Out of Air

To sum up my review in one sentence - I could not put down this book! Rachel Reiss is an incredible writer! I got instantly drawn in with her descriptive writing and couldn't stop reading! It's exciting, suspenseful, scary at times and just a beautiful read. Rachel's descriptive writing helped me truly visualize what the divers were seeing. I brought this book on vacation and finished it in one day. It made me not want to go into the ocean though! Highly recommend this book! It's incredible!

This story was filled with so many intense moments. It is perfect for people who are into scuba diving and finding buried treasure that could potentially be cursed. I was worried that some of the characters would not be able to escape the situations they found themselves in at times.

I’ve come to realize how much of a fan I am of ocean horror, which is why I was so excited to pick this up! Unfortunately, it did not scratch the itch I needed it to and left me feeling very “meh” about it.The biggest qualm I had is that this is not even remotely close to horror, it’s paranormal thriller at best. Speaking of paranormal- there is no rhyme or reason given to the bizarre events taking place, only halfhearted attempts at justification by the MMC’s. This also frustrated me because as a standalone it left at a completely undesirable and incomplete ending.I will say that the pace of the book is pretty fast and I found myself not feeling bogged down with filler chapters. I did enjoy how the plot examined both past and present timelines to help readers see a fuller picture. This is YA so be warned there is no spice!

In their last summer after high school, Phoebe “Phibs” Ray and her friends return to the ocean after it made them famous for finding ancient gold coins. Now, on a remote Australian island, Phibs discovers a hidden sea cave—but when she and her best friend Gabe surface, strange wounds and haunting whispers reveal something is changing them. As treasure hunters close in, Phibs must protect her friends and face the terrifying truth: the real monster may be what she’s becoming.Another day, another thriller/mystery and I really enjoyed this one. The pacing and the plot is really good, and the book kept me on the edge of my seat most of the time. There was a lot of tension between the characters, and as the dual timelines progress, you learn more about why that tension is there, and why the characters are the way that they are.I really enjoyed the unreliable narrator that was Phoebe and seeing everything through her eyes. Her connections to her loved ones progressed really well throughout the book and I feel like she had good character growth by the end. The twists were also really well done but I didn’t feel like they were unexpected. Overall, highly recommend this and will not be scuba diving in any sea caves anytime soon.Rating: 4/5Spice: 1/5Tropes:Generational TraumaFound FamilyUnderwater WorldsDual TimelinesFriendship and LoveTreasure Hunting

Out of Air follows a group of close friends with Phoebe as our main character. They are accomplished divers and love exploring the ocean at least until they find a hidden cave. They had no idea what they were in for when they gathered for their last moments together before most of the group heads off to college.I love the dynamic between the friends, the descriptions of the cave are beautiful and eerie, and the supernatural aspects had me on the edge of my seat waiting to see what was going to happen next. The buildup throughout the story was great, and I thought the ending was fine; it felt like a bit of a letdown after all the buildup.Overall, I quite enjoyed this and will definitely be checking out this author's other books.