Review – 100 Fathoms Below by Steven L Kent

It’s been an interesting first few months reviewing for Netgalley. Some of the books have been, let’s say “less fun,” while others have been great. This one definitely leans towards the latter category.

When I signed up for it a while back, the premise sounded interesting, but by the time I actually started it (about 36 hours ago), I had completely forgotten, apart from the fact that it was on a submarine.

The basic plot revolves around a sub on a secret mission to spy on some new Russian submarine back in the 80s. Once the sub enters Russian waters, the crew

has no contact with their home base. Naturally that’s when people start disappearing and other weird stuff starts happening.

Okay, so far, so mysterious. But it’s about vampires. On a submarine. How has no one written this kind of story before – It’s great. The author does a fine job of evoking the claustrophobia of living in a confined space, while under threat from outside forces. The characters are decent, with some likeable, and a couple of turds thrown in for good measure, but when the body count starts to rise, no one appears to be safe.

The story is tense and exciting from start to finish, with a creepy beginning, a solid set up, then the crew struggling to deal with the reality that they live in a world where vampires exist. The bloodsuckers are kinda cool, not your stuffy Victorian types, but more like drug addicts trying to get you hooked too.

I don’t know if the author has plans for a sequel, and to be honest, I hope he doesn’t as the ending is perfect. Not quite a five star read, but as close as you can get without it tipping over. Give it 4.49/5, and round it down.