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Surface Prey
Twenty miles off the coast of San Francisco, this small chain of islands hosts a yearly migration of seals... and during this time of year, the sharks are here too – the biggest, hungriest Great Whites in the world. Attempting to swim off these shores is attempted suicide. Colin Mason – wealthy, connected – with one leg bitten off by a white shark in these very same waters – now hosts his own yearly event – a marathon swim through the Great White-infested Farallons, The prize is a million dollars – winner takes all. How much is your life worth?
144 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 28, 2019
95 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 25, 2022
Regardless how ridiculous and unbelievable the plot is, overall the book is also just as eerie and horrifying. Then again who would really be stupid enough to knowingly swim for miles in hopes of not being eaten by great white sharks? Apparently there have been quite a few over the years and he’s not short of contestants. It’s crazy what people will do for money so it’s not hard to belive when people are desperate they’d stoop to almost any level. But then again the host only offers a measly 1 million which to me seems far too low given the risk. The narrator is completely unreliable and the POVs shift rather frequently. The pacing is rather quick from start to finish. Not a bad read, it’s certainly creepy for me as I hate sharks with a passion as well as the open ocean. But it’s also one of those ridiculous reads that’s like a B movie and I’m a sucker for some ridiculous things.
September 25, 2020
This book was so so gross! Sick! Ugh!
August 16, 2024
Surface Prey by John Lee Schneider is a good story. The plot works well as we get to see the notorious Colin Mason do what he does best. While there was not as much carnage in this one it def made up for in story and character background and development. The race itself in the story was good and def added to Colin Mason’s notoriety.
January 14, 2020
The elephant seals regularly gather at the islands which draws in the sharks. Colin was stupid enough to ignore the warnings about diving in the area and he lost a leg, lucky that he didn't also lose his life. Now every year he invites people from all walks of life who are fit and need the money to risk their life in a deadly competition. Swim the three stages of the marathon swim around the islands and the person who finishes first wins a million dollars. There are strict rules which allow the entrants to exit the water if a shark is sighted but it is time limited, and if you spend too long out of the water, it risks disqualification. Colin assures them that people have won the prize but he also shows the video of those who lost. Who could be desperate enough to risk their life for that money?
The first entrant is surfer bum 'Surfer Dude', a famous sight on the beaches and known for dodging two previous shark attacks. Now he is seeking a new challenge and this fits the bill. Shark film expert Dr Stephen Dreyfuss was famous for the stunts he did which showed sharks attacking surfboards but his world turns upside down when he is cited in a manslaughter case when surfers were attacked in a similar way. Having lost his wife and career, he could really do with the money to get him back on track. Olympic swimmer Wagner was the darling of the sport until an unexpected drug test fail ruined his life. The fourth is the mysterious Amber, whose back story is unknown to those studying the entrants at the pre-event party, including the current girlfriend of Colin.
The next morning it is time for the swim to begin. Colin has a boat beside each swimmer which has sonar to indicate when a shark might be in the area, and a cameraman to record every aspect of the swimmer's experiences-including possible death footage. On day one it is a 14 mile swim from the boat to the island where they will stay overnight. On day two it is a 20 mile swim around the islands and another rest night. The third and final day will involve the remaining swimmers swimming back to the boat they started from. The swimmers are certain that they are ready for the challenge but how will they react once the first shark is sighted?
This was a short book which is just over 100 pages but I really enjoyed it. The contest itself was interesting and I liked seeing that there were actual rules made to prolong the contest by allowing the people to exit the water for short periods of time. Colin is well aware that it then becomes a mental battle to actually get back in the water after a scare and is not pleased at the thought of anyone quitting. There are no tricks from Colin to attract the sharks, leaving it all to chance when the swim begins. The other interesting aspect is that to win, someone has to get safely back to the boat, so those trailing behind the strongest swimmer can only win if the others are eaten or quit. The game itself messes with the minds of those taking part and it was full of tension as we waited for the sharks to appear.
It keeps a pretty even pace through the book and I liked the little twists that I didn't see coming. It was concentrating on the actual people involved, their motivations and fears and what is going on inside their heads. I actually found all of the characters interesting including Colin and Alex. Colin sounds like a bad guy with his brutal shark attack compilation videos but he doesn't force anyone to take part and makes them aware of the dangers. I found him fascinating. Alex is his girlfriend of three years who has witnessed a few of the swims and it was interesting to see what she thought of the events. The entrants themselves were also interesting to watch and I was sort of rooting for them but wanting to see the sharks!
This was a good shorter creature feature that wasn't quite what I was expecting, but in a good way. It was a bit different and had plenty of tension during the water scenes. I particularly enjoyed the ending and hope there might be a sequel, though the story does come to a complete finish with no cliffhanger.
The first entrant is surfer bum 'Surfer Dude', a famous sight on the beaches and known for dodging two previous shark attacks. Now he is seeking a new challenge and this fits the bill. Shark film expert Dr Stephen Dreyfuss was famous for the stunts he did which showed sharks attacking surfboards but his world turns upside down when he is cited in a manslaughter case when surfers were attacked in a similar way. Having lost his wife and career, he could really do with the money to get him back on track. Olympic swimmer Wagner was the darling of the sport until an unexpected drug test fail ruined his life. The fourth is the mysterious Amber, whose back story is unknown to those studying the entrants at the pre-event party, including the current girlfriend of Colin.
The next morning it is time for the swim to begin. Colin has a boat beside each swimmer which has sonar to indicate when a shark might be in the area, and a cameraman to record every aspect of the swimmer's experiences-including possible death footage. On day one it is a 14 mile swim from the boat to the island where they will stay overnight. On day two it is a 20 mile swim around the islands and another rest night. The third and final day will involve the remaining swimmers swimming back to the boat they started from. The swimmers are certain that they are ready for the challenge but how will they react once the first shark is sighted?
