Going to sea is an escape from reality, unless reality comes with you
****
Exotic ports, alluring women, and experiencing adventures on the other side of the world sounds ideal. After a drunken bet goes wrong, Tyler Chambers boards his US Navy frigate and looks forward to leaving the pressures of the real world behind and slip into a cocoon of escapism. In and out of port in a few days is the perfect way to avoid responsibility. He is happy to live his life as a stereotypical sailor and look for a girl in every port with hysterical consequences.
What he doesn't count on is a psychotic shipmate trying to kill him. Or his commanding officer out to lock him up for an illicit affair. Letters coming to and leaving the ship hold key evidence against Tyler, proof he must keep out of the Captain's hands at all costs. Will Tyler be able to find an ally who can keep him out of trouble? Or will he crash and burn at the hands of sinister shipmates?
Danger lurks in every port and his time at sea is a fight for survival. There is no escape when sailing in Oceans of Trouble.
If you are looking for hot alpha males with no fear of anything, a virgin love interest, and a few billion in the bank; may I suggest the next aisle over where you’ll also find the blindfolded bodice-rippers.
If you are looking for an author who writes safe and tip toes around sensitive issues, perhaps you should look in the “I keep a tight rein on my characters and never let them speak their mind without censorship” section.
If, like I, you subscribe to the Truman Capote philosophy “You can’t blame a writer for what the characters say,” then I have some great fiction for you.
Hi, I'm Travis. I am a beach read writer and in-print entertainer. That means I write fun books. The topics and content may be highly charged with what may be considered politically incorrect these days, but what fun is life if we can't laugh.
Here are some of my favorite lines from reviews I have received. (And they are not all 5-star “I'm the greatest writer ever.”)
* Travis Casey is a writer who takes chances. In this political satire, he hits on controversial topics. I laughed and shook my head as political correctness took a giant leap out the window. – The Mayor’s Race
* When first reading this book, I absolutely loathed it, until I realized that it was really the character, Mr. Hightower, that I hated rather than the book. To make someone hate a character as much as I despised this one is a rare talent. He is a misogynistic narcissist with a knack for gaslighting that cheats on his wife with a former student and still looks down upon others for drinking any sort of alcohol, having a job in the sex industry, and swearing of any sort. –No Halo Required
* This book will make you chuckle at the characters' antics while simultaneously wanting to scream with aggravation when they do something particularly foolish. The ratio of romance to adventure skews in favor of adventure, and it makes for an exciting story with just enough flirting to be fun. With its clever conversations, strong plot, and plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, this book is worth reading! – Southern Harm
* What makes a man fall completely head over heels in love? Well, we get to see why in this amazing book told in a male's POV. This book was beautifully written with a strong voice, a great blend of love and drama. The dialog was witty and hilarious, the characters fascinating and funny. – Forbidden Trouble
* Wow, reading this book was a hilarious, thrilling voyage! The witty, raw humor in this book draws you in right away and doesn't fail to keep you entertained for the whole ride. There was more than one time I found myself laughing out loud – Oceans of Trouble
* I am speechless about the book. Too many themes running at the same time -deceit, guilt, lust, infatuation, backstabbing, etc, etc. – Trouble Triangle
A dual citizen of America and Britain, I currently live in Minnesota with my British wife and two Shih Tzu/Bichon crosses, Shelby and Sia
To be honest, I started reading this book because of a friend of mine was telling me that he was having difficulty getting through the story and asked if I would read it to see if I could better grasp the story. I do have to say though after reading this book, and I did push myself to read the whole story, I still don’t feel as though I grasped anything that the author was trying to portray in the story. Now granted, there was 1 part of the story that I did find quite humorous, and even when I think back onto the story after finishing it I do remember it. Besides that though, I really didn’t enjoy the book at all and there wasn’t anything else that stood out specifically FROM the story itself. I mainly have my thoughts and feelings towards the book. As I said in the first part of this review, I did push myself to read the whole story. Even though I started the book under unusual circumstances, I did have some expectations and hopes for the story because it’s written by a male author. With how populated the market is with female authors, I thought it would be great to get an insight into the male’s head. Well I can say that after reading this story, I felt like yes we did get an insight to a man’s head, but a juveniles one only. I really do fail to see how this would be considered anything more than a joke book because although I’m sure to many it was humorous, overall I felt like it was a smack in the face not only to women, but also to the United States Military. While I am sure that some military members do act the way that this author describes them in his book, I personally don’t agree with books that insult military. I do not want to give away anything that could be considered a spoiler when it comes to my last statement. However, if you would want to know what I personally feel the author has done to insult the military, please feel free to contact me.
