Customer Reviews

Shock Wave (Windsor Selections S)

5 star:		(66)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

You have to take Clive Cussler's books for what they are. He presents his protagonist, Dirk Pitt, as a James Bond type hero except that he operates at sea. A very well written plot with a great ending, unique characters, intense action, make this novel one of Cussler's finest works that I've read so far. However, for some reason, people do not discuss this book as one of Cussler's finest works in the same vein as Sahara.

My only disappointment was that Julien Perlmutter, his obese marine historian, does not make any appearances. He's one of Cussler's most interesting characters.

I would definitely recommend Shockwave.

Getting started in this Dirk Pitt novel, I recognized all the familiar elements - the damsel in distress, the Pittian rescue, the daring reconnaissance the greedy, secretive and all-powerful billionaire with his wicked worldwide plot, etcetera. After the historical intro sequence, with its harrowing tale of the shipwreck of an Australia-bound prison ship, I found it ho-hum - until about halfway through the book. It really takes off when Dirk, Al and damsel Maeve Fletcher are set adrift in a small boat in the South Seas. Cussler gives this part of the story the good, long ride it deserves, and Dirk's ingenuity rises to new heights as the trio survive to make not one but two unlikely landfalls. Maeve Fletcher rises above heroines of other novels to become an alltime and unforgettable love of Pitt's life along with Summer Moran. The monster threat of this book - amplified sound waves travelling thousands of miles through water that do terrible damage if several converge - is a little vague and somewhat implausible, and the climactic sequence, which I won't giveaway, contains at least one apparent inconsistency.

Still, a fine book. And the zoologist Maeve Fletcher's discourse on the factual basis behind the sightings of sea monsters is so well done that it has me wondering how much of this might actually be true (as opposed to how much of a yarn old seadog Cussler is spinning here.)

Shock Wave is a great book for many reasons. A few are the fact the Clusser makes his characters, settings, and the situations in his books believable. I am really into the fact that a book has to be realistic to please me and I really enjoyed it. Firstly his characters, his characters don't have these seemingly impossible abilities, they are average people that when it comes time to do something they take care of it. Such is the description of the main character, Dirk Pitt who is part of the NUMA underwater research association is described as tall, muscular, and cool. His long time friend and partner Al who adds the comic part to Clusser's novels is always trying to get girl or making a joke about the situation they're in. All the settings in the book are real places which range from the Arctic to the Caribbean islands, another thing I liked about the way the book was written was that the characters don't jump magically from setting to setting either and how they get from place to place is explained so as not to lose the reader. Finally, the situations that Pitt finds himself in are quite believable for a man is his position. He does everything from stop a cruise liner from running ashore to masquerading as an engineer in a diamond mine to find the cause of a deadly sea plague. In conclusion I think that this is a great book to read because of it's realism and how it flows through the story at a reasonably fast pace to keep you hooked.

If you're only going to pick up one Clive Cussler (Dirk Pitt) novel in your life make sure it's not this one! The plot is tired, the situations unbelievable, and the reality scarce. Read "Dragon", "Sahara", or any pre-1994 release instead.

I've looked forward to and read every Cussler novel I could put my hands on over the years. This was the first time I've been disappointed to have the ending pegged within the first 100 pages. Sure the hero always wins, but this was rediculous; I actually found myself rooting for the villians! The only reason I kept reading was in hopes that I had the ending wrong.

If you're listening Mr. Cussler, this book read like it was written just to collect a paycheck...

I review Cussler's books as I read them in series and the rating and comments seem to glow a little more each time. This one is no exception.

As the title of this review says, this is the best there is for

adventure, fun, thrills, chills, and laughs out in print today.

No this is not grand , old , classic literature and never will be.

It is, however, several hours to kickback on the beach, let your imagination run wild with a grin on your face and a drink in hand.

Dirk Pitt is a great hero. Strong-willed, tough, and resourceful to no end. Everyone always compares him to 007 but, he's more along the lines of Indiana Jones with a little MacGyver thrown in.

Like the previous books, Shockwave is a big, over the top, action

epic with plenty of daring do, mystery, and even a little heart break. The villians are , as always, rotten to the core and Dirk and the NUMA crew are never say die. So, sparks fly, mayhem ensues, comic book dialogue flows forth, and a great time is had by the reader.

Enjoy, then read Flood Tide next.

My mom has read Clive CUssler for years. I on the other hand thought the book jackets always sounded a little to action adventurious(SP?) for my taste. Well I picked up this book used and thought why not. I absolutely loved it. I am a fast reader and was completly absorbed into this story and finished it in 2 hours. Dirk Pitt is such a wonderful character he combines all the parts of man you love and hate. As soon as i finished I caled my mom and borrowed all of hers and am currently reading them in order and even the first ones seem to be of the same caliber. I personally love mysteries and this combines a good mystery wih some grat action and the descriptions are so wonderful I can just picture them in my head. I love that he gives the background of the story and hen beautiful moves into the newer story. Wondeful!!!!!

As an addicted fan of Dirk Pitt novels, I rate this book relative to what I like about the Dirk Pitt books. First, I find Pitt to be a thoroughly enjoyable hero. Second, I like the tying together of a historical perspective with a current theme. Third, Clive Cussler has a good imagination, and he often makes me think about things that I would never have otherwise considered. Fourth, I find my heart pounding and my palms sweaty as I sit up late at night to finish the latest novel.

By all these standards, Shock Wave is a definite 5 star novel. Arthur Dorsett and his daughters make for interesting opponents for Pitt. They will remind you of some of the villains in the James Bond novels.

Don't miss this one!

I have heard of Clive Cussler but never read his books. I found this one at a garage sale and the other night, we watched "Sahara" ~~ and when I was looking for something to read, I happened to see this one on the shelf. I am definitely not disappointed! I can see why there are over 70 million novels in print!

This was pretty suspenseful with a race against time. I personally find Cussler's novel much easier to read than Tom Clancy's books (which I had devoured in college). It is very descriptive but not completely overwhelming. The action is pretty intense and gives the book an unreal feel to it.

Dirk Pitt was checking some things out in a blizzard down by the Anatarcia. He discovered there were survivors on the island ~~ passengers stranded on the remote island for three days. They had not been able to contact their cruise ship and nor has the ship returned to pick them up. Among the survivors is Maeve Fletcher, the daughter of one of the renowned diamond miners of the world. With Maeve and his trusty friend, Al, they set out to discover what had caused this mysterious plague that had killed every passenger on the ship, the island and elsewhere. The trail leads to Maeve's father on an evil scheme to control the diamond market.

This is a fun mystery ~~ pretty intense in some places and drawn-out in others. It's a perfect reading material for those dreary winter nights. If you like action novels and mysteries, this one is a good bet that it will keep you entertained!

1-6-06

Clive Cussler has done it again with Shock Wave. Although I was apprehensive about the slow start, once Pitt is introduced it never stops moving. An extended sequence where Pitt and two others are stuck on a small boat seems disconnected from the rest of the book, but it is still very enjoyable. The ending is very tragic and twisted, but it really was the only way to keep Pitt the way we know and love him. I really recommend it.

Shock Wave is a must-read for anyone who enjoys a good mystery action. And who else could provide this entertainment than Dirk Pitt? He is amazingly like a human superman and could live up to James Bond any day. Clive Cussler really did great on writing this book. He compares his self and his own NUMA adventures making Pitt better everytime. YOU GO CLIVE!