"Daughter of the Deep" by Rick Riordan

Daughter of the Deep (Oct. 26, 2021) by Rick Riordan.

*This is the first in a new series.*

Welcome to Harding-Pencroft (HP) Academy, a five-year high school “that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world.” Ana Dakkar (a freshman) and her brother, Dev (a senior), are two of the academy’s students. Ana is prefect for House Dolphin (they excel at communications and counterintelligence and a talent for languages is a must), and her brother is house captain for House Shark (they excel at combat and logistics). Ana and her classmates, including roommates/best friends Nelinha da Silva of House Cephalopod (engineering and applied mechanics) and Ester Harding of House Orca (medicine and marine biology), are up for their freshmen trial at sea. Along with their professor, Dr. Hewett, they all witness HP fall into the sea, and it’s no accident. Their only escape is on the Varuna, HP’s 120-foot training vessel (yacht), but rival Land Institute (LI) isn’t far behind on the Aronnax. And HP now knows LI will kill. After all, HP is gone and so is Dev.

            Their safe point is someplace out on the open ocean. When they finally arrive, after bearing the stress of decryption under a time limit, they see something that shouldn’t exist: an island completely hidden with dynamic camouflage so remarkable that it’s invisible at point-blank range. It is called Lincoln Base. For years, its only inhabitants have been Luca Barsanti, his wife, Ophelia Artemesia, and Jupiter, an orangutan and resident chef (“Mary Berry is his goddess.”). Ana will discover something astounding about her heritage and what it means to be the last Dakkar. They’ll also realize that being at Lincoln Base doesn’t automatically mean they’re safe. LI is still out there, and with HP’s destruction, they know there must be a traitor within HP. Ana, her classmates and residents of Lincoln Base will need to put their heads together, lest they all wind up as food for the fishes.

            I wouldn’t have thought I needed a modern-day spinoff of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Mysterious Island, but it turns out that’s exactly what I needed. Ana frontlines this story that is part sci-fi, part retro, and she is of Bundeli Indian ancestry (Bundeli is a derivation of Hindi), but the entire cast is diverse, not only racially (e.g. Gemini Twain is African-American and Nelinha is Brazilian), but including who I believe is Riordan’s first neurodivergent character in Ester (she’s on the autism spectrum and can get overly anxious; she has an emotional support dog named Top (who’s “part Jack Russell, part Yorkie, part tornado”)). This story is entertaining and riveting, Ana’s growth into leadership is uplifting, and the cast – including Socrates, a dolphin – is magnificent. Readers will root for Ana and her classmates. For any fan of Riordan’s mythology-based books, I’m a dedicated fan, too, yet bought this one without worry that it wasn’t what I’ve typically read from the author.

            P.S. I took the quiz. I am in House Dolphin.

            Favorite line: “At this point, my brain is so mushy the message could say TOFU IS MY FAVORITE MAMMAL and I wouldn’t know the difference.” --Ana (p. 136)