Review - The Killing Depths, Martin Roy Hill

[Liam Saville]

A gripping military thriller that’s bound for the best seller list.

Martin Roy Hill had me captivated from the very beginning of this modern locked room mystery and compelling naval thriller.  Set aboard the USS Encinitas, the US Navy’s first attack submarine with a mixed-gender crew, The Killing Depths tells the tale of the hunt for a serial killer amidst the high pressure atmosphere of an ongoing submarine battle. 

NCIS Special Agent and former Naval Academy cadet, Linus Schag is sent to the Encinitas after fresh evidence is uncovered about the earlier death of one of the boat’s female crew members.  Originally considered a suicide, the unexpected murder investigation is just the beginning of the unpleasant surprises in store for the Encinitas’ crew who have been tasked with hunting down and destroying a former North Korean submarine that has been sold to Iran.  In the tradition of the best locked room mysteries, the bodies of dead sailors continue to stack up in almost impossible circumstances, as the battle for life and death with the Iranian sub unfolds.              

Hill’s writing is crisp and suspenseful, and his use of vivid descriptive prose makes for the most gripping and intense action scenes.  The Killing Depths is undoubtedly one of the most authentic dual plot thrillers written in recent years, and readers could easily be mistaken for thinking they were reading a book from the likes of Tom Clancy.  I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this novel and highly recommend it; The Killing Depths has best seller written all over it.