Thunderhead [Mass Market Paperback]

Douglas Preston (Author), Lincoln Child (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

Nora Kelly, a young archaeologist in Santa Fe, receives a letter written sixteen years ago, yet mysteriously mailed only recently. In it her father, long believed dead, hints at a fantastic discovery that will make him famous and rich---the lost city of an ancient civilization that suddenly vanished a thousand years ago. Now Nora is leading an expedition into a harsh, remote corner of Utah's canyon country. Searching for her father and his glory, Nora begins t unravel the greatest riddle of American archeology. but what she unearths will be the newest of horrors...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The adventure is marginally higher than the suspense in Preston and Child's sturdy new tale of scientific derring-do, concerning a search for Quivira, the legendary Anasazi Indian City of Gold. With four high-concept thrillers behind them, from 1995's Relic to last year's Riptide, the authors know what buttons to push and levers to yankAperhaps too well. The novel has a clockwork feel, from its first tickAthe spooky stalking of archeologist Nora Kelly on an isolated New Mexican ranchAto its last tock. Playing it safe, Preston and Child take no missteps as Nora finds an old letter from her long-missing father with clues to Quivira's location; leads an expedition of central-casting types (a leathery old cowboy, a beautiful female photographer, the jokey journalist who figured in Relic and Reliquary, etc.); after much difficulty, discovers Quivira, which is revealed as a repository of ancient evil; and encounters death by way of the Native American witches who threatened her at the novel's start. It's all predictable but rarely dull. The authors display deep affection for the pulp they're recycling, talent for exciting set piecesAa hazardous ascent along a ridge toward Quivira and the flash-flooding of the canyon harboring the city are showcases of action writingAand, always their ace, the ability to infuse every aspect of their story with authentic techno-scientific lore. This is a novel in which the archeological niceties of ancient black-on-yellow micaceous pottery are as important to plot as the caliber of the gun the heroine wields. Fans of the authors' similarly inspired, and similarly metronomic, scientific textbooks-cum-thrillers should find this one much to their taste. Simultaneous audio. (July)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

YA-Checking on disturbing noises at her family's abandoned ranch house, Nora Kelly experiences a frightening encounter with two entities that resemble extremely large and ferocious wolves (in reality men disguised as skinwalkers), barely escaping with her life. On her frantic flight toward safety, she accidentally stumbles across the last letter her father wrote, describing the route he had taken in finding the lost legendary Anasazi city of gold, Quivivra. Nora finds a financial backer and puts together an expedition staffed with experts to help her find the site once more. The group encounters monumental natural obstacles and deep personality conflicts. And once the skinwalkers reappear, the eerie power of evil seems to take over. Members of the team begin to die mysteriously, and when a flash flood hits the canyon, the body count rises. The delicate balance of good and evil in the world serves as the major theme. The adventure occurs amid the beauty and spectacular dangers of the harsh environment, inspiring and frightening to behold. The constant challenge of staying alive keeps the excitement sharp. The strong emotion of greed and the interaction of opposing interests insures continual strife within the group. High-tech communications and the latest knowledge about diseases contrast with the ancient culture, and also provide answers to many of the mysteries associated with the Quivivra. This is a story filled with excitement, a sense of place, and personable characters, delivered in a quick-paced race against evil, humankind, and the tremendous forces of nature.
Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 546 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446608378
• ISBN-13: 978-0446608374
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.3 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (216 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #93 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure

More About the Author

Douglas Preston, who worked for several years in the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, is the author of the acclaimed nonfiction works Dinosaurs in the Attic and Cities of Gold, and the novel, Jennie. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Need a great summer page-turner? This is your book!, June 29, 2000

By 

Douglas A. Greenberg (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thunderhead (Mass Market Paperback)

Child and Preston have created their best novel to date here, a combination of archaological/anthropological fact and mystery thriller fiction that is hard to put down once begun. The southwestern setting, specifically the canyon country of the Colorado basin is skillfully (and for the most part, accurately) drawn, and there is enough actual historical information about the Anasazi and their mysterious legacy to render the book "educational," to a degree. Also noteworthy is the improved character development the authors have provided this time around. Whereas in *Riptide* just about all of the characters were of the carboard-cutout type, the people who animate *Thunderhead* actually display a few internal conflicts and contradictions. Tolstoy it's not, but for a quick summertime read, I don't think we should raise the bar TOO high.

The ending, while filled with interesting twists and turns, is manically theatrical, perhaps too much so. But given the grandiose and dramatic plot lines that develop throoughout the preceding hundreds of pages, a Hollywood-type ending is surely forgivable here. If you want Great Literature, look elsewhere, but if you want a fun and absorbing read, this book might just be for you.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not to Be Missed, July 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Thunderhead (Hardcover)

With their fifth novel, Thunderhead, Preston and Child may haveproduced their best adventure story yet. And an adventure it is!Thunderhead combines all of the excitement and awe of H. Rider Haggard's lost civilization stories with the mystery and appeal of Tony Hillerman's stories set in the American Southwest. Latching onto the enignma of the Ancient Ones, the Anasazi-- those prehistoric Indian dwellers-- Preston and Child have created a novel of almost unbearable suspense, archeological lore, and excitement.

Throughout much of the first two-thirds of Thunderhead readers almost have to remind themselves that the book is actually fiction, it seems so real. Thunderhead is extremely well researched. Throughout the novel readers will be treated to a wealth of knowledge about the ancient Anasazi culture: everything we do know about them, don't know about them, and the latest scientific controversy-- did the Anasazi engage in cannibalism? The history and geology of the area plays an important role in the story as does other American Native beliefs and religion. A lot of attention is given to Indian beliefs as they pertain to witchcraft: skinwalkers and plants that produce hallucinogenic drugs. Indeed, in an afterward, the authors site the fact that Douglas Preston traveled and lived among the southwestern Indian people and has written about them. There are repeated references to Howard Carter's discovery of King Tut's tomb, Schliemann's discovery of Troy, and the Wetherill brothers' discovery of the ancient cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde, Colorado.

The last portion of Thunderhead becomes more of a traditionally plot-driven adventure thriller with catastrophe, death, murder, and evil running amuck. Thunderhead is one of the best adventure novels to see the light of day for quite sometime. Readers who have any knowledge of or have ever ventured to the Southwest and have fallen under the allure and mystic beauty of the area, especially of the ancient cliff dwellings, will have their imaginations rekindled anew. The nearly 500 pages of Thunderhead will flow through the reader's fingers as swiftly as the current in the waters of a flashflood headed for the Colorado River. And like those flood waters, it is a roller coaster ride filled with thrills and surprises until the very satisfying conclusion. This is a tale not to be missed. END

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Their best ever! ....well almost :), February 2, 2000

By 

Anna M. Mortensen "Myc" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thunderhead (Hardcover)

First I need to say that I've been an avid fan of D.P. and L.C. since the Relic. I own the first HC edition of all their books AND a paperback copy (or two)of each, for travel purposes. Although I've enjoyed all their books, I never thought they would write a book to rival the Relic, I was wrong. Thunderhead goes beyond expectations and delivers an intriguing and fast-paced punch. With another incredible combination of humor, detailed storyline and palpable characters you get pulled right in. I've read the Relic about twenty times, without exageration and Reliquary almost the same. When Thunderhead came out I was in a slump, so to speak, and it alone pulled me out (yeah, I know it sounds corny, but give me a break! I'm a bookaholic). Oh, by the way, if you really loved the Relic & Reliquary you are in for a real treat here.....