Reviewed by Crystal Marie for Crystal's Many Reviewers *Copy purchased by Crystal Marie*
I am so excited to see the continuation of Tyler Chamber's adventures in this second book of the trilogy. I couldn't get enough of the first book, loved this one, and now I can't wait for the third to be released and see how it all ends.
Oceans of Trouble is another laugh out loud romp through Tyler's life. Since this one is on board a ship, we get to see much more in the way of Navy life. I have to admit to being shocked at a few of the things that happened (you'll know what I mean when they cross the equator) but have since seen videos showing that this is, in fact, a true-to-life accounting of what happens, which made it all that more interesting to me.
As far as characters, Travis Casey writes big, over-the-top personalities, which makes the humor so great! I will warn that the main antagonist in Tyler's life might be offensive to some, as he is definitely larger than life. Personally, I thought he was more clever than Tyler at times, and it kept me thoroughly entertained. I didn't know from chapter to chapter whether Tyler would even survive this book to finish out the trilogy. And the ending...well, I don't want to do any spoilers, but I was really shocked (in a good way) by how this book concludes.
Another great title by this author and I will anxiously wait for the next installment. This is on my re-read pile, for sure!
Wow, reading this book was a hilarious, thrilling voyage! The witty, raw humor in this book draws you in right away and doesn’t fail to keep you entertained for the whole ride. There was more than one time I found myself laughing out loud during Tyler Chamber’s encounters with others, especially with his honeyco. The author pulled me into the adventure, first with the humor and then with his descriptions that were blunt and real. I could almost smell the port in the Philippines and he didn’t bore me to death to make that happen. Next, I was glued to the dynamic twists. Tyler’s mishaps will have you on the edge of your seat and fearing for his life at every turn. The life of a U.S. Navy officer has never been more fascinating. So much happens in this book, there isn’t a dull part - the alluring relationships with the women in every port, the disgustingly realistic hazing, the suspenseful backstabbing and fighting on the ship, the impending doom of either being killed at any moment either by the crazy scary shipmate or the Captain… I really felt for Tyler and was rooting for him all the way. This story was unpredictable but tied together very nicely in the end. I can’t wait to read more of Tyler’s misadventures. This is a must read!
This book was sooo funny! The main character becomes a sailor after a drunken bet doesn't work out in the way he wanted. Every port they stop at, he looks for a girl, but this doesn't work out for him either. In addition to this, a shipmate keeps trying to kill him. This book had the perfect mix of suspense and humor. I absolutely loved it! I will definitely continue to read books by Travis Casey as this was amazing, and the first one was amazing too. Highly recommended!
This is the second book I've read by Travis Casey. I'm not reading in order, but that doesn't seem to sway my ability to piece the storyline together. I absolutely enjoy the author's style of writing. It is easy to read and the characters are relatable and likeable. I learn new things from reading Casey's books. Ocean's of Trouble is addicting from the start. I read Southern Harm first, so I already had this idea of who Tyler Chambers was, and I admired his character. This made it even more thrilling when I realized this was the 'young and dumb' Tyler. I like him even more now. Tyler has a seemingly never-ending bout of bad luck. No matter how hard he tried to wiggle his way out of trouble, there's something, or someone, he didn't account for. His trips to the Captain's office become very frequent. He learns, after many failed attempts to get himself off Captain's radar, that Captain Daley's got a favorite. This book had my nerves going. I felt for the main character and wished for him to somehow clear his name. The author does phenomenal plot twists and just when you think you've figured out how it's all going to unfold, or even narrowed it down to a few different outcomes, your wrong! I never see it coming. I applaud Travis Casey, adding him to my favorite author list. His name will definitely come up the next time I'm speaking books! Highly recommended author. Try one, and trust me, you'll come back for a fix.
3.5 ⭐️ I truly have to cackle at this book. Poor Tyler, this man keeps trying to do right things more times than not and is just getting knocked down left and right. The true loves of his life, is a comical time and you want for it to workout so bad. Sly was definitely an a**hole and I didn’t not enjoy him, I was also flabbergasted by the news of Quinn !! I was shook , but I look forward to reading the next book.
I might not give this a 4 star but it is rather comical. The spice level is rather non existent, but the sh*t show of the book is just too comical. It’s like one wave after another crashes into poor Tyler
Yikes. If you love poorly written stereotypes, this is the book for you! The protagonist literally attempts to date rape someone in the first chapter. Luckily he draws the line at actually raping an unconscious 16 year old, so, good for him I guess? The only black character introduced so far has done nothing but talk about impregnating women and getting out of paying child support for all five of them, and doing so in a Tom Sawyer dialect. All around gross. Do not recommend.
I'm really glad I found this book ! It has a very interesting plot line that immediately sucked me in and then let go only when I had finished the story. The writing is clever & funny, the choice of words is witty, characters flawed & very believable, and the overall story very gripping. I like the author's writing style & will keep an eye out for more of his work. I will definitely recommend this one.
