart does not prevent her intellect from unraveling the clues, even when they reveal betrayal by her trusted and loved friends. I look forward to continuing the series.

The Coffin Ship by Peter Tonkin

For our next book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:

My 3rd book for the Oceans ’11 Reading Challenge is The Coffin Ship by Peter Tonkin, the first book in the Richard Mariner high-seas thriller series. A rollicking adventure that never lets up - plan to stay up late to finish!

Oxford English Dictionary definition of a coffin ship: A ship sent to sea in an unseaworthy condition, destined to sink before the end of its voyage as part of an insurance fraud. (first used 1833)

Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Prometheus is the largest supertanker in the seas, laden with oil and set to begin a voyage through the Gulf, south through the Indian Ocean, around the southernmost tip of Africa, north through the Atlantic, to the English Channel. Greedy and unscrupulous supertanker owner Kostas Demetrios, and several crew members in his pay, know the ship will never make it. The first "accident" (effect of sabotage) occurs before the ship departs, and kills several crew members. Demetrios is forced to hire additional crew members. Crewfinders, a business founded by Richard Mariner, supplies qualified crew members to ship owners at short notice. Richard can fill all but captain for Prometheus from his contacts, and he agrees to captain the Prometheus himself. Fully qualified as a captain, he had retired from seafaring after an onboard explosion that killed his wife.

The owner of the cargo arrives to challenge Richard and insist upon becoming 3rd mate. While qualified for the position, the new third mate opens up painful memories from Richard's past.

Once underway, the voyage constantly faces challenges, from additional sabotage efforts to violent weather hazards. Tremendous bravery and teamwork is required for survival. And always present is the question of what dangers are still set in place to destroy the voyage.

Action scenes predominate; this would be an exciting movie. I look forward to many more thrilling escapes - reading Richard Mariner's exploits.

Surface Tension by Christine Kling

For our first book review in the Oceans 11 reading challenge, here's a few words from library patron & friend of abcreads Susan:

This exciting story starts with a Mayday call, and the action never lets up. Seychelle Sullivan owns and operates a salvage boat she inherited from her father. She lives in a bungalow on Fort Lauderdale's New River, and works on Florida's Intracoastal Waterway. When Seychelle hears a Mayday over the radio, she races to beat her competitors to rescue the multimillion-dollar yacht Top Ten, captained by her ex-lover Neal. Seychelle finds a dead body on the boat, no sign of Neal. Florida police prefer to pin the murder on Seychelle rather than figure out what really happened, while thugs from the criminal underworld assume she is hiding Neal, and try to intimidate her into revealing Neal's location. Seychelle's brother, co-owner of the boat, wants her to sell it to redeem his debts, so he sabotages her business. Seychelle is warned by many to stop investigating the murder, and her friends are endangered. She must avoid the police, who want to arrest her, as well as the criminals who want to kill her, to solve the mystery. Seychelle is a likable protagonist with a refreshingly different occupation for an amateur sleuth.

Surface Tension is the first book of Seychelle Sullivan mystery series.

Oceans '11 Reading Challenge

Welcome to 2011! Here is or first reading challenge for library readers this year: read 11 books with an OCEAN theme in 2011. ("Ocean" here is defined broadly: it includes fiction or non-fiction, set on, near, in, or under the sea.) You may have already noticed the Oceans '11 icon on the sidebar (lower right). Click on the sailor to be directed to our page of suggested titles for the challenge! Booklists include:

- Ocean Classics
- Maritime Adventure (thrillers)
- Old Salts (biographies)
- War on the Waves (naval history)
- Brigands and Booty (pirate yarns)
- Flotsam & Jetsam (mystery & misc.)

We'll be trying to read 11 ocean books ourselves this year & blogging about our reading periodically. Feel free to leave Oceans '11 related comments on these posts, or check out the Oceans '11 section on our Book Banter (top right of the sidebar) to leave some posts of your own!

If you're interested in taking part in our Oceans '11 Reading Challenge, please let us know by leaving us a comment on this post! If you know the 11 titles you'll be reading (or some of them),let us know what you've chosen. Feel free to suggest titles to add to the above lists.