Caves are an armchair passion of mine- I have not much interest in actually doing any dare-devil caving. But reading about them is fantastic! This story combines adventure, technology and mystery. It was a very exciting page turner for me.

Caves are an armchair passion of mine- I have not much interest in actually doing any dare-devil caving. But reading about them is fantastic! This story combines adventure, technology and mystery. It was a very exciting page turner for me. ( )

A fantastic tale of adventure. Chronicles the exploration of a deep Mexican cave, continuing beyond where a water-filled tunnel had stopped the previous expedition. Plenty of suspense, and some tragedy. Also a study of the dedication of Bill Stone, one of the authors who developed early rebreather equipment (the first used outside of the military and NASA) in his drive for exploring caves.

It is quite well written, an easy page-turner. Explanations are complete, and your questions are answered.

Although there was friction within the expedition, with two of the three authors on one side of it, the conflicts seem to be presented quite fairly, from both sides. Nobody is demonized, and nor is anyone presented as a saint. The politics do not drag down the story.

The book is very nicely presented. There are two sets of photographs, one in color. The excellent cave maps, with both top and side views, are placed in the text at positions that don't spoil the surprise, and also on the inside covers. Many useful facts are presented in appendices. ( )