I read this as a stand-alone novel. It is crass humor, just as a novel about a sailor should be! Tyler cannot escape his problems and a new one seems to pop up every chapter, making for a highly engaging story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would definitely read another one of Travis Casey's books!
Of all the books I've read lately, this one stands out the most. I'm an ocean lover, so I was naturally drawn to it. Tyler is such a witty protagonist, but he's always getting in trouble. You can't help but hope he doesn't get killed by his crazy shipmate. I was laughing the entire time. I'm probably going to read it again because I enjoyed it so much.
Travis Casey is an exceptional author and no doubt is completely underrated, although likely not for long as his writing is just too good. On to his next book!
This book was recommended to me by a friend who's retired from the Navy. It's a very funny book that draws you in from the get-go and doesn't disappoint you. I loved Tyler's vivid personality and wicked sense of humor. It was fantastic.
Travis Casey writes an excellent story of life in the US Navy. His style throws the words in your face and dares you to run with them. Yet, he adds splashes of humanity within the cast of characters. This creates a powerful combination of guts being tested in unbelievable ways and the strengthening of inner confidence.
The story opens with the main male character, Tyler Chambers reporting for duty as a way to avoid the evils of serving time in prison. He immediately receives assistance from a fellow shipmate, Quinn. Opposite him, Chambers finds a relentless and undeserved side of skewed justice from an aggressive shipmate hell bent on making life miserable for him. Casey does such a wonderful job of character development that I literally wanted to climb in the story and beat the racist shipmate to death.
The setting descriptions are dead on for accuracy and gripping details. My uncle served in one of the areas, in the US Navy, and described much of the same tidbits. I enjoy reading stories that allow my senses a full arousal. Casey did this with a shrewd and solid style.
As the story continues, life takes some sharp turns for Chambers. Particular scenes engage all of his senses; you feel his ups and downs throughout each of these times. I won't spoil the action, which Casey obviously worked hard to dish out in a knowledgeable manner.
This book is not for the weak-hearted readers hunting for a way to spend a weekend in pleasure. It is for the stronger set that relishes a story of strength, triumph, determination and superior wits. Casey delivers all of them in a hard-hitting tale that will have you requesting permission to read his story over many times.
Oceans of Trouble is a gritty, humorous story about a U.S. Navy sailor who takes advantage of every opportunity that he sets sail to. It seems the more trouble he gets into, the deeper the web of deceit grows until it appears that there will be no way of escape for Tyler Chambers. As if causing problems with his fellow shipmates isn't enough, as well as his commanding officer, he has a way of stirring things up with every woman he meets as well.
Travis Casey weaves this story from a man's perspective. It is raunchy and rough, and is filled with unexpected twists. There is a lot of conflict and tension within the story line and it seems realistic, as though the author knows first hand what naval life is like and seems to write from experience. It is difficult to feel too much sympathy for the main character, since he seems to draw so much trouble to his circumstances, but given the settings is plausible. I found myself wondering how he would get out of these fixes, but the story is complex and well thought out.
I would recommend his books to anyone who likes action at sea, conflict with antics that include hazing and fighting, with steamy encounters. It seems this character is on a pleasure seeking mission, without thinking about the consequences until it is too late. Still, you end up rooting for him in the end. I look forward to seeing what other misadventures this trilogy has in store.
Travis Casey has written a winner!!! Poor choices and human foibles abound in the seafaring adventure. 'Clint' just can't catch a break. Just when you think he is about to sink into the abyss a blond comes along who could save him from being swept away by a tide of lies and injustice... not that he deserves saving, Clint is his own worse enemy. It's a good thing he's a sympathetic and charming character or you would just roll your eyes at all the decisions he makes, instead you smile and shake your head while waiting to see what other trouble he can stir up for himself. Oceans of Trouble was fun to read and Forbidden Trouble and Trouble Triangle are now on my TBR list.
While I have a sense of adventure and love to travel I DID NOT like this book. Actually for someone who has a lot of family and friends in the military I thought this was actually quite offensive they way our military is portrayed and how racial thugs get away with attempted murder. If you can get passed that you might enjoy some of the humor, screw ups of "Clint" while seeing him sweat and karma coming back around to bite him and everyone else in the butt.
I enjoyed this book and did sympathise with the protagonist after the way he was treated, both by the women in his life and his colleagues and so-called friends. As I've had 4 sons and 3 husbands, I think I've got some insight into the male psyche, especially the younger male. I also appreciated the humorous banter that accompanied every disastrous episode, which made me smile even though it was grossly unfair. No spoilers - you'll have to read the book to see what I mean. Loved it.