Barracuda

Recovering from a gunshot wound he'd received while in the line of duty, NYPD Detective Mick O'Shaughnessy is in need of some relaxing time away from the big city. A vacation in the peaceful, scenic Bikini Atoll, a scuba diver's paradise, could be the panacea to heal his wounded leg as well as his shattered nerves. Then again, maybe it isn't. The Majestic Resort Hotel, unfortunately, does not turn out to be the bastion of tranquility Mick had hoped to enjoy. Immediately upon arrival, Micko inadvertently finds himself dropped in the middle of an international money laundering operation, a territorial feud between the island natives and the resort developers, and an impending mob war between the Russian Mafia and the Japanese Yakuza. If that weren't nerve-wracking enough, the many years of nuclear testing that had taken place in Bikini Atoll after World War II have had an unusual effect on the sea life in the lagoon-and the freakishly large mutant barracuda who dwells there perceives all scuba-diving tourists as lunch meat. Barracuda is a fast-paced story in which international intrigue, environmental catastrophe, and the sense of cultural pride collide. Even on vacation, Mick O'Shaughnessy is a detective at heart, and he refuses to fly away from the chaos in this island paradise until all questions are answered and feelings of safety and justice take over the atoll. The historical significance of the location and the underwater depictions in Barracuda are well researched, with the story incorporating the history of Bikini Atoll in the years after World War II, authentic scuba-diving knowledge, and proper police procedure into its plot, characters, and scenic detail. Barracuda will be enjoyed by readers who appreciate the aquatic action of Jaws, the mob intrigue of The Godfather, and the police procedural sense of The Onion Field.