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Arctic Drift (Dirk Pitt)
List price: $39.95
Sale price: $26.37
You save: $13.58 (34%)
Author(s): Clive Cussler, Dirk Cussler
Binding: Audio CD
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780143143673
Edition: Unabridged
Format(s): Audiobook
ISBN: 0143143670
Label: Penguin Audio
Language(s): English Original LanguageEnglish UnknownEnglish Published
List Price: $39.95
Manufacturer: Penguin Audio
Number Of Items: 11
Number Of Pages: 14
Package Dimensions:
Height: 1.57"
Width: 5.35"
Length: 1.57"
Weight: 0.71 lbs.
Product Group: Book
Address: 2008-11-25
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Studio: Penguin Audio
Editorial Reviews
Product Description:
Unabridged CDs • 14 CDs, 16 hours
Dirk Pitt returns, in the extraordinary new novel from the grand master of adventure.
Customer Reviews Average rating - 4.0
Rating - 5 Date: 2009-01-06
Content: As with all of Clive Cussler's books, this one is full of adventure and preposterous escapes from impossible situations. I really like how he weaves cars from his personal collection into the stories. Unfortunately, they all end up damaged to the point that they need to head back to the restoration shop. The good news is that they are always fixed, as opposed to sent off to the junk yard.
The villains are always evil and always get their just dues in the end. This one is no different. I did, however, find this one particularly more evil than those in previous books. I found myself really hating this guy and hoping that he would get sent off to his Maker before he did much more mayhem.
Now that Dirk Pitt is married, his success in his amorous adventures have been curtailed. Cussler never got too juicy with the details of Dirk's activites, but they sure got a guy to feel an amount of envy for his successes.
I find his books to be both exciting, yet unbelievable. National and world security are hanging on the balance of this attempts to thrwart the devices of the villain. No different here. Dirk has the direct line to the White House, which is interesting and a bit far fetched.
Great book. I liken the Dirk Pitt novels to an American James Bond. You'll like this one.
Summary: Perspective from a car guy
Rating - 5 Date: 2009-01-06
Content: I purchased this book for my sister, she lives in Florida, and she loves Clive Cussler books. This was the perfect gift for her and in amazon fashion, it arrived in perfect condition, and she was thrilled.
Summary: review of purchase
Rating - 3 Date: 2009-01-05
Content: The book dragged in places.
Perhaps the Pitt kids should get there own books as they didn't really add anything to the whole plot... just saying.
The global hysteria drove me crazy. There are reports out today that arctic ice is back up to 1979 levels (the arbitrary year that satellite photos were first available, and coincidentally the "biggest ice year", well until 2008).
Summary: CHFranco
Rating - 2 Date: 2009-01-05
Content: I honestly have no defense for why I read Cussler novels. Once I think there was an admiration for Dirk Pitt, the primary swash-buckler. And there used to be believable humor and a true camaraderie. There have been a couple of good ones (3-4 stars, maybe), such as "Inca Gold" and "Sahara." The rest, like "Arctic Drift," are mediocre to awful. This one is basically a trash dime novel, way too long, way too boring, and way too -- well, way too!
Like the main recurring characters (Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino), Clive Cussler seems to be aging in skill and finesse, and son Dirk Cussler apparently cannot resuscitate the old man's touch. But, it's not as bad as the truly horrible Cussler-Kemprecos disaster, "Lost City."
5 Major problems. 1) The dialogue: sappy, inane, absurd and fundamentally silly. Cut out 80% of it, stick to the better-written narrative and this novel would definitely cut through the ice blockade of 1 and 2 star ratings. The dialogue single handedly kills reader interest in what might otherwise be an interesting tale. I skipped much of the dialogue just to stay awake.
2) The storyline threads: too many, too convoluted, and too superficial. We are forced to jump with the characters all over the North American map and follow perhaps 10 major story lines, populated by somewhere around 30 characters.
3) Happenstance events: too coincidental, too cute and too unbelievable, even for a Cussler story. Everyone gets kidnapped, shot at, imprisoned, blown up, nearly frozen to death or placed in one of many hopeless (and predictable) dilemmas one after the other -- only to have the cavalry come charging in to the rescue at the last moment every single time. Thus, it is not the skill, brainpower, competence and problem-solving abilities of the primary almost-perpetually-doomed characters that solve their life-threatening situations, but chance and the sudden appearance of saviors!
4) The ending: shocking, unethical, criminal and immoral conduct by a primary character. Trevor, Summer Pitt's love interest, becomes a monster at the end, committing a heinous crime. Not acceptable! Sure, the target is a villain and deserves his fate, but .............. shouldn't even novels like this stand on the side of the law and the courts to administer justice and punishment to bad guys? Shame on the Cusslers for penning this despicable "hero's ending" without as much as a "sorry, but he has a character flaw" apology!
5) Bad guy stick figures: too predictable, too one-dimensional, too cookie-cutter. The bad guys to a man (no women bad persons here), are stereotypic and formulaic, as if taken from a high school writing class. Surely the Cusslers can draw more complex and believable evil-doers? Or -- maybe not?
The primary topic of the book, though scientifically unsubstantiated (look up Chemical Element 44, RU, in Wikipedia), is timely but much politicized. Of course, the good guys and good gals survive, and the story ends happily --- sadly, with the solution to global warming well in hand and the 2 young lovers (Summer and character-flaw Trevor) silhouetted against the Canadian setting sun. YUK!
Finally, but truly important -- maps! Maps, good ones, accurate and specific, are absolutely essential to staying with a geography-driven story like this one. I am always puzzled as to why these overly wealthy authors fail to provide those of us who put gas in their antique cars with great maps and other similar timely references. Good maps should be sprinkled throughout the book.
Gentle suggestion to readers: Rather then the Cusslers try anything written by Alan Furst, Arturo Perez-Reverte, Steven Saylor, Robert Harris, Dan Brown, Ian Fleming, Robert Ludlum, or Ken Follett (to name just a few). You'll get far more bang for the buck!
Summary: The Cusslers Are Stuck In The Arctic Ice
Rating - 1 Date: 2009-01-04
Content: Have read every Clive Cussler book and loved them. This is by far the worst one. The political preaching on global warming is totally unnecessary in this type of novel. Secondly, I know the theme of most of Cussler's books is for Al and Dirk to constantly get out of trouble but the steady diet of one crisis after another got real old in this book. Thirdly the constant killings by the bad guy and his henchman got old also.
I am hoping this is only a slight bump in the road for future Cussler novels.
Summary: Disappointing
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