The Cavern Kings — Jeff Bauer

Josh Jensen is the self-perceived master of the underwater world and knows no fear. Until he almost drowns scuba diving with his friends in the calm crystal clear waters of a beautiful North Florida spring on a warm sunny day. Rattled by the wakeup call and unencumbered by wisdom, he decides to pursue training to master the cold water-filled dark places beneath a ceiling of impenetrable rock. Soon he and his divemates realize this sort of class isn't just an easy lap around the pool. Their overbearing and harsh instructor challenges them to come to terms with life and death with only seconds of air to spare in claustrophobic passages. Josh has to juggle the pending sunset of one romantic relationship with the faintest glimpse of another, irate parents and a troubled boss ready to fire him. A diving tragedy stuns and deeply saddens Josh and he questions whether diving in caverns is too dangerous and even if he should continue diving at all. Dealing with the loss, he discovers a link to a diving fatality that estranged an experienced team of cave explorers in a deep Mexican cave years ago. New discoveries heal old wounds and bring enemies together as Josh struggles to find meaning in death. Few works of fiction capture the essence of cave diving and scuba literature is cluttered with many tedious non-fiction accounts of diving triumphs. Sprinkled with dramatic and realistic dive sequences penned by a real-life cave diving instructor, THE CAVERN KINGS is an adventure filled with dangers above and below the waterline that any reader will enjoy.