Customer Reviews

Shark Lake

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Shark Lake was wonderful. I enjoyed it from cover to cover, and particularly the dry sense of humor that pervades the writing. The story drove on hard and fast, but the characters were surprisingly real and sympathetic, if a little hard-bitten. (Especially one of the women! Tough as gristle!) In terms of the way he expresses himself, author John McKinna is a writer to watch. You can put your tongue in your cheek (where his seems to be most of the time!) and go along for the exciting and often humorous ride. I kid you not: the guy's good. There are two other books in this series (Crash Dive and Tiger Reef, according to Amazon) and one of them, Crash Dive, is about an Arab terrorist attack on a Louisiana oil rig--written in 1999! Talk about predicting the future. I'll be interested to see where McKinna's imagination takes him next.

Goody. My man Ben Gannon's back in action. Shark Lake rocks! I red this in about four hours. I love diving and I love adventure, so I love John McKinna's books. Ben and Sass and the other characters make me laugh, cry, and get angry. And what a ride! These guy's books are always just great. He takes you all over the world, teaches you stuff, and introduces you to people you can't forget. I want to have Ben Gannon's children. He's the best.

Simply another great entry in the action-adventure sweepstakes from author John McKinna. The third novel in the Ben Gannon deep-sea diving series, this one ups the ante from the previous books, Crash Dive and Tiger Reef, even further, and keeps the action, plot twists, and black humor coming thick and fast. McKinna has selected a disintegrating African country as a backdrop for what may be his finest book yet: an immensely entertaining prison break from an island fortress with enough wild action and funky characterizations to rival Indiana Jones and Dirk Pitt combined. Believeable, though. His heroes and heroines are very human. A great third effort from an author to watch. Bravo!

As an enthusiastic sport diver, I love coming across good adventure fiction with a diving theme. Compared to crime or legal thrillers, for example, there isn't that much out there. Cussler you can more or less forget about: what he writes doesn't have much to do with real diving. His novels are more like literary versions of James Bond's more ludicrous adventures (Moonraker, etc.). Author McKinna, on the other hand, was a real working oilfield diver, and his experience shows in his writing. The Ben Gannon Trilogy (Shark Lake, Tiger Reef, Crash Dive) is hands-down the best diving fiction in recent memory . . . and possibly ever written. The reason is that in addition to his practical diving knowlege, McKinna is a writer of genuine skill. His characters are sympathetic and interesting, his storytelling is adept and keeps you involved. The diving parts are of course excellent, but so are the character interactions. This is just great relaxing reading for anyone interested in things-underwater. I'm writing this review under the most recent novel, Shark Lake, but my recommendation extends to all the Ben Gannon novels by John McKinna. Just excellent stuff.

I like this book. It's an Indiana Jones kind of thing but more adult. Most important though, it kept me interested all the way through. Even when the action slowed down, what the author was telling me was entertaining and intriging. There are plenty of clever twists and turns here, and a good surprise ending. This author John McKinna appeared a couple of years ago and has a couple other books out in the same diving adventure vein. He keeps you interested and doesn't bore you. Good book.

Shark Lake is a riot. Big time adventure with a cool hero and badass buddies. I don't know much about Africa or diving but John McKinna does, and it makes for a kickin' read. This book is kind of like a combination Indiana Jones and Jacques Cousteau National Geographic special. I really liked the African characters, you can get a real feel for them. The hero Ben Gannon is someone you can identify with...he's a working class guy with some smarts and a cool job that takes him into interesting parts of the world. I think it took me two days to read this and I really enjoyed it. I hope this writer turns out a lot more stories like this. This would make a good movie.

Shark Lake is simply a great read; the third Ben Gannon diving thriller from John McKinna. From his website I've learned that he has diverted his considerable talents into writing World War Two thrillers under the pen name "John Mannock", and that IRON COFFIN, the first of these books, is about to be released world-wide. Another diving adventure, with a WWII U-boat theme, it sounds like another winner from this tremendously talented writer, still in the early stages of his career. It won't be long now, as demonstrated by SHARK LAKE, TIGER REEF, and CRASH DIVE, that John McKinna--aka "John Mannock"--will be as world-renowned a thriller writer as Jack Higgins, Clive Cussler, and Ken Follett. Great writer, great novels.

As a diver, I was thrilled to discover the Ben Gannon novels by John McKinna. They are technically accurate and just plain good old-fashioned adventure fun. Sharp characterizations, too. Shark Lake is the latest one, and its great. Loved it.

I can't remember the last time I was this satisfied with a paperback thriller I picked up in an airport. This novel was really good, not something I labored through or was underwhelmed by, but something I really enjoyed. Great prison-break, run-for-the-border story in revolutionary modern Africa, well-written in a fast, literate, and darkly humorous style. The characterizations are especially good, particularly the Bedouin supporting hero, "Naji". This is the third book in the "Ben Gannon" series by author John McKinna (who's a former oilfield diver, like his hero, according to his bio) and it doesn't disappoint. I give it two thumbs up and five stars.

Excellent book. This is the third Ben Gannon book I've tried and it continues the high standard of entertainment established by the first two. Diving and mercenary action in a Rwanda-like African country with two opposing tribes trying to cut each other to pieces. Diver Ben Gannon is out to save an old friend imprisoned by a diabolical South African mercenary--a classic McKinna bad guy--and has to swim at night through a shark-infested inland lake to do it. Heartstopping inwater and onland action to go with the crazy characters and plot twists. Humorous sometimes too. Excellent adventure fiction which should be made into a movie any day now.