I was rooting for this newlywed couple to succeed in their dream even though I knew it was impossible and harebrained idea still it was very suspenseful and I stuck with it

Deep Water was a fair enough time-killer, albeit an entirely basic, tepid read that fails to live up to the promises of the publisher's jacket copy. I'm a fan of desert island thrillers/horror (I'm at a total loss as to how the publisher's marketing team felt this was even remotely comparable to Scott Smith's The Ruins, by the way), and Emma Bamford tries to go the psychological thriller route, but it all falls a bit flat.

Newlyweds abandon civilization for the high seas and a life of sailing (sign me up!), and chart a course for a paradisiacal island and befriend a few other ex-pats who anchor there between monsoon season. They're followed by the mysterious Vitor and Theresa, and what follows is a test of Virginie and Jake's young marriage. Will she sleep with Vitor? Is Vitor really a drug dealer? Will Jake stop being pigheaded and let somebody help him fix their boat's busted engine?

The narrative is driven by choices and questions, but...not much really happens. Bamford does a terrific job of making life at sea into a grand adventure, and Amarante certainly feels like paradise. Unfortunately, there's never really any sense of threat or momentum until like 80% through. The book's synopsis boasts of the islands secrets but, much like every other aspect of Bamford's story, once revealed it's just more of a nothingburger.

My advice? Skip Deep Water and check out Dead Calm with Sam Neil, Nicole Kidman, and Billy Zane, or give Richard Laymon's Island a read instead.

I think the comparisons in the blurb set this book up to fail. It is very slow, and not very interesting.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

“Deep Water” hooked me and didn’t let go! Emma Bamford is the queen of twists and turns. This was great!

This book was definitely interesting. I did find it to be a good plot, and overall the story was well written. I was engaged in the story and was eager to see how it would end. I would say that I would read another book of this author’s in the future for sure.

Jake and Virginia are a young married couple from England, desperate to live a dream life by sailing to exotic places. When they buy a sailboat to pursue their dreams, they meet a man in Malaysia who tells them about a magnificent island, 2000 miles south, below the equator.
They are just intrigued, and set off for Amarant.
Upon arrival, they find that they are not alone on this beautiful island, and begin an adventure with new friends and new rules! The idyllic life doesn’t last long as they encounter boat trouble, illness and deceit.

This book was engaging in it’s beautiful descriptions, allowing the reader to really see the island! I enjoyed the setting and the characters, and just knew the trouble was brewing.
There was a lot of action, and the narrative was separated into different settings: the naval ship, the island and Malaysia.

I enjoyed everything about this book,although the ending was a bit abrupt.

4.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for the advanced copy.
This review will be posted on NetGalley and Goodreads.

In Emma Bamford’s Deep Water, this psychological thriller takes place on the water. It’s a cross of a a modern-day version of Lord of the Flies with a ghastly spine-tingling twist. It all started when Royal Malaysian Navy Captain Daniel Tengku rescued two people from the sea. One’s unconscious, and the other one that’s shocked to her core. That’s when he met Virginie Durand, a newlywed Englishwoman, who fought for her life against a demented mad man, and her husband Jake, who was in a coma. As they sought shelter onto his ship, she told the harrowing story on how they went to this remote desert island called Amarante, a so-called paradise to be away from civilization from the world. It had all the trappings for it, but it was enriched in a dark history and had to abide by certain communal rules with fellow boat mates in the ocean. At first, everyone was friendly and welcoming, except for one sinister snake in the grass, who would do whatever he wants at a high price to keep his own secrets. As the tale grew darker to when they sought for help weeks later, it was up to Captain Tengku to save them after they’re rescued on dry land before they sailed away back home.

This dark thriller will give you goosebumps on every turned page to leaving you hanging in suspense from start to finish. I cared for Virginia and Jake on how they’ve found paradise at first and lost it entirely later on. They’re a strong powerful couple who escaped dangerous waters when true love conquers all. The central location of Amarante Island is perfect for this thriller on the water for its scenic settings. The theme of this story is survival of the fittest.

This spine-tingling psychological thriller is gripping and have you at the edge of your seat. I had nothing to nitpick on this novel since this gave me goosebumps. I rated this book, four out of five stars, because it was a bit dark in nature. If you love twisted heart-pounding psychological thrillers that take place on the water, pick up a copy of Deep Water today. This book is recommended for those who love psychological thriller novels like Alex Marwood and Erica Spindler, and loves thrillers in the big and small screen.

This book is a snooze. I'm sorry, but don't start with something exciting (a captain finding a woman with her husband on an abandoned yacht, saying "It's all my fault. I killed them") and then follow it with a boring story.

Virginie and Jake (he was super annoying) sell everything buy a small yacht, and sail to Amarante to live a simple few months. The other people on the island create trouble... about 50% in. And the trouble that's created is still boring.

Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this one. I don't quite understand the comps used, because this has very little in common with those comps (specifically The Ruins). This is really slow. Like, really, really slow. The action doesn't start until the 80% mark, which is way too late for a thriller. The characters lack nuance. There's an attempt at complexity, but it fails and just leaves them reading as cardboard cutouts of characters we've seen before.

What really kept this from being any sort of enjoyable, though, was the shoehorned in discussion on colonialism. The topic was not handled with the severity or grace that it deserves. Amarante was paradise until the MC found out that it had been a prison and then, suddenly, she was overcome by feelings of guilt and white fragility. It was so out of place and unnecessary.

