Terry Shames delivers another masterclass in small-town crime fiction with Deep Dive. From the very first page, the atmosphere is thick with tension, secrets, and the kind of slow-burn suspense that only a seasoned storyteller can pull off.

The plot is tightly woven, full of emotional depth and unexpected turns, and it tackles issues that feel both timely and personal without ever losing the classic whodunit thread. Shames has a unique gift for capturing the nuance of rural communities - their warmth, their darkness, and the unspoken rules that bind everything together.

Deep Dive doesn't just entertain - it immerses. It's the kind of novel you think about long after finishing the last page, not just for the twists, but for the truths it reveals. A standout entry in an already stellar series.

Deep Dive by Terry Shames

Thank you Netgalley and Severn House for my eARC!

Jessie Madison is a deep-sea diver, who was recently discharged from the FBI academy for being impulsive and reckless. She travels to The Bahamas to get away from her life and her problems, only to find herself in a dangerous situation. Her quick thinking and heroic acts in a tough situation allow her the opportunity of a lifetime: a chance to redeem herself with the FBI.

Jessie is asked to join an FBI USERT dive team on a top-secret mission off the coast of Italy. Her joining the team is of the utmost importance and she must leave immediately. Jessie joins seven elite divers trying to recover information from a World War II plane stranded at more than 100ft deep in the sea. As soon as Jessie meets everyone, she senses a lot of tension between them because the mission is not going smoothly. Jessie is perceptive and can tell each one of the team members is hiding something and she is determined to find out what is going on.

Shames sets the scene perfectly on the stunning Aeolian Islands allowing suspense and tension to build with each chapter. This story made me crave getting my dive license despite the dangerous situations the divers endured. I recommend this book if you love the water and shocking twists that will keep you engaged until the very last page!

My favorite genre of book – an ocean-based thriller! Jessie Madison, a former FBI trainee, gets the opportunity of a lifetime, a chance to redeem herself in the eyes of the FBI and qualify for a position on an FBI USERT dive team. Tasked with joining a team in the Mediterranean on a top-secret dive mission, Jessie is a great protagonist, and I can only hope for more books featuring this badass diver! I received an ARC from NetGalley, and the opinions expressed are my own.

Exciting!

Loved this book, loved the detail of the dives, the scenery and life under the waves. The mystery kept me hooked and I didn’t want to put it down. The only downside was the end for me, it felt incomplete.

Deep Dive is the second adventure with Jessie Madison, a woman who was forced out from the FBI academy and went to the Bahamas to teach diving. After those thrilling events in the last book she gets an offer to join the FBI Underwater Search and Evidence Response Team. The mission is to salvage something from a downed German plane in the ocean outside of Sicily. But not all is what it seems. I found the book well written and like the first one I liked the characters. I have followed Terry Shames for a number of years now and I love her Samuel Craddock stories. This new series is nothing like that but it's still good. I can really recommend this series and the second book hits the shelves on July 1st 2025. Go get it. I must thank Netgalley and Severn House for letting me read this advance copy.

Jessie Madison joins an FBI dive mission in the Mediterranean, where she encounters deadly threats and dangerous secrets. After a spine chilling summer in The Bahamas, Jessie Madison jumps at the chance to join the FBI Underwater Search and Evidence Response Team. Seven elite divers are trying to reach a World War II plane stranded at the bottom of the sea, close to the stunning Aeolian Islands north of Sicily. But the mission isn’t going to plan . . . Great read! I definitely enjoyed reading this book! It had great suspense, murder, mystery, fantastic characters, intriguing, action, a great who done it and some shocking moments! The storyline was very interesting! I highly recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Thriller with suspense and a wonderful plot. I love the concept of an underwater investigation team & this story did not disappoint. The characters are well developed and lead you into a tantalizing adventure to discover a stranded WW2 plane while all kinds of obstacles and trap get in the way. Highly recommend!