Title: Leave the Bottom: Cook Islands
Author: Randy L. Slapnicka
Publisher: Third Act Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 9781662922251
Genre: Fiction
Pages: 240
Reviewed by: Arthur Thares
Pacific Book Review
Anytime a story starts with a Darth Vader mask, you know you will be in for a good time. However, rarely is it directly followed by more information about octopuses than you would ever expect to know. The opening scene of Leave the Bottom sets the tone for a funny, scary, and sometimes downright gross undersea adventure.
Dr. Melody Foster is a marine biologist and professor with a special place in her heart for octopuses. When the COVID-19 pandemic takes a toll on her research funding, she is forced to take leave of her teaching duties and work at an underwater mining facility with an octopus problem. However, funding and angry octopi are not her only worries; while under the sea, she is also corresponding with her assistant, Penny, about finding her long-lost brother. While trying to get to the bottom of the octopuses’ erratic behavior, Melody faces surly crew members and an angry billionaire, all with their own agenda. As crew members start to die, uneasiness unfolds, turning this adventure into somewhat of a horror story.
Leave the Bottom is an original story, though it does give off a few Meg vibes. It is refreshing to read a story that isn’t a cookie-cutter adventure, though the story could be a bit chaotic at times. The author tried to fit multiple ideas in a relatively short book, however, the overall story makes up for the occasional disjointedness. Randy L. Slapnicka has created a motley group of characters that you can’t help but react to – for better or worse; some you will come to love while others you will end up despising. For the most part, this story is pretty PG but some intense scenes, including violence, are definitely for mature readers only.
Randy L. Slapnicka has created an underwater adventure story that straddles the thriller line. The story moves quickly, mainly because there is always something going on under the sea, but it makes this book one of those that you can easily pick up and not put down until you’ve finished it. So, take a chance on Leave the Bottom, and you will be rewarded with a pleasantly surprising adventure story with a satisfying conclusion.
