disclaimer – i received a copy of this book via hachette book group – orbit in exchange for an honest review.

it’s been seven years since the atargatis set sail to the mariana trench in order to film a “mockumentary” about mermaids. seven years since it was found, battered and empty, miles from where it was supposed to be. seven years since the video showing what happened was found, the video that everyone believes is a hoax. it’s been seven years…and now it’s time for a new ship to sail. time for a new group of scientists to investigate. time to find out once and for all what happened to the atargatis. time to find out if mermaids are real.

i hate calling something a sequel. somehow, it makes it seem like the original was less than whole, less than perfect, in and of itself. rolling in the deep, the novella that opened up this boat of mermaid horrors, was amazing. and it left so many questions, so many unresolved fears. now – in a full-length novel no less!!! – author mira grant gives us all the answers we were looking for and so very many that we didn’t want.

into the drowning deep is a well researched, incredibly taut, amazingly frightening story that follows a new group gathered together to investigate what really happened to the atargatis seven years ago. hundreds of people, crew and scientists, are going back to where it all started; they have the best equipment, the best security, the best defenses and they’re ready. if you’re a mira grant fan you know that THAT is the point when you should be dropping all your toys and running away screaming. if you’re new to mira grant’s world…well, we’ll try not to point and laugh when you stop to ask a question and get your face eaten off.

grant’s writing is always captivating and never more than in this book. she weaves just enough of the details from rolling in the deep into the story that if you haven’t read it you can still keep up and if you have read it you’re getting a different view of what happened. there are plenty of detailed scientific discussions for the science people, and they’re explained just enough for those of us who don’t have a scientific mind. there is blood and gore and death and destruction enough for any horror fan to love. there are teeth, you cannot believe how many ripping tearing chewing teeth there are. but there is also heart, and friendship, and the sadness at the loss of each. there is humor, and annoyance, and the unwillingness to live without answers. you look at a book that says mira grant and you automatically think horror and science; you should also automatically think of all these other things, though. she writes them as naturally as she does the horror and without them, the horror wouldn’t be nearly as terrifying. without the people, the loss of the atargatis wouldn’t have mattered. without the mystery, the journey wouldn’t mean nearly as much. without the heart, the price for the answers wouldn’t be so very steep.

five out of five stars.

Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I read the Rolling in the Deep novella and my main complaint was that there was not enough of it. So imagine how happy I was when I came across this beauty. Not only is this one much longer than the novella, this one is long even for a novel. However, I still got through most of it in a weekend because, hello, KILLER "MERMAIDS." Aside from the horror/fantasy premise of KILLER MERMAIDS (I mean, what more do you need to capture your interest?), the author also did an incredible job of character development. I didn't even feel like there was one main protagonist because the entire cast was so lively and nuanced. Jillian, Tory, Olivia, the Wilson sisters, etc etc - I enjoyed all the portraiture and aspects of each character. The author also incorporates themes of inclusion and diversity into her works. I appreciated that there was different sexual orientations, deaf characters, and an autistic character that were all portrayed with respect.
It's not often that you get both a great plot and great characters. The only reason this isn't 5 stars is that I do think the length could have been reduced a bit and the scientific descriptions were sometimes a bit dry for me. But I did enjoy that the author was able to make KILLER MERMAIDS (haha) seem actually almost scientifically feasible.

I'll read the next in the series and keep my eye out for more from this author. Sincere thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for an ARC!

*Shivers* Thank you, Mira Grant, for the nightmares. May I have another? RTC.~ Caffeinated Reviewer.

Oh my gosh I am not OK after reading this book! The monster trope tends to be a tough sell for me, but this book is utterly terrifying. I may never go near the ocean again....

Bit of a slow ramp up for me, but the ending knocked it out of the park.

This book is fantastic. It reminded me of Jurassic Park and humanity’s drive to control nature. The science was made very accessible, which I appreciate since I often find Sci Fi to be a bit difficult and technical. I had no trouble understanding the concepts and language used in the book. I can’t wait to read more of this series.

