Reggie Ridgway

Fletcher Price (Blade) is a well-known American hero who foiled a terrorist attack in San Francisco last year. He is recently married and the two of them decide upon a cruise for their honeymoon. The large ship was on her maiden voyage and was expected to sail through dangerous waters where pirates prey upon ships and hold them for tens of million dollar ransoms. During that first day, the captain of the ship solicits Blade's help to guard against the pirates and protect his ship - even though pirates never hijacked a cruise ship in the past. As a reward for Blade's acceptance, he and his wife are upgraded to the exclusive suite levels of the ship and given unlimited funds for onboard purchases. He convinces his wife, a former Army helicopter pilot, that they won a contest so as not to pique her interest in wanting to join him. Because if she was captured, Blade would lose all his leverage and flexibility - forced to surrender to save her.

The author has four different threads taking place within the story and follows the pirates, a terrorist group, life on the ship, and a pair of Somali twins who all come together later in the story. Reggie has also thrown curves, twists, and unthinkable turns in this action packed thriller...the climax taking place on an island overrun with zoo animals that all escaped captivity and were physically starving. I was unaware that this book is part of a series (book #2), but had no problem following along and vouch that "Deep End" is also a stand-alone. I did rate it only 4 stars because of the many typos and misuse of words that would have been found during a re-read. I am also trying to figure out the definition of "pregnant pause" which the author used a lot in the beginning of the story.

Never-the-less, I thoroughly enjoyed "Deep End" and recommend it to anyone who currently reads Jack Reacher, Clive Cussler, and many of the other one-man heroes who solve problems for others. I plan on reading "End Game" next, another story by this author. Enjoy the ride!… (mer)