Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban

A suspenseful locked-room mystery where, on a cruise, everyone is hiding something.

I read this is a day. The style of writing is just addictive and once the story got hold of me, it didn’t let go until the very end.

The characters are complex, but I found the protagonist Jade a bit unstable. She’s so focused on her own unsolved issues and personal teen drama that as a narrator, made it hard to stay connected to the murders. While some self-awareness is needed to build a character, I would have liked to see a bit less drama and a bit more focus on the mystery unrevealing. However, the secondary characters make up for it with their unique personalities and their stories.

The plot was good, with a few twists here and there, but I can’t say I was very surprised by them. I figured out part of the mystery by mid-story. At some point I found that some elements reminded me of Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile. I was a bit disappointed by the ending. I was expecting it be a bit more developed, and I felt it ended too abruptly with very few explanations or details.

Still, a nice and quick read.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced ARC!