‘Into the Drowning Deep’ delivers a potent cocktail of bloodthirsty monstrous mermaids, blood spatter and gore with aplomb. It’s also that kind of popcorn-throwing syfy-horror-fantasy I expect at a viewing of any apex-predator movie—a thrilling, entertaining and highly campy ride up until the credits roll—which the book delivers.

Just don’t take it too seriously, which, with the aid of popcorn and a few laughs along the way, is rather easy to do.

The writing is visually striking, though distant and sometimes cynical with a tendency to go off rambling tangents in the way I would associate with authors like Michael Crichton, Steve Alten or Peter Benchley. Despite the premise, it is rather slow-going and the introductions to all the other characters (with the parenthesis of their background lives happening too often, just like this) so it means that things don’t really get underway until half the book’s gone by. But once the ship sets sail, expect the blood and gore to splash everywhere thanks to mermaids that are the furthest from Disney’s red-haired Ariel and her trusty sidekicks; these ones eat man for their delicious flesh and won’t stop till they get their fill.

Fighting, dissection and loads of chomping ensue, which might be one of the best bits for me, the other being Mira Grant’s ability to slip into various writing styles. Innocent animals as well as people are taken apart in grisly glory courtesy of very sharp teeth, amid the frantic guesswork behind the evolutionary path of the fanged-tooth sirens/mermaids, along with (some moralising science-speak) about humanity’s whirlwind path of destruction and how everything is interpreted through a framework only we can understand and deem superior.

With constantly changing POVs, Grant doesn’t make out any clear hero but neither are they particularly likeable enough that you get invested in them. The story is after all, more plot- than character-driven as the ultimate goal here is to uncover the mystery of the strange happenings deep in the Mariana Trench. Still, it suddenly comes to a climax after a slow build, before quickly plunging to a half-hearted resolution, leaving the dismembered body parts, gore and some very angry humans and sirens in their wake. The clean-up and aftermath happen ‘backstage’, but the idea of man’s survival typically hangs in the balance with a conclusion that suggests there might be room for a sequel—this much we’re simply told as the sun sets yet again on the impasse of man vs. the deep.

I have a confession to make. I have never read any of the books this author has written as Seanan McGuire, but I have everything she's written under her pen name, Mira Grant. I loved her Newsflesh series so when I got a chance to read this book I picked it up immediately!

Into the Drowning Deep was an interesting read and reminded me very much of Michael Crichton's work with some Lovecraft and Jaws thrown in for some spice. I enjoyed it! This book is Grant's take on a creature feature.

The plot concerns a mockumentary film crew that disappears along the Mariana Trench after footage of a deep sea monster attack surfaces from the abandoned wreckage. Several years later, marine biologist Tori Stewart has joined a new crew heading to the Trench and she hopes to investigate the case that ties in with the disappearance of her older sister who was part of the original film crew. She soon uncovers cryptozoological creatures who are nothing like the beautiful, mythical creatures in the stories we grew up with. I never expected to be frightened by mermaids but here we are. Bravo, Mira Grant! Bravo!

Like a most horror and disaster movies, this book has a large cast of characters, some of who are stereotypes, but Grant manages to make you care in some way about most of them. And of course in true Mira Grant fashion some of the ones I liked suddenly were murdered in a gory, chompy fashion. I really enjoyed the horror aspects of this book but what I really loved about them was that there was quite a bit of science integrated into the fantasy. Even though I loved all of the scientific explanations, I can see a lot of people not enjoying them. I just really liked what it added to the story.

Into the Drowning Deep was a fun read that really fit into the Halloween season even though the release date is set for November. It certainly has a great atmospheric build-up to a good horror novel that horror enthusiasts and those who like things horror-lite will enjoy. I didn't realize it was the first book in a series and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one!

Note: There is a novella, Rolling in the Deep, which ties into this book. I have not read it yet, but I will be soon. Apparently, it's the prequel to this but it's not required in order to read this book.