Dead Below Deck

When an heiress disappears from her superyacht and security footage shows her getting pushed, the main suspect has to prove her innocence in this thrilling mystery at sea told in reverse chronological order, perfect for fans of Karen McManus and Genuine Fraud.

It was supposed to be the best-ever girls’ trip: five days, four friends, one luxury yacht, no parents. But on the final night, as the yacht cruised the deep and dark waters between Florida and Grand Cayman, eighteen-year-old heiress Giselle vanished. She’s nowhere to be found the next morning even after a frantic search, until security footage surfaces . . . showing Maggie pushing her overboard.

But Maggie has no memory of what happened. All she knows is that she woke up with a throbbing headache, thousands of dollars in cash in her safe, a passport that isn’t hers, and Giselle’s diary. And while Maggie had her own reasons to want Giselle dead, so did everyone else on board: jealous Viv, calculating Emi, even some members of the staff.

What really went down on the top deck that night? Maggie will have to work her way backward to uncover the secrets that everyone—even Giselle—kept below deck or she’s dead in the water.

Jan Gangsei crafts a compulsively readable tale of privilege, family, and identity wrapped in a wholly original mystery that will keep readers on the edges of their seats until the final twist.

One dead heiress. Four friends with secrets. A main suspect with no memory of the crime.

• Locked-Room Mystery at Sea: On a luxury superyacht in the middle of the ocean, everyone is a suspect, and there’s nowhere to run when an heiress vanishes.
• Reverse Chronological Order: Told backwards from the moment Giselle disappears, this unique narrative structure will have you racing to piece together the final, shocking moments of that night.
• Girls’ Trip Gone Wrong: Four friends, one yacht, and a dream vacation that descends into a nightmare of jealousy, betrayal, and murder.
• Secrets and Lies: Maggie must sift through the web of secrets kept by jealous Viv and calculating Emi, but the biggest secrets of all might be hidden in Giselle’s own diary.