Review by Gathoni1991 -- Adrift by Charlie Sheldon

[Gathoni1991]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Adrift" by Charlie Sheldon.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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The 'Seattle Express' - a ship on voyage in the Pacific is on fire! Steve Procida the captain of the ship gives a directive to the nineteen crew members to abandon the ship and leave in the two motorboats available. Split into two groups, the crew members get away in two boats in totally different directions. None of the groups know if their other group made it out of the inferno.

Louise is a tug boat owner, operating a business that tow foundering ships or sea vessels, to safety. Via an intercepted radio communication, she is made aware of an abandoned ship in the Pacific waters at the Gulf of Alaska. She gathers her crew to make it to the abandoned ship and have a claim on the ship. Will she make it with her old 'Warhorse' tug, when the Buckhorn company wants a claim with a newer, bigger and faster modern tug boat? In a race against time, looming storms and a mission that could turn futile, she and her crew must make it to the ship in flames, or lose lots of money.

Charlie Sheldon writes an intriguing story in his book Adrift, about sea adventures where tragedy is always lurking by. With an intriguing plot, he put intricate details of the events that took place in sixteen grueling and tough days. The descriptions are vivid. The conversations are crisp, detailed and numerous, serving to propel the plot. While there were tragedies and shocking discoveries, the author unveiled them in a subtle way, shielding the reader from emotional distress. Language was simple, with the story flowing smoothly. Narration was done from the first person's and the third person's point of view. Characters were well fleshed out with the focal characters narrating from the first person's point of view. The plot's continuity was impeccable and the author served us with some twists and turns in the story. It is for these reasons I rate the book 4 out of 4 stars.

In the story, women were depicted as strong, organised beings who could be good leaders too. My biggest takeaway from the book, was that with determination one can achieve anything. If you set your mind to do something and follow it through, the universe conspires to reward you! Dangers of sea travels, was a theme that came out strongly in the story. Not only was it the initiator of the plot, it was what sustained the plot. The author warps up other sub themes, e.g importance of family and the role of religion in tragedies. The focal characters grew as the plot rolled out. The characters were a unique ensemble of Native Indians, Russians and Americans. Effortlessly and seamlessly, the back stories were woven into the main story. This gave the plot depth and clarified a lot of things in the plot.

Overall the book is an interesting read. I recommend it to those who love stories of adventures at the sea. The book was professionally edited. There were zero mistakes. The only aspect of the book I disliked was that I felt the ending was rushed through.

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Adrift
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