Book Review: Surface Prey by John Lee Schneider

Twenty miles off the coast of San Francisco, this small chain of islands hosts a yearly migration of seals... and during this time of year, the sharks are here too – the biggest, hungriest Great Whites in the world. Attempting to swim off these shores is attempted suicide.

Colin Mason – wealthy, connected – with one leg bitten off by a white shark in these very same waters – now hosts his own yearly event – a marathon swim through the Great White-infested Farallons. The prize is a million dollars – winner takes all. How much is your life worth?

My Review:
The elephant seals regularly gather at the islands which draws in the sharks. Colin was stupid enough to ignore the warnings about diving in the area and he lost a leg, lucky that he didn't also lose his life. Now every year he invites people from all walks of life who are fit and need the money to risk their life in a deadly competition. Swim the three stages of the marathon swim around the islands and the person who finishes first wins a million dollars. There are strict rules which allow the entrants to exit the water if a shark is sighted but it is time limited, and if you spend too long out of the water, it risks disqualification. Colin assures them that people have won the prize but he also shows the video of those who lost. Who could be desperate enough to risk their life for that money?  

The first entrant is surfer bum 'Surfer Dude', a famous sight on the beaches and known for dodging two previous shark attacks. Now he is seeking a new challenge and this fits the bill. Shark film expert Dr Stephen Dreyfuss was famous for the stunts he did which showed sharks attacking surfboards but his world turns upside down when he is cited in a manslaughter case when surfers were attacked in a similar way. Having lost his wife and career, he could really do with the money to get him back on track. Olympic swimmer Wagner was the darling of the sport until an unexpected drug test fail ruined his life. The fourth is the mysterious Amber, whose back story is unknown to those studying the entrants at the pre-event party, including the current girlfriend of Colin. 

The next morning it is time for the swim to begin. Colin has a boat beside each swimmer which has sonar to indicate when a shark might be in the area, and a cameraman to record every aspect of the swimmer's experiences-including possible death footage. On day one it is a 14 mile swim from the boat to the island where they will stay overnight. On day two it is a 20 mile swim around the islands and another rest night. The third and final day will involve the remaining swimmers swimming back to the boat they started from. The swimmers are certain that they are ready for the challenge but how will they react once the first shark is sighted? 

This was a short book which is just over 100 pages but I really enjoyed it. The contest itself was interesting and I liked seeing that there were actual rules made to prolong the contest by allowing the people to exit the water for short periods of time. Colin is well aware that it then becomes a mental battle to actually get back in the water after a scare and is not pleased at the thought of anyone quitting. There are no tricks from Colin to attract the sharks, leaving it all to chance when the swim begins. The other interesting aspect is that to win, someone has to get safely back to the boat, so those trailing behind the strongest swimmer can only win if the others are eaten or quit. The game itself messes with the minds of those taking part and it was full of tension as we waited for the sharks to appear.

It keeps a pretty even pace through the book and I liked the little twists that I didn't see coming. It was concentrating on the actual people involved, their motivations and fears and what is going on inside their heads. I actually found all of the characters interesting including Colin and Alex. Colin sounds like a bad guy with his brutal shark attack compilation videos but he doesn't force anyone to take part and makes them aware of the dangers. I found him fascinating. Alex is his girlfriend of three years who has witnessed a few of the swims and it was interesting to see what she thought of the events. The entrants themselves were also interesting to watch and I was sort of rooting for them but wanting to see the sharks! 

This was a good shorter creature feature that wasn't quite what I was expecting, but in a good way. It was a bit different and had plenty of tension during the water scenes. I particularly enjoyed the ending and hope there might be a sequel, though the story does come to a complete finish with no cliffhanger.   

Read December 2010
4 stars.