Book review: "In Too Deep" by Coert Voorhees

Title: In Too Deep
Author: Coert Voorhees
Publisher: Disney Book Group; July 9, 2013

This is a good old-fashioned treasure-hunting adventure. Well, maybe not exactly old-fashioned. Annie is an expert scuba diver, seeing as how her mother owns a dive shop in Los Angeles, and she is way into the historical treasures that have been lost over the centuries, thanks to her history teacher and treasure loving father. These two things lead Annie to an adventure she never dreamed she could be a part of. During a spring break trip to Mexico, her teacher who also happens to be a part-time treasure hunter enlists her help in finding the Golden Jaguar, a mythical golden statue that was said to have been lost centuries ago and was purportedly hidden by Cortes. Annie eventually finds herself on a secret treasure hunt with her super huge (and super rich) crush, Josh, son of an Oscar-winning actress—and trying to stay one step ahead of dangerous men who want the jaguar even more than they do.

While I was reading this book, I eventually came to the conclusion that I felt like I was reading a book version of a Disney original movie. It had that playfulness I associate with those cheesy movies, and the dialogue was pretty similar as well, though it might have been a bit funnier and wittier. I found myself chuckling a few times at some of the things Annie or her friends say.

If you like traveling through literature, this is a nice choice to take a quick vacation. They hit Mexico, Hawaii, and go up and down the coast of California, all while looking for clues to this treasure. I could have used more description of setting, but I'm greedy like that when it comes to Hawaii. Side note: I am kind of upset that they went to Molokai and there is only a passing reference to the fact that the island was a leper colony for years. Voorhees had the opportunity to talk about real history and decided to forgo it for "history" that is most likely largely fabricated.

This is pretty fast-paced with a cute little romance, helped along by enormous amounts of money. Annie is not rich herself, but her friends are all either in show business or related to someone in show business. Funds eventually become unlimited, leaving plenty of room for the action to progress without a financial hitch. Not exactly believable in most circumstances, but after all we're reading about treasure hunters and what I guess you could call pirates, so I'm already fine with suspending my disbelief.

If you want a cute, action-adventure rom-com, especially one set in sunny and exotic locales, give this one a shot.

Disclosure: I got this e-book via NetGalley.