In 1998, marine biologist Dr. Minnow Gray travels to the Kohala Coast of Hawai’i to investigate a series of aggressive shark incidents. Minnow has always loved the ocean and her beloved sharks despite losing her own father to an attack when she was a child. The community is protective of the shark population, but the business people and mayor want to do a culling in order to decimate the creatures ahead of a big race that is bringing in a lot of publicity and tourists. Minnow tries in vain to convince them of the ecological damage that will be done if they go ahead.
Like many, the movie, “Jaws” left me feeling terrified of swimming in the ocean in case there were sharks. Since I know nothing about sharks, it was easy to demonize them as monsters. This book gives a lot of information about sharks and also about all aspects of that particular area of Hawai’i. It’s easy to get lulled into the atmosphere and life on the coast of that island. I’m not saying I’m a convert and all my fear is gone, but all the details about the great white and tiger sharks was very interesting. I enjoyed learning about Minnow’s work as a marine biologist working in a beautiful but sometimes dangerous location. Minnow was a bit of an odd duck and I could have done without the instant and convenient romance, but the other characters were not really the focus of the story.
I guess I liked this because I love Hawai’i and am drawn to the ocean while also respecting it. The creatures that live there fascinate me and I could definitely live near that beautiful place.
I was able to listen to the audio book while also following along in the e-book ARC, both provided by the publishers. The narrator, Jennifer Robideau, did a masterful job with the characters. Her voice has a natural musicality that matched the accents and pronunciations so perfectly. It all sounded very authentic and it felt like she was a local living on the island. I loved her voice and the appropriateness of her quiet ease with all the terms and the drama in the story.
This is a standalone and is not part of any series.
Genre and tags: ocean, sharks, marine biologist, romance, childhood trauma with death of parents, Hawai’i, ecology, marine life
Update: Minnesota woman dies after shark attack in US Virgin Islands
By Ramon Antonio Vargas
Jan 12, 2026 8:41 am CST
The Guardian
No comments:
Post a Comment