Devil and the Deep

In Walker’s gripping second Deep Six contemporary romantic thriller, six former Navy SEALs continue their search for the sunken treasure ship Santa Cristina off the waters of Wayfarer Island, located between Cuba and Key West. Handsome Brando Pallidino has carried on a long-distance friendship with oil heiress Madison Powers since the team rescued her from a hijacking three months earlier. Now she’s taking three teenage scholarship students to the Dry Tortugas on a camping trip and asks Bran whether he can visit them there. Mason McCarthy, a partner in the salvage operation, and historian Alexandra Merriweather sail with Bran to see Maddy, but stumble upon her kidnapping in progress. Obstacles multiply in a thriller that takes place in roughly 24 hours, with each chapter heading giving the exact time, allowing Walker (Hell or High Water) to move seamlessly to different characters’ points of view. Bran struggles to come to terms with his troubled family history, and his emotional complexity lends an intimate feel to the steamy sex scenes. (July)