A young couple go to Bermuda on their honeymoon. They dive on the reefs offshore, looking for the wreck of a sunken ship. What they find lures them into a strange and increasingly terrifying encounter with past and present, a struggle for salvage and survival along the floor of the sea—in the deep.
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"The first "adult" book I ever read. When the paperback edition came out, I was around 5 years old. It seemed my mom and everyone else had that book. I was fascinated by the cover and got to reading--quite an exercise for a kindergartener. To this day, a real thriller. "
— Jeremy (5 out of 5 stars)
" Yuck. An excuse for a movie. Not a good one at that. "
— Debbie, 2/16/2014" I was really disappointed by the ending. "
— Sarah, 2/15/2014" I reaad this book decades ago, but could never get it out of my mind because the ending was such a shocker! "
— Karen, 2/10/2014" Fun, easy read. Particularly enjoyable if you are intrigued by the notion of finding treasure. I am. I liked. "
— Artguy, 2/10/2014" I didn't really give this one a chance. There was a slightly confused scene right at the start that contains a description of a beach and it was just all wrong. After that I just gave up. I really wanted to like it, simply because of the Bermuda connection. I'll try one more time and get back to you. "
— Alexandra, 2/8/2014" I probably read this when I was 11 or 12 and I only remember two things from it: the female character bending over so that her bikini-covered breasts' honey-coloredness became visible, and the word "ampules." This is the kind of book you should read when you're 11 because you'll get much more out of it. "
— Lobstergirl, 2/5/2014" Perfectly acceptable for car-listening, but nothing great. It did really sound more like a movie than a book. A couple are honeymooning in Bermuda. While scuba-diving, they stumble across an ampule that contains some sort of drugs (morphine? Heroine?). Turns out there was a ship that sunk in the 1940's carrying drugs that are now worth millions. So the bad guys try to get them to get it for them. Since they're in Bermuda, there's no useful law, so they can't appeal there. They find a local who's sympathetic, and the race is on to find it all so they can destroy it before the bad guys can train themselves to get it themselves. Sort of dramatic tension, I guess. But the locals are so much more interesting than the white honeymooners. (Also, the guy is sort of a jerk, but, anticipating the movie, the wife is the hottest thing ever.) Just to keep our interest, they also find an unknown cache of gold etc from a Spanish galleon-type thing, created for King Phillip (or whoever's) new bride. I suppose I was also supposed to learn some history and geography of Bermuda, and stuff about scuba as well. Really 3.5 "
— Yofish, 2/2/2014" This book started out better than Jaws over the first 150 pages or so. Decent development of a plot and characters. Basically, honeymooners are in Bermuda for a dive vacation and discover sunken jewels and drugs and then encounter the local underworld. My reaction from reading Jaws and The Deep is that they both ended poorly/abruptly. More creative thought regarding story closure would have made these more enjoyable. "
— Andrew, 1/19/2014" I actually liked this one a bit more than Jaws. Enjoyed the plot and the characters very much. Excellent summer read. "
— Robert, 1/15/2014" Well written, well paced adventure story. Quick and easy read, but satisfying for a rainy saturday afternoon. Very nice change of pace from the kind of heavy non-fiction I've been reading lately. "
— Sarah, 1/13/2014" Talk about a sophomore slump. This is the book Peter wrote after Jaws. To put it mildly if this had been his first book we would have never heard of this author. Story is dumb and the characters are annoying. And I spent the first 2/3rds of the book waiting for a monster. There is no monster "
— Sean, 1/13/2014" A fun, quick paced book with little reason to lose interest. "
— Jasmine, 12/31/2013" this is not a good book "
— Brian, 12/9/2013" Read this a long, long, time ago. held me completely even through re-reads. "
— Alistair, 12/8/2013" Not too bad as a book on tape. For reasons not readily apparent to me, I thought it was going to be about a giant squid. It was not. Probably a better movie than book (although I haven't seen the movie, I'm assuming there is one). "
— Alyssa, 12/4/2013" One of the few times I will ever say the movie was better than the book. "
— Jennifer, 6/23/2013" A bit different from "Jaws", but still definitely worth reading nonetheless. "
— Thomas, 6/5/2013" A couple on holiday in the Caribbean discover drugs amongst some wrecks while out diving. Read this many years ago - a real page turner. "
— Lorraine, 4/17/2013" Oddly addictive....but it did seem rushed at the end. Fun read, looking forward to watching the film! "
— Annie, 12/7/2012" I was going to give this book 4 stars because it kept me interested the whole way through but... I didn't care very much for the ending. "
— Riley, 9/21/2012" What 12-year-old boy wouldn't love a book with so much sex and drugs? I'm not 12 anymore and I kind of wonder if there was really that much sex in this book. "
— David, 8/4/2012" Lol. So cheesy and great. "
— Mikaila, 7/21/2012" Your basic action adventure tale. What can I say? I'm developing a soft spot for underwater adventure stories. "
— Connor, 7/12/2012" Was good. "
— S.E., 11/4/2011" This book was a favorite of mine long before Jacqueline Bisset slipped on her wet T-shirt. "
— Jeffrey, 7/22/2011" The ending kind of came out of nowhere, but overall it was an entertaining read! "
— Andy, 6/19/2011" Can't really explain why it is I loved this book so much...very similar to why I love the original poseidon adventure. "
— Jen, 5/31/2011" Loved the book and the movie. Book is different so if youve only seen the movie you have to read the book. "
— Debbie, 5/17/2011" I loved it. I could see why they'd make a movie out of it. This one cost a lot of beach b usinesses a lot of money... "
— F., 5/14/2011" Not as good as it was when I was 10. "
— Nic, 5/10/2011" I try to stay away from books like this but who can resist shark attacks? "
— Pete, 5/8/2011" Bizarre, but fun. Different than the film, in a good way. "
— Elissa, 5/6/2011" The movie was better. "
— Perrin, 4/28/2011" The movie is way better, but the book wasn't bad. "
— Sarah, 4/14/2011" The only time I think I'll ever say this...THE FILM WAS BETTER! "
— Jamie, 3/31/2011" This was the first adult book I had ever read when I was 9 years old. The enchantment of a deadly, man-eating fish captured my imagination. A truly great story. I don't think anyone ever looked at the beach the same way again after reading this book. "
— Scott, 3/23/2011" Stephen King recommended. <br/> <br/>Read the book, then saw the movie. Even though I knew what was coming, I still jumped clear out of my seat when the severed head popped out of the wrecked ship! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! "
— Debra, 3/13/2011" I read this as a teen and couldn't put it down. "
— Leesa, 3/5/2011Peter Benchley (1940–2006) was an American author best known for writing the novel Jaws and cowriting the screenplay for its highly successful film adaptation. The success of the book led to many publishers commissioning books about mutant rats, rabid dogs, and the like threatening communities. The subsequent film directed by Steven Spielberg is generally acknowledged as the first summer blockbuster. Benchley also wrote The Deep and The Island, which were also adapted into films, and several other novels. A champion of conservation, he was a compelling author for shark fans and foes alike.
Mark Feuerstein is the star of USA Network’s Royal Pains. He has also been on such television shows as The West Wing, 3 Lbs, and Good Morning, Miami. In addition, he can be seen in such films as What Women Want, The Muse, Practical Magic, In Her Shoes, and Defiance, starring Daniel Craig, and he made his Broadway debut in Alfred Uhry’s The Last Night of Ballyhoo.