This story starts with a historical sea battle and then we are brought right up to the present time when the US secretary of State's aircraft has disappeared and she is presumed dead. An old sea trawler has been boarded by pirates and somewhere in the desert of Libya a group of archeologists bite off more than they can chew and there's also a search for an ancient jewel!
This is the third Clive Cussler book that I have read but it's a long time since I read the fantastic 'Deep Six' and 'Raise the Titanic' which wasn't quite so fantastic. I first tried to read this book a few years ago but stopped way short twice, so I was really determined to get through it this time. My problem with this one is probably a case of personal taste. I don't really like action adventure books, just like I don't really like action adventure movies. I know it sounds silly to say this but 'Corsair' was literally ( for most of the book) one big long action sequence and I found that rather boring! I was desperate for a good plot and some good character development and some emotional attachment to either the story or the characters. Maybe I am becoming a bit of a book snob, I hope not.
At times I was becoming nauseated and I just wanted the story to settle down and towards the last 200 or so pages it did. The story improved and the book became more exciting and gripping.I must say that the ending was particularly good and it was a pity the rest of the book couldn't have been so enticing. Perhaps one problem is that it is quite a long book at 537 pages and maybe I would have had more patience with this genre if it had been around 250 to 370 pages long. Can I forgive a book that bores the pants off me because it has a really good ending? Perhaps not but I wish more books ended so well.
If you are a lover of action adventure novels then this would probably be a good one to have in your bedside cabinet. From a writers point of view there is a lot to be said about the way Clive Cussler and Jack Du Brul created novel depth by having several
separate story threads going at the same time and that is something I want to take with me.
3/5
Wednesday 6 June 2012
29 - Corsair by Clive Cussler & Jack Du Brul
This story starts with a historical sea battle and then we are brought right up to the present time when the US secretary of State's aircraft has disappeared and she is presumed dead. An old sea trawler has been boarded by pirates and somewhere in the desert of Libya a group of archeologists bite off more than they can chew and there's also a search for an ancient jewel!
This is the third Clive Cussler book that I have read but it's a long time since I read the fantastic 'Deep Six' and 'Raise the Titanic' which wasn't quite so fantastic. I first tried to read this book a few years ago but stopped way short twice, so I was really determined to get through it this time. My problem with this one is probably a case of personal taste. I don't really like action adventure books, just like I don't really like action adventure movies. I know it sounds silly to say this but 'Corsair' was literally ( for most of the book) one big long action sequence and I found that rather boring! I was desperate for a good plot and some good character development and some emotional attachment to either the story or the characters. Maybe I am becoming a bit of a book snob, I hope not.
At times I was becoming nauseated and I just wanted the story to settle down and towards the last 200 or so pages it did. The story improved and the book became more exciting and gripping.I must say that the ending was particularly good and it was a pity the rest of the book couldn't have been so enticing. Perhaps one problem is that it is quite a long book at 537 pages and maybe I would have had more patience with this genre if it had been around 250 to 370 pages long. Can I forgive a book that bores the pants off me because it has a really good ending? Perhaps not but I wish more books ended so well.
If you are a lover of action adventure novels then this would probably be a good one to have in your bedside cabinet. From a writers point of view there is a lot to be said about the way Clive Cussler and Jack Du Brul created novel depth by having several
separate story threads going at the same time and that is something I want to take with me.
3/5
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