When I was little—nine or ten—I went running into my great-grandfather’s study on a chilly winter’s day. Pop’s book-crammed room, with its scents of old paper and pipe tobacco, the framed photos of boats built by our company, Ocean House, the immense floor globe and forbidden wet bar—Pop’s den was my favorite room.
That morning, he’d turned when he heard me bounce in on a quest for the treats he kept in his desk. I’d glimpsed a small copper box in his hand and—shockingly—tears in his eyes.
The dust in here is bad, he’d said as he placed the box in a drawer. Now what are you here for, Nadia? A Mozart-Bonbon, I’ll wager.
As I grew, I put the memory aside. I became a designer of superyachts, working with the rich and famous to create their floating palaces. As the yachts became bigger, my designs turned more intricate, more creative, more deeply satisfying. I was the star designer at Ocean House.
Then, years later, I stumbled across that same box among my sister’s belongings—a box I now knew to contain verses from the Torah. That was when I realized that much of what I’d believed about my family was false. And that as our competitors work to destroy Ocean House, perhaps they will also destroy what’s left of my family.
Oh, the simple desires of a simple woman. I want the world to go back to what it was. I want to design beautiful sailing vessels and walk along the Seattle shoreline and spend evenings with my family. But all of that has vanished. My cherished beliefs—that my sister and I would grow old together, that Ocean House would thrive, that I could trust my parents—all these tenets of my life have shattered. Only now do I realize how sheltered I’ve been.
Today, I’m being asked to jeopardize what’s left. To do the right thing—the human thing—which means risking the reputation of Ocean House. And risking my own life. I must summon the courage to go up against forces of greed and power I was barely aware of.
I’m in that crucible the philosophers talk about. Who will I become? And who will I be on the other side of these events? Assuming, of course, I survive.
The Drowning Game
Genre: Thriller
Release: January 2025
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
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A woman’s investigation into her sister’s death exposes the dark side of a secret life in a gripping novel of power, money, and murder by a Wall Street Journal bestselling author.
Sisters Nadia and Cass Brenner are heirs to Ocean House, a decades-old empire that builds superyachts for the rich and powerful: emirs, oligarchs, and titans of industry throughout America and Europe. They’re a next-generation success with the design of their soon-to-be-commissioned megayacht for a Chinese billionaire. But the sisters’ entrée into the coveted Asian market is tragically cut short when Cass falls from a fortieth-floor hotel balcony.
A Singapore detective rules suicide. Nadia’s been in the yacht business too long not to be suspicious. Especially when she discovers Cass’s involvement in dangerously illicit activities. Pulled into the same web of betrayal, lies, and secrets that trapped her sister, Nadia is on the most perilous mission of her life. Because uncovering the truth behind her sister’s death could tear the Brenner family apart—and it just might get her killed.
From Seattle to Austria to the South China Sea, Nadia must hold on to the one thing that can keep her safe. It’s the Brenner family motto: Trust no one.
About the author
Barbara Nickless is a Wall Street Journal and #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author of eight novels. She is the winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence, the Golden Quill Award, Suspense Magazine Best Debut of 2016, Amazon Editors’ Best Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense, and a two-time recipient of the Colorado Book Award. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, the FBI Citizens Academy Alumni Association, the World Affairs Council, and the Association of Former Intelligence Officers. Her most recent travels—while conducting research for a novel—involved taking cover from rocket fire and being grilled at military checkpoints. Her latest novel is a family saga and spy thriller rolled into one. The Drowning Game dropped January 1, 2025.