Customer Reviews

Ice Station Zebra

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have friends who found this book boring, and I think I see what they mean. "Ice Station Zebra" does not have the non-stop action pace of modern thrillers. What it does have, to an exceptional degree, is vivid characterization, enjoyable writing, and a sustained build-up of tension that enables the reader to miss the occasional hole in the plot. Something I truly love about this book is that there is no fat on its frame: no gratuitous violence, zero sex, no hype. In some ways it strikes me as a model for the successful thriller in its purest form, with everything potentially inessential stripped away, and I re-read it every year or two just for the sheer fun of it.

This is the way action novels should be written: taut, interesting,and loaded with realistic plot twists. Anyone writing a thriller today would do well to read this novel and realize that true writing does not require heavy amounts of sick, glossy violence and unneccessary sex. Besides a crackling story, the characters are smart and show a good bit of depth. It requires you to figure who the antagonist might be. One of my favorite passages is during the accident in the Engineroom...talk abut cold! But I won't say anymore because I do not wish to ruin anymore of the plot. Bruce from Camaroon take a clue: No one reads these reviews to be told who the bad guy is, that's what keeps them reading. All and all an excellent read!

Anyone with a taste for naval warfare, mysteries and the Arctic in general will find this a fascinating read. I first read this book in my teens. I still return to it occasionally and never find it boring. I haven't watched the 1968 movie version of this book.

well a real gem from Alistair MacLean. This book was recommended by a friend of mine who along with her husband are avid readers and can devour books!! After reading the book i literally thanked her,because this book is a real winner....
A taut thriller which entertains, mystifies,keeps the readers guessing and.... sweating!
a suspense thriller brilliantly written i highly recommend this book to all suspense fans! This book has everything submarines.... the arctic.... the ice.... the chills....the thrills......
a real page turner and an edge of the seat thriller this one simply doesn't let you down....... go right ahead if you haven't already!

The best thing about the writing in this book is the way the author has put in just the perfect amount of detail.As I read this book I felt as if I was there following Carpenter(The main character).I could feel the cold and the atmosphere of the adventure as I read the book and I've read it 7 times by now in the past 5 years.

This is one of Alistair Maclean's best novels. From the time the American nuclear submarine Dolphin moves under the Arctic ice, you know it's not going to be an easy trip. From the sabotage of the torpedo tube, to the cold war double-crossing action at Ice Station Zebra, this novel is fast-paced, while still making you cold reading it. If you haven't read Maclean before, start with this one. I read it the first time when I was twelve years old and I re-read it every other year.

MacLean can really write a mystery! In the begining of this book it wasn't very interesting, it seemed like another stupid war book. But seems to be odinary is far, far from. It builds into one of the most suspensful and intriquing mysteries ever! MacLean feeds you little bits of info at a time, not enough to give anything away, but enough to keep you reading. You'll truely be suprised at the ending! The best book I've read in a long time. Tell your freinds.

Ice Station Zebra, an arctic meteorological station, located on the ever drifting pack ice of the high Arctic, has been destroyed by an equipment fire. The Dolphin, an American nuclear submarine, is about to set sail on a dangerous high speed mission under the polar ice cap to rescue the badly injured team. But, just as one would suspect from a cold war thriller, all is not as it seems. Ice Station Zebra is a good deal more than just a scientific meteorological station. The scientific team is not just a collection of scientists. One of them is a ruthless killer for which the achievement of his mysterious secret mission against the Americans and the Brits may even require the cold-blooded execution of the entire crew of the Dolphin. Nor is Doctor Carpenter, a British volunteer member of the Dolphin's crew ostensibly along to seek out his brother who was part of Ice Station Zebra's stricken team, precisely what he shows to the world.

As thrillers go, "Ice Station Zebra" is certainly enjoyable but it's a long, long way from what most readers would label a compelling page turner. It's got all the requisite ingredients to be sure - murder, sabotage, hidden identities, spies, accidents, cliff-hangers - but I think it could have been so much more. The parts of the story that took place inside the submarine were interesting and, at times, even exciting. But the action never reached the breathless urgent pace that was more recently achieved in other submarine thrillers such as "Hunt for Red October" or Larry Bond's "Dangerous Ground". The Arctic itself as an environment which can be stunning in its breathtaking beauty and is always fraught with danger and the potential for deadly accidents was never truly exploited as a part of the story to anywhere near the extent that it might have been.

"Ice Station Zebra" is an enjoyable change of pace and nice easy brain candy reading that won't tax the little grey cells. It just won't make anyone's top ten list of the best all-time spy vs spy thrillers!

Recommended.

Paul Weiss

An ingenious and clever plot, set aboard a nuclear submarine headed for the polar ice cap. It's a rescue mission, murder mystery, and spy thriller. The hero is shrewd and intelligent and never gives up (regardless of how impossible the situation seems.) The villain is diabolical and just plain evil, and the supporting characters are outstanding and actually memorable. This (and all Maclean's other novels) should be the standard by which all movies are made, and which other novelists should try to measure up to.

Unlike some of this author's novels, Ice Station Zebra is an easy-to-read, quick moving story that doesn't bore. Forget the movie (except you can visualize some of the actors as you read since casting was well done.) The action aboard the submarine provides some tense reading moments.