Something in the Water definitely held my interest. Most times I felt as though I was right there, watching the characters. I found myself pleading with one of the characters, who did not seem to have any common sense or concern for her safety, to make different choices than she made. Catherine Steadman had me from the opening line to the ending line- “Sometimes you just have to save yourself “. Twists upon twists upon twists. You won’t be able to put it down! A great vacation read! Many thanks to Catherine Steadman, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this thrilling book.

What would you do if you found treasure that could be life changing? Erin and Mark are scuba diving on their honeymoon and find some underwater treasure that will definitely change their lives forever. Whether the changes were for the better remained to be seen. I raced through this book and couldn't wait to find out the ending. The ending when it came, was a bit confusing. Great writing by a debut author!

I received this book for free for an honest review from NetGalley.

This book gripped me from the first couple pages. I liked the intricacies and details that the author slips in to really put you in the character's shoes. As with most mystery, thriller, and suspense novels these days, the book opens with the main character doing something that happens near the end of the book, but manages to hook you with the last paragraph before chapter two. This part isn't really a spoiler, because the book opens with it, but she is burying a body. I asked myself then, do I really want to continue to find out why she is doing this? The answer is yes! Yes, I did continue. I am glad that I did because the story took off from there and got way more exciting.

If you are looking for a great summer thriller that will keep you thinking and guessing as you go along, grab this book! You won't be disappointed with the time spent reading it. The pacing goes quick and has very little lag time between plot devices. I will however say that this book has a few loose ends that don't seem to get closure, but it does not affect the overall story or plot of the story.

A young, professional couple make a huge mistake while on their honeymoon at an island resort. One lie leads to another as they try to cover up the discovery they made. This was a very intense psychological thriller.

I honestly became hooked from the very beginning. I didn't know anything about it prior to reading it, that it was recommended by a celebrity or that it was a highly sought book club choice. The title captivated me and the opening had me prepared to buckle down for the next few hours to READ, READ, READ! The story is about a couple on their honeymoon that run into something unusual while out on a scuba dive. They are given a choice and each choice has its own consequence, like all the choices we make in life. Who we are is ultimately determined by the decisions we make in that brief moment of time. This story has characters that make you want to scream, strangle them and sometimes just give them your own advice! I found the side-stories just as interesting as the main plot line and really enjoyed this book. I really enjoy reading psychological thrillers and seem to keep reading this genre. That said, this book did not feel like the same old, same old story and the characters were fresh and new. I would recommend this book as a great summer beach read!

This was captivating all the way from beginning to end. Characters were interesting and a surprise ending. All I could ask for.

Good premise but stupid characters making stupid decisions. Too many convenient things fell their way (everything with the hotel cameras and records) it was just too much. No ones actions were plausible.

Not the biggest fan. The time warps in the book make it confusing and overall just hard to read. Erin's story sometimes just has parts that are too outrageous to really believe. While the descriptive writing style in this book is excellent (I want a vacation now to Bora Bora!) the total feel of it is just off.
Erin just turns psycho so it seems. There were times I wanted to toss this book right out the window because I was so frustrated with her character. The description sounded great, just wish the book would have lived up to the hype

I do like a good psychological thriller, but this one did not do much for me. The main characters actions were totally unbelievable and the plot was unstable.
Erin is doing well in her job as a documentary film maker, but her husband Mark, who was an investment banker is looking for a job. They decide to go on vacation to Bora Bora as Mark loves to scuba dive. They are having a good time there even though Erin is intimidated by the scuba diving, but she has Mark helping her. Then their life takes a turn and changes forever with what they find on one of their dives. They could just walk away and continue their lives together, but instead they make the unfortunate choice which changes their lives forever.

Have you ever dreamed of going on vacation and stumbling upon a bag that contained all sorts of riches? Nope? Me neither.... but this is a story of a newly married couple that found themselves in a heap of trouble because of a bag they found by accident -- or rather, it found them, while they were on a romantic boat ride. The contents of the bag could set a whole bunch of things straight for them, or make life a lot easier, for Erin and her newly betrothed, Mark. Prior to the wedding, Mark lost his job, and a new one was not forthcoming. They had bought a house and planned for a lavish wedding. As Mark panicked before the wedding, some changes needed to be made. The honeymoon however, was not changed - a lavish vacation on a four seasons resort. A couple could get used to this... and perhaps they could.... depending on what is in the bag that they stumbled on. This would be a good beach read. I enjoyed it (even though I was not at the beach!) and once it grabbed my interest in kept it through to the end. It took a little bit before it had my full attention, but once it did, it became a very quick read as I did not want to stop reading it until I knew what happened. There may be a few things that you have to suspend your disbelief about.... but we do it all the times at the movies. No reason why we cannot do it with the books we read, as well. Need a new book to pick up? I recommend this one!

Totally kept me interested throughout, but the payoff at the end just wasn't there. I wanted a big twist (or even a couple of small ones, and there was SO much potential for this that was wasted), but unfortunately I figured out where things were going long before the author revealed everything and there was no surprise. It was actually kind of obvious from the beginning because of how the book starts.
That said, this would be a great movie because--Bora Bora!

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is a strange and bazaar psychological thriller. It took me a while to get into it. I'm glad I stuck with it as it did get better, but still trying to get over the ending.

