Rating: 4 out of 5
This volume in the Diving Universe is comprised of two halves: one related to the Fleet and another to Boss in the Boneyard. I found the Fleet part to be much more interesting than the diving though in prior volumes that have only focused on dives, they have been thrilling. Here, however, the Fleet action clearly outweighed the rest for me. It’s not a huge problem but this definitely means I was paying much more attention to one part of the book.
The Fleet chapters’ characters are also all new which allows us to get to know some folks. Without knowing how many of them come back later, it might feel that Ms Rusch’s focus on Vice Admiral Mbuye’s personal problems is unwarranted. Yet, having read the author’s blog over some years, I can’t help but wonder if this was a necessary part of this book to help her deal with (similar) problems in her family. Not my business—but if this is the case, then Mbuye and her son may be the most important characters of the book for her.
The Boneyard’s characters are all mainly old, though I think some have only been mentioned in passing. Two formerly Fleet persons get a bigger role, but there’s nothing very surprising about this storyline: the team plans, tests, plans, tests, etc, all to get ready for the big final dive. There’s more over danger here than previously, but the reader has a lot more information than Boss about her circumstances so it feels like they could have jumped a test or two without a significant effect on the outcome.
In the end, even a less than perfect Diving novel is pretty good! I am keen to continue with the next book.
