Sea Trial

by Frank De Felitta

Illicit lovers, Phil and Tracey find themselves at the mercy of the twisted owners of the yacht all four are sailing across the Caribbean

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Thriller

270 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1980

About the author

Frank's latest book, "L'Opera Italiano," is now available as an ebook on Amazon.com and BN.com.

Best known for Audrey Rose and The Entity, De Felitta has also made a name for himself in the theatrical world as a producer, writer, and director.

De Felitta also briefly experimented with song writing, with one of his songs appearing in his son Raymond De Felitta's film "Two Family House".

Reviews

[Bryan D · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's a very good story in the midst of all the filling that made this a sluggish read, once you skim past the huggy, sex, cookery scenes and eventually get down to the psychological study of human behaviour in the unpleasant circumstances of being trapped upon a crippled yacht then it gets interesting, I got a chill with the excerpts from the Captain's Log.
I felt a more condensed version would be a perfect segment from Tales of the Unexpected. It was a blessing that the book was so short because my patience was quite frayed in the midst of it.
I had the same problem with For The Love of Audrey Rose, a book I will eventually return to as I'm curious what could be in a sequel to Audrey Rose

[Rick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Literally nothing happens for the 1st 180 pages besides talking, "going to bed", and drinking cognac. Couple board a private boat and the captain & Co. have more than vacation on their mind. Leads up to a fairly gory finale. If I read the italicized phrase "Penny Dreadful" one more time, I would've lost it. Awful 😭

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author of Audrey Rose...a magnificent read with a shocking, yet strangely satisfying, ending. Reminded me of Mark Robson's 'Devil's Triangle'...it has the same thrill-ride. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

[William M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the author of Audrey Rose and The Entity, Sea Trial is a slow burn and you are never sure where it is going to go. I don't want to give any spoilers away, so I will say this is not a typical horror story, but a single bad situation that continues to get worse until you question your own sanity. Intense ending and overall enjoyable. If you enjoyed the ocean thriller, Dead Calm (one of my favorites), you should enjoy this as well. Recommended for someone looking for something a bit different, but you need patience.

[David Veith · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Bob Box · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in 1981. Two couple on private yacht cruise start having issues.

[David Ramiro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una muy grata sorpresa. No esperaba mucho de este libro, lo encontré perdido por mi casa, pero después de leer ciertas opiniones le di una oportunidad. No me equivoqué.
Se plantea un escenario de intriga, con esos cambios argumentales bruscos en los que se pasa de un ambiente familiar y placentero a la máxima tensión.
La historia me recordó mucho al célebre "Cabo del miedo".

[Kali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Based on reviews, I gathered this one was a slow starter, so I skipped the beginning entirely and read from about Chapter 12 onward. Don't really feel like I missed much. The last half was amusing, though the finale action was a bit hard to follow in spots. Not remotely scary. Clever way of presenting the ending.

[Lou Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent story full of surprises. You will not be able to guess what happens next. Good ending.

[P.A. Pursley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interestingly disturbing! Definitely a page-turner with a disturbing ending! Be prepared for an unforgettable ride!

[GhostofMyrtle]

A couple cheating on their respective spouses book a two week ocean cruise via an ad in a magazine. What they believe will be a pleasure cruise becomes a nightmare as the true nature of their host and hostess is slowly revealed.

This is quite well written. It seems Frank De Felitta, the author, is well versed in sea craft and sailing. If you like thrillers you will probably enjoy this, although Idk if you would call it the "ultimate evil" as the cover of the copy I read states. There is a certain satisfaction in having the two cheating spouses suffering.

Oh and of course there is a twist at the end. At least it is a fairly imaginative twist.

Frank De Felitta is a well regarded novelist who first started his career as an author writing scripts for radio and television shows. When he turned his hand to writing novels he penned a number of best sellers, some of which were turned into movies, a couple of which he wrote the screenplay. He also wrote screenplays for films not based on his novels.

[Priscilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vingança em Alto-Mar é um título clichê, não se encaixa muito na história e a culpa é unicamente do tradutor. Mas, não deixe isso te afastar da história.

O livro conta sobre Philip e Tracy viajando em um iate, onde são manipulados e torturados por um outro casal do barco - MacCraken (uma brincadeira com Kraken, o monstro do mar) e Penny.

A claustrofobia do cenário e a tensão do entre as pessoas é o ponto alto, e faz lembrar um clássico do cinema: Cabo do Medo. Uma coisa a manter em mente é que essa obra foi escrita em 1981, então algumas coisas que hoje são consideradas clichês abundam nela.

Ainda assim, um bom título e recomendo a qualquer um que goste do gênero assassino serial/terror.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a good read. Definitely learnt a lot about the characters as quite detailed and liked that a lot about the surroundings and situations were detailed but felt some of the dialogue waffled a bit. But it did get across that the character was off their rocker. I don't really enjoy thrillers but did this one.

[Mikey Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intense ending to a pretty bland book!

You can honestly skip upto page 140ish. Sex, drinking, on a boat, and the name of the ship 300 times. Theres your summary.

After that, however, things actually get interesting! The ending is awesome, with some truly great and creepy parts.

But darn, this was hard to get through. Cryptic ending though!

[xGvJx · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very entertaining one-night read!

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Messed up. I loved it.

[Daniela Monteiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

O verdadeiro terror. Sem vampiros, fantasmas ou afins. Só pessoas mesmo. Sendo más. Muito más.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book! Such an original story, great action and perfect ending. Highly recommend!!!

[Reevrb · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story! Had me sucked in from the beginning. More a thriller-mystery than horror though.

[Ian O'Donnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little slow to begin with but worth the persistence. A good finish to a story that could happen to anyone. Never trust anyone completely that you don't know really well.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most stripped-down, pedal to the metal thrillers I’ve ever read. Well done!

[J. Fakename · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and mean, could make a good movie.

[Eliza Clara Hemming · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very entertaining read, despite not much happening. A bit of a rushed end, but overall, a good thriller!

[Bent Andreassen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quite good thriller.