This was a short book which is just over 100 pages but I really enjoyed it. The contest itself was interesting and I liked seeing that there were actual rules made to prolong the contest by allowing the people to exit the water for short periods of time. Colin is well aware that it then becomes a mental battle to actually get back in the water after a scare and is not pleased at the thought of anyone quitting. There are no tricks from Colin to attract the sharks, leaving it all to chance when the swim begins. The other interesting aspect is that to win, someone has to get safely back to the boat, so those trailing behind the strongest swimmer can only win if the others are eaten or quit. The game itself messes with the minds of those taking part and it was full of tension as we waited for the sharks to appear.
It keeps a pretty even pace through the book and I liked the little twists that I didn't see coming. It was concentrating on the actual people involved, their motivations and fears and what is going on inside their heads. I actually found all of the characters interesting including Colin and Alex. Colin sounds like a bad guy with his brutal shark attack compilation videos but he doesn't force anyone to take part and makes them aware of the dangers. I found him fascinating. Alex is his girlfriend of three years who has witnessed a few of the swims and it was interesting to see what she thought of the events. The entrants themselves were also interesting to watch and I was sort of rooting for them but wanting to see the sharks!
This was a good shorter creature feature that wasn't quite what I was expecting, but in a good way. It was a bit different and had plenty of tension during the water scenes. I particularly enjoyed the ending and hope there might be a sequel, though the story does come to a complete finish with no cliffhanger.
August 18, 2024
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Much more psychological and cerebral than I expected. As if the idea of the contest alone is enough to give you chills and put you on edge, the backstories and insight into the mindset of the contestants really got me invested into the story. Despite their flaws that lead to their participation, you could not help routing for them given the messed up scenario. I had no clue which characters were going to make it nor the order of the eliminations. And when the sharks do attack, John Lee Schneider paints a gruesome picture in your mind. The hosts / villains are just as well developed and their conniving / sick nature also added to the unpredictability for me. The end to the contest and story was very unexpected, did not even consider that outcome. Still a little torn on the ending but very pleased with the overall story and experience of reading Surface Prey.
July 5, 2022
A ruthless, psychopathic millionaire hosts a swim competition every year off the deadly Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco. The islands are inhabited by large herds of elephant seals and where the seals gather great white sharks lie in wait. This story has great character development, action and a twist at the end that opened the possibility for a sequel. I thoroughly enjoyed this story!
January 15, 2025
Yes. This. Love a good shark tale and this one did not disappoint. It’s a contest. Or is something else? Lots of tension in this read. Loved it!
February 15, 2022
WHITE POINTER by this author demonstrated how dangerous and volatile the fairer sex is among Great White Sharks. Who you need to be afraid of are the huge vicious females.
I met Colin Mason in a Gator book by John Lee Schneider. He's more of a villain than any 🦈 or Gator or Crocodile 🐊. He has an annual swim contest with a million-dollar prize. You have to win against the other contestants but first everyone must survive.
Colin is notorious for his shark attack snuff films. He gets his swim contestants psyched (psychologically mortified) by viewing violent videos of what happened to some contestants in previous races. Once the swimming starts the suspense and terror mount to unbelievable portions.
Sharks have a horrifying habit of attacking their prey (ie seals, people) on the surface. On your mark, get set, drive into this great Shark book!
I met Colin Mason in a Gator book by John Lee Schneider. He's more of a villain than any 🦈 or Gator or Crocodile 🐊. He has an annual swim contest with a million-dollar prize. You have to win against the other contestants but first everyone must survive.
Colin is notorious for his shark attack snuff films. He gets his swim contestants psyched (psychologically mortified) by viewing violent videos of what happened to some contestants in previous races. Once the swimming starts the suspense and terror mount to unbelievable portions.
Sharks have a horrifying habit of attacking their prey (ie seals, people) on the surface. On your mark, get set, drive into this great Shark book!
January 18, 2020
Interesting!!
This was a story that was different than any I’ve read before. An extremely rich man every year offers $1 million to the person who can win a swimming race off the Farallon Islands off the coast of California. An island for a short time every year that is home to thousands of elephant seals. The big problem with the race is the water is filled with hundreds of adult white sharks. The rich guy likes to film swimmers getting eaten. Different story but fun to read!
This was a story that was different than any I’ve read before. An extremely rich man every year offers $1 million to the person who can win a swimming race off the Farallon Islands off the coast of California. An island for a short time every year that is home to thousands of elephant seals. The big problem with the race is the water is filled with hundreds of adult white sharks. The rich guy likes to film swimmers getting eaten. Different story but fun to read!
March 25, 2021
Don’t do it you don’t need money that bad!
This book is all about crazy. From the millionaire offering the money, to the desperate people Agreeing to swim 50 miles for $1 million Through shark infested waters. Oh and not any shark it has to be a great whites! There are some plot twist and betrayal that you do not see coming. You should know the yacht has cameras everywhere too!
Get the book and leave your reviews.
This book is all about crazy. From the millionaire offering the money, to the desperate people Agreeing to swim 50 miles for $1 million Through shark infested waters. Oh and not any shark it has to be a great whites! There are some plot twist and betrayal that you do not see coming. You should know the yacht has cameras everywhere too!
Get the book and leave your reviews.
March 23, 2022
John Lee Schneider is good at 'ocean predator that want to kill you', type books. This one has that, PLUS a very nasty man that likes the horror of animal attacks a little too much. Seriously, dude needs a good talking to. This book has good characters, some you despise some you root for, and awesome setting and lots of action and gore.
September 3, 2023
short and good. had some creepy moments. good plot with a crazy end.
December 4, 2023
Meh book...glad it was a KU read.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews