Review: Through Waters Deep

Through Waters Deep by Sarah Sundin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It is 1941 and America teeters on the brink of war. Outgoing naval officer Ensign Jim Avery escorts British convoys across the North Atlantic in a brand-new destroyer, the USS Atwood. Back on shore, Boston Navy Yard secretary Mary Stirling does her work quietly and efficiently, happy to be out of the limelight. Yet, despite her reserved nature, she never could back down from a challenge. When evidence of sabotage on the Atwood is found, Jim and Mary must work together to uncover the culprit. A bewildering maze of suspects emerges, and Mary is dismayed to find that even someone close to her is under suspicion. With the increasing pressure, Jim and Mary find that many new challenges--and dangers--await them.

Sarah Sundin takes readers to the tense months before the US entered WWII. Readers will encounter German U-boats and torpedoes, along with the explosive power of true love, in this hopeful and romantic story.

My expectations were high for this book. Even though I have only read 1 other book by this author, it was awesome and I expected the same from this book. So while I did really enjoy this book, I must say that it didn't just grab my attention at first. Even though the mystery thread started right away, it still took a while to build to the main story. However, once I really got into the book I had a hard time putting it down. I loved how Jim and Mary start falling in love through time spent together as friends. They've known each other since high school but Mary was always eclipsed by her vivacious friend Quintessa. As Jim gets to know Mary he's drawn to her quiet yet adventurous spirit. Now, if nothing gets in the way, they might just find love for a lifetime.

Mary and Jim both do a lot of changing and growing in this book. Jim is easygoing and kind of floats along in life. He learns the hard way in several instances in the book that he has to find a way to be bold and assertive sometimes. And Mary is beyond modest - she goes out of her way to fade into the background and never be put into the spotlight. All because of a childhood incident that caused her to be afraid of being "prideful". And yet she has these talents and desires and enough adventure in her that she yearns sometimes to be more free with her life. She learns throughout the book how to balance her fear of being prideful with using the talents God has given her.

The mystery in the book was not very suspenseful but it did speak to the times and the prejudices that were very strong at that time in history.

All in all I really enjoyed this book and fully intend on reading more of Sarah Sundin's books! :)

*Thanks to Revell Reads for the complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. All opinions stated are my own.*

About this Author:
Sarah Sundin enjoys writing about the drama and romance of the World War II era. She is the author of the upcoming Waves of Freedom series (Through Waters Deep, coming August 2015), the Wings of the Nightingale series (With Every Letter, 2012, On Distant Shores, 2013, and In Perfect Time, 2014), and the Wings of Glory series (A Distant Melody, A Memory Between Us, and Blue Skies Tomorrow). She also has a novella in the WWII Christmas collection Where Treetops Glisten (WaterBrook, 2014).

A mother of three, Sundin lives in northern California. She works on-call as a hospital pharmacist and teaches Sunday school and women's Bible studies. She enjoys speaking to community, church, and writers' groups.



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