ESCAPE UNDERSEA

A visit to an undersea research lab off the Florida Keys plunges siblings Ezzy and Luke into life-threatening discoveries of environmental malfeasance in this third series entry.

Considering recent experiences in the Galápagos and Greenland, 14-year-old Ezzy is hardly surprised when she and her more adventurous 12-year-old brother, Luke, find themselves involved in two potentially hazardous mysteries, one involving odd local changes in water chemistry and massive blooms of green algae. The other (and more immediately deadly threat) is scary encounters with really big and highly aggressive specimens of venomous, invasive lionfish on the reef. In a double investigation that leads to a resort with iffy wastewater disposal practices and an experimental genetics lab run by an unprincipled marine biologist, Prager, a marine scientist herself, folds in plenty of suspense as well as real places, actual environmental issues, and personal experiences of marine wonders on which she expands in a substantial afterword. The siblings and their widowed father present as White, but to other characters the author attributes a range of skin colors suggesting racial diversity. Readers need not be familiar with previous entries to enjoy this latest installment. The book concludes with websites pointing readers to youth-friendly organizations working in ocean conservation as well as those offering guidance on marine science careers.

Further breathlessly paced escapades, well stocked with moments of terror and undersea wonders.