Dark Water: A Ryan Weller Thriller Book 1

A stolen boat. A brutal ambush. A cartel with blood in the water.

When former Navy EOD tech Ryan Weller agrees to investigate a rash of high-end sailboat thefts plaguing the Gulf of Mexico, he expects a low-profile mission with his best friend, Mango Hulsey. But somewhere off the Yucatán coast, everything goes wrong.

Ambushed at sea and left for dead, Weller barely survives. His boat is gone. The mission, blown wide open. And what looked like a pattern of maritime crime is something far more dangerous: the opening moves of the Atzlan Cartel’s violent campaign to destabilize the southern United States and reclaim territory they believe was stolen from Mexico.

With corrupt officials protecting the cartel and law enforcement compromised, Weller goes on the offensive—unraveling a smuggling operation that stretches from the Florida Keys to the blood-soaked docks of Mexico. From gunrunning to boat hijackings, the deeper he digs, the more personal the war becomes. And the Atzlan Cartel is about to learn that taking Ryan Weller’s boat was just the first of many fatal mistakes.

Packed with explosive action, military-grade tactics, and high-stakes maritime suspense, Dark Water is a fast-paced crime thriller perfect for fans of action & adventure, cartel crime, and veteran-led military thrillers.