This story is the introduction to the Divemasters series, about a group of three male friends and co-workers whose fortunes are changed with the news that one of them has become a billionaire, due to the death of his estranged father. It's the setup for an entertaining story, complete with a whodunit mystery plot, some treasure hunting and a sexy second chance romance.
There were several aspects to this story I liked, and a couple that I wasn't so keen on. Firstly, the diving details were great. I really appreciated that the time was taken to research this, as it's a key part to the plot of this book and the series as a whole. I liked the diving scenes, and the setting of the story was well chosen - both the tropical locale and the gorgeous yacht that Archie inherits and redesigns to fit his plans to take deserving people on diving trips, a way to spend his money that will make the bitter pill of losing his freedom easier to swallow.
I liked the three men who are the stars of the show so to speak - Archie, whose story this is, and his 2 best buddies Miguel and Tosin. They were all fun, friendly guys with a strong friendship between them, that survives the big news that Archie is now a billionaire, through no fault of his own. And the heroine, Waverly, is an ex-Navy helicopter pilot! It was nice to see a female in a strong role like that. She's been hired to be the helicopter liason for the yacht, able to move people to locations on and off the ship with relative ease. The tricky part comes in with the fact that she and Archie have some history. They were teenage friends until a traumatic event unfolded that resulted in lost years, and misunderstandings. The first half of the story is about them reconnecting and getting to the issues that stand between them.
The second half of the story picks up the action packed pace with a murder, a treasure hunt and some steamy sex between the couple. This is where things were a little more problematic for me. Shortly after being accused of the murder, Waverly is involved in a foursome sex scene with the guys. I had a hard time believing that she'd be willing to accept sexual overtures as an apology. To his credit Archie never failed in believing in Waverly's innocence, but I don't think I'd be as willing to forgive. The sex scene is hot, no doubt, but hard to credit. Later on there is an underwater sex scene that to me, brought down the reputation of Archie as a safe and serious diver. I just couldn't believe that he'd engage in that activity, or that Waverly would think that having sex during a SCUBA dive was a good idea. Hot, yes, but unnerving. These scenes brought down the overall score for me.
Overall, it was a good start to this series, and brought some interesting characters to life. Despite the issues I had with the two sex scenes above, I thought that the idea for the series was sound and I'm definitely interested in reading more. 3 stars.
Note: a copy of this story was provided by the author for review.