Out of Air - by Rachel Reiss

About the Book

While scuba diving off the Australian coast, Phoebe "Phibs" Ray and her friends uncover a legendary underwater treasure, but as strange transformations begin to take hold, they must fight to protect each other from dangerous treasure hunters and a dark, growing power.

Book Synopsis

Wilder Girls meets Outer Banks where a group of scuba diving friends stumbles across lost treasure, a legendary cave, and a new type of power... that comes at a price.

The deeper you go, the darker you fall.

Phoebe "Phibs" Ray is never more at home than when she's underwater. On a dive six months ago, she and her four closest friends discovered a handful of ancient gold coins, rocketing them into social media fame. Now, their final summer together after high school, they're taking one last trip to a distant Australian island to do what they love most - scuba dive.

While diving a local reef, Phibs discovers a spectacular underwater sea cave, rumored to be a lost cave with a buried treasure. But when Phibs and her best friend Gabe surface from the cave, they notice that they're undergoing strange changes. Oozing gashes that don't heal. Haunting whispers in their heads... Something has latched onto them, lurking beneath their skin, transforming them from the inside out.

When treasure hunters arrive, desperate to find the location of the cave and hold Phibs' group for ransom, she'll do anything to keep her friends safe. In the process she learns that, of all the dreadful creatures of the sea, she might be the most terrifying of them all.

Review Quotes

★ "A refreshing, original debut, this book is a must-have addition to any YA collection." --School Library Journal (Starred Review)

★ "The tension is airtight." --Booklist (Starred Review)

"A deep-sea adventure that snappily blends mystery and romance with social themes." --Kirkus Review

"Out of Air is a chilling, gripping, intense, eerie, and thrilling page turner! I did not want to put this book down and was sad when it ended." --Open Book Posts

"Steeped in shimmering mystery, Out of Air is an eerie, gripping dive to the sunken treasure that glitters just beyond the threshold of what it means to lose it all." --Ann Fraistat, bestselling author of A Place For Vanishing and What We Harvest

"Reiss's debut takes readers down to the murky depths of friendship with its twisted secrets, hauntingly lush atmosphere, and creeping sense of dread. I held my breath until the final, unsettling page." --Chelsea Ichaso, author of The Summer She Went Missing

"Mesmerizing and unique with a lightning-fast pace." --Allie Reynolds, author of Shiver

"This book is like a deep dive into the ocean --dark, unpredictable, and full of thrills. I've never read anything like it." --Molly Morris, author of Annie LeBlanc is Not Dead Yet

"Like the ocean, this book is at once both beautiful and terrifying: the romance shimmers, the mystery deepens, the suspense threatens to pull you deep under. A read you won't want to surface from." --Harriet Reuter Hapgood, author of The Square Root of Summer

"Gripping, compelling, and fantastic, Out of Air submerges you in an underwater thriller that will take your breath away. I couldn't put it down!" --Sarah Beth Durst, author of instant New York Times bestseller The Spellshop

About the Author

RACHEL REISS is an experienced scuba diver who has explored marine reefs around the world. She's been published in national outlets including The Los Angeles Times, Us Weekly, Yahoo!, Access Hollywood, and Huffington Post. She currently lives in Southern California with her family and her rambunctious dog, Ozzy.