Not one for me, I'm afraid.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-arc copy of this book.

Deep Water held my interest as a story of isolation, strained relationships, and communal living. The story revolves around a young married couple who invest their life savings in a boat and sail to a far-off island. Naturally, things devolve for them from there. I thought the build-up of the interactions with the couple's fellow islanders was interesting. Bamford illustrates how different personalities adjust to a forced communal structure. Since the book is billed thriller/suspense though, I would have like to see more intrigue along the way. Instead, it feels paced as more of a fictional sociological study, up until things start unraveling near the end. Still, the world-building is solid, as is the character development. All in all, an entertaining and well-written book.

I’d like to thank @netgalley and Scout Press for the ARC of Deep Water in exchange for an honest review. The writing and storytelling was good. However, I felt it was lacking in the creepy and suspense area. It took over half the book to tell the back story of the trip and the characters. The last part of the book was suspenseful and action packed. I expected more survival and fear happening throughout the book. I will try more books by this author because the writing was good.

It’s a terrific premise: A navy ship receives a Mayday call and approaches a yacht in the middle of the Indian Ocean only to find a man with a serious head wound and a thin, fragile woman. She tells the story of how she and her husband happened to be there: the couple started out on an isolated paradise in Malaysia that seems to have turned into a nightmare experience. Is she a reliable narrator? Time will tell. The novel was off to a wonderful start—with lots of excellent tension—but could have used a few more revisions to address pace and forward momentum issues.

I really wanted to like this book but it turns out I feel right in line with the good read stating of 3.47 - I rounded to 3.5 :)

Who would guess that a trip to a desolate tropical island in the Indian Ocean would turn into a survival mission? Certainly not Virginie and her husband Jake who have gathered their life savings for the trip of their lifetime. One they arrive at Amarante they are met by several other people visiting the island. After about a month into their two month stay things start to go wrong and people aren’t who they said they were. Will Virginie and Jake make it off the island in one piece?

This book just fell flat. It was almost too descriptive and I found myself skipping portions because I was bored. It just didn’t keep me engaged and I disliked how the book switch character POVs without telling the reader - annoying! Special thanks to @netgalley for a copy of this book from the public catalog in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited for Deep Water because of the comparisons to The Ruins. I enjoy an atmospheric thriller, especially those that involve the ocean and deserted islands. The beginning of this book hooks you in and the story is enticing. The pacing of the book can be frustrating and I often found myself bogged down in details that didn't seem relevant. I felt the ending was rushed. That said, this is an interesting story and if you appreciate a slow burn then this book will deliver. I do think you will be disappointed if you are expecting a book similar to The Ruins.

Unfortunately, I didn't love this one. It took me multiple times to sit down and read this one but I couldn't get into it. I was so disappointed because this was an anticipated read of mine, but it fell flat. I couldn't relate to the characters and typically I love thrillers that grip me from the very beginning. I grew bored with this one rather quickly.

This is my first book to read by this author but I cannot wait to read more by them! This is such a uniquely written story that you will find yourself thinking about long after you finish it. Highly recommend!!

A FANTASTIC summer read. Perfectly atmospheric. A deserted island adventure gone wrong?! What could be better. I loved our main character and I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed the descriptions of the heat, island, and life on a boat. Instantly transported to the South Seas and really could feel the heat coming off the page. A solid ending as well. Thoroughly enjoyed and will be re-reading each year!

Caution: Harsh/Honest Review 🫣🫣🫣

So this book looks cool right? I mean, it looks a bit ominous and there’s water... well, the cover and the description are deceiving. This book was SO BORING. Here’s what I looked like while reading, as shown below through emojis:

😮🤔😐😐😐😐😐😐😐🤢😐😐😐🥴🤷🏼‍♀️

Have you read the book Reckless Girls? This book is basically the exact same story except Reckless Girls was way better. So I suggest you read that one if you want more entertainment.

Ok, so at the beginning of the book a Navy vessel comes across a yacht with a distraught bikini clad woman and her bleeding/possibly dead husband. Woah! Crazy! What happened, what’s their story?! Well, their story is lame. They bought a boat, sailed around to a lush remote island for beauty and seclusion, met some people (some are weird and secretive-(typical)) and then all hell breaks loose by which I mean food poisoning and the weird people get weirder. Their adventurous dream soon turns into a NIGHTMARE- but not until about 83% if you make it that far. Because, boring.

I just don’t know. I mean, it reminded me SO much of Reckless Girls. Also, it made me thirsty and seasick. Also, I just didn’t care… I skimmed the last couple chapters.

I really am appreciative to NetGalley and glad they sent me this advanced copy, but I’m not tagging them.

Q. If someone was like, ‘hey there’s an island with unspoiled beaches but it’s full of burial mounds and giant crabs,’ would you go?

🖤🖤🖤

A Navy vessel is called by a woman in distress on a yacht in the middle of the ocean. When they arrive, they find Virginie and her husband Jake, who is badly injured. The reader is brought back to the beginning of Virginie and Jake's adventure visiting a remote island, and who and what they find there.

I really wanted to love this book. I greatly enjoyed the ride - I loved the tension and the mystery and could not put it down! However, I did feel a little let down in the end. The third act felt rushed and did not do justice to the rest of this book. I'll definitely read Bamford's other work, as there were some cool ideas in here, but for this one, it just didn't connect for me.

Okay. Wow what did I read. This book kept me on my toes and second guessing everything I thought I knew. Absolutely genius.