Suspense novels aren’t really my cup of tea but I do enjoy them now and again, especially if they are a Reese Witherspoon book club selection. This one definitely kept me turning the pages and on the edge of my seat, but the main character also drove me bonkers. Will definitely recommend as a fun summer read.

This started out with such suspense- a young wife burying her husband with almost clinical detachment. Then it goes back to their honeymoon in Bora Bora right before things go south. There were so many twists, and it was so fast paced I couldn't put it down. However, the last 10% or so was a little bit of a let down. There was so much promise, but I couldn't get into the climax or see anyone's motivation at the end. However, I still really enjoyed reading it!

Thank you Netgalley for this advanced copy.

I loved this book. At first, it was a little slow but wow did it pick up. This is a great summer read. Cannot wait to read more from Steadman.

This is a quick exciting read that begs the question “What would I have done?” In a dangerous possibly illegal situation you think there’s no way I could or would make that decision. As the story unfolds you watch the destruction that impulsive decisions and greed can have on a couple.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review "Something in the Water," by Catherine Steadman. This was a book I just didn't want to put down, but because of obligations such as work and housework, I had to. I read this book in about 3 days, during my spare time. Mark and Erin are newlyweds. The book starts with Erin's dialogue, explaining how she is burying a body - and then the reader finds out who it is. The story then back-tracks to how she came to be in such a predicament. The entire story is told from Erin's perspective. She is a documentary film maker and Mark is in the business of finance and loses his job as soon as the story begins. Money is tight, but the couple marries and goes on their planned honeymoon to Bora Bora. While on their honeymoon, the go scuba diving and the story rarely lets up after they find "something in the water" that will drastically change their lives. To say if it is for the better is for the reader to determine. I felt there would be a "double-cross" of some sort in the book and I was right but I was up in the air about which way the double cross would go. Something in the Water is somewhat of a quick read, but very thrilling and suspenseful. It reminded me very much of the book "A Simple Plan," by Scott Smith, with a little bit of the movie "Open Water" mixed in. An exciting read for the suspense/thriller genre.

Catherine Steadman's debut novel started off with a bang. Or a shovel. In the first paragraph, you learn she is digging a grave. The character, Erin, is flawed, detail oriented, but has a blind spot in her life when it comes to Mark, her husband. This is a domestic suspense book along the lines of Gone Girl.

I've read some of the other reviews and I would give it a 3.5 stars only because I did have to put it down because it got a bit outrageous for me. I gave it 4 because I did like the writing and finished it. I'm a completist, there are very few novels I have walked away from...thrown across the room because it was bad or thrown in the outside dumpster because it scared the crap out of me, but I finish them.

Back to SITW...after their honeymoon in Bora Bora, they stumble on something that changes their whole lives. I agree that the identity of who she is burying should have been hidden...then again, knowing the countdown means I need to know...why?

Erin is a documentary filmmaker with enough skill to land a legendary filmmaker's interest and have a wonderful career at it. Mark is a banker going through the hard times of losing his job and from that his identity. Erin can see the cold hard world of the prisoners she is interviewing, but the people in her personal life, she sees through rose colored glasses. As the domestic situation changes after Bora Bora, it becomes harder for Erin to see the differences between her real life and her filmmaker life. Blurring the boundaries of two, she starts to doubt herself, what she is seeing, and how she is going to get through it.

The end of the novel is a bit rushed. Too pat. Everything rolled up in a ball that makes sense but it's like eating what looks like a lovely dessert to taste like it comes out of a can. It works, but it could have been more fulfilling.

For a debut novel, however, I think Catherine Steadman does a good job of getting us interested and then showing us why. I will look forward to other books by her in the future.

This book was given to me by Netgalleys for an honest and unbiased review.

Newlywed Erin discovers it’s hard work digging a grave on your own. Readers won't know which end is up in this fast-paced novel of suspense, filled with twists and turns that will leave you guessing until the final page.

Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman

If you found a million dollars in cash and a million dollars in diamonds and you knew it wouldn't be missed, would you turn it in to the authorities or keep it? Erin and Mark are newlyweds enjoying the tropical weather and beauty in a five star hotel in Bora Bora. Erin is a documentary film maker and Mark is an investment banker. They live in London and because Mark has some setbacks from work they are forced to skimp on their wedding.

One day on their honeymoon Erin and Mark go scuba diving and find a sunken airplane with a duffel bag. They take the duffel bag and discover their find could be the end of their money problems. Only in life things are not so simple. The story is told from Erin's point of view so we have to follow her thoughts and actions to see where the narrative takes us.

This was an original mystery that the suspense kicked in after the couple found the loot. What they decided to do with their found treasure and the consequences for their decision is what begins an addictive read. I would have liked to see more character development of Mark who is a main figure of the story as Erin's husband.

The beginning of the story was leaving me puzzled as it is quite disturbing and it is not until I was reading the conclusion was I able to tie in the relevance to the story. I would rate this as 3.5 stars rounded up as I had to suspend belief that how the story plays out could actually occur. What started out slow certainly picked up the pace for me after the discovery of this couple's windfall was found.

I did enjoy this mystery and vicariously followed along this couple's maneuvering their way towards the obstacles they faced based on their choices. I liked that this was told from a single point of view which gave the mystery some uniqueness as most writers of this genre alternate chapters using two or more point's of view. This is this author's first book and overall an enjoyable read that I will remember due to it's originality.

Thank you to Net Galley, Catherine Steadman and Ballantine Publishing for granting me access to my digital copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.