“Escape to paradise.
Scuba diving instructor Cass leads her students out for their first dive off the beautiful coast of Koh Sang, Thailand’s world-famous party island. It’s supposed to be a life-changing experience, but things quickly spiral out of control…

Leave your secrets behind.
By the time she gets back to the shore, one of her students is dead, another badly injured, and she knows that her idyllic life is about to be smashed to pieces on the rocks.

But don’t get lost for ever…
Because someone is making sure that backpackers never leave paradise – one murder at a time. And Cass has a feeling she might be next…”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of The Dive by Sarah Ochs. The Dive was published by Bantam Press on 20th July 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow next year. I chose to read a free eARC of The Dive but that has in no way influenced my review.

I have a bit of a thing for psychological suspense thrillers set in exotic locations. You can’t beat a mountaineering thriller in my book. Or any other type of destination thriller really. I flipping love them! So when I saw Sarah Ochs’s debut was set on an island off the coast of Thailand and featured a diving school where the body count rises exponentially, I was there like a shot! I HAD to read The Dive. I felt this one had my name written all over it. And what a twisty, suspenseful thrill it was!

Cass has left the trauma of the past behind and moved to Koh Sang, a small party island off the coast of Thailand. She has a new life, new friends, a new fiancé and, known only to her, a new name. Life is good for Cass. She works at the Koh Sang Dive Resort teaching tourists how to stay safe in the water. Until one day, when everything goes wrong. Cass immediately knows she and the dive school will be in the spotlight. A spotlight she will do anything to avoid. Because Cass has secrets. And she’s not the only one…

The Dive is a well-written debut thriller where the characters are a mix of likeable and loathsome, the plot is very well paced and the setting is divine. Divine, that is, until the dead bodies start making an appearance! The story is told from two different perspectives. First up is Cass, who is fairly new to the island and running away from her past, whilst keeping her closely guarded secrets hidden from all, including her fiancé. The other POV comes from Brooke, a fairly famous travel influencer who’s arrival on the island ruffles a few feathers. Both women are intriguing and I found myself wanting to know more. The other notable characters are ‘The Permanents’, Cass’s close knit band of friends who see themselves as superior to other visitors to the island. There’s Logan (fiancé to Cass), Doug, Greta – the mother of the group and Neil. All of ‘The Permanent’s help move the story along and bring their personalities, insecurities and sometimes, bad decisions to the table. But there was something slightly off, I felt highly suspicious throughout. After all, everyone has secrets…

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Dive. The characters and the well-written storyline pulled me into the narrative. I was highly suspicious of everyone from start to finish and that kept the tension lovely and high for me. I adored the setting and if Koh Sang wasn’t a fictional island full of dead bodies, I would be booking my next holiday there! 😂 The suspense is pitched perfectly from start to finish and the build up towards the denouement was done very well. I have to mention the ending which blew my mind! It was unexpected and totally satisfying. I loved it. There were a couple of tiny niggles, one of which was time. It felt Cass hadn’t been on the island for long and she was already engaged. Also, her friendship with Brooke felt, to me, too full on too soon. But I could have missed something. I probably missed something. However, the niggles are tiny (miniscule, even) and didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the book at all. All in all, I very much enjoyed The Dive. Setting the book around a scuba school was something I hadn’t experienced before, which I appreciated. A tense, suspense laden debut thriller from an author to watch. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Dive. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Dive by Sarah Ochs was published in the UK by Bantam Press on 20th July 2023 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

A self-admitted travel addict, Sara Ochs has built a life around visiting beautiful and sometimes dangerous destinations. While learning to scuba dive on a remote island off the coast of Thailand, Sara heard that two backpackers had recently been murdered not far from her hotel. Horrified that something so terrible could happen in such an idyllic location, she knew she had found the inspiration for her debut novel, The Dive.

As well as being an author, Sara is an attorney and law professor, who splits her time between the United States and Sweden.