Rating: 
Summary: A Worthy Addition
Review: Clive Cussler's Valhalla Rising is a good addition to the long-running series featuring the intrepid Dirk Pitt. While it does seem to adhere to the formulaic plot of previous Pitt outings, it is still a fantastic read, opening with a maritime disaster that ties in, later in the narrative to the present-day mysteries faced by NUMA Special Projects Director Dirk and his assistant, Al Giordino. Without spoiling the plot, it is sufficient to state that naturally, nothing less than the fate of the world is at stake.Valhalla rising is a fine novel, and fans of the series will not be disappointed by a return of the Dirk Pitt adventure (and an unusual twist at the novel's conclusion)
Rating: 
Summary: An enjoyable story in spite of some weaknesses
Review: Dirk Pitt and the crew on a NUMA ship are in the right place at the right time when a cruise ship with a new propulsion system catches fire on its maiden voyage. Heroically, they manage to save most of the 2,500 passengers, but soon find out that the fire was set deliberately. Dirk and his friend Al get drawn into the murderous plot of a huge oil corporation and narrowly escape several attempts on their lives, while saving many others, including some beautiful damsels in distress. The stories of an ancient Viking settlement and Jules Verne are woven into the tale as well, although I thought the connections were a bit shakey.
This is the first novel by Clive Cussler I've read. The story has plenty of adventure and excitement, but it often sounds unbelievable. And the character of Dirk Pitt is often too good to be true (that's not as negative as it sounds, however), almost in an old-fashioned sort of way. Perhaps the part I found most hokey was that the author writes himself into the story at one point. But what I appreciated most about this book is the total lack of trashiness and profanity. It's refreshing to see someone write something nice without stooping to vulgarity. (I realize not everyone appreciates or cares about that, but I wanted to point it out for those who do). Overall, I enjoyed the book and I look forward to reading more from Mr. Cussler.
Rating:
Summary: Another great work from Clive Cussler
Review: I am a relative newcomer to Clive Cussler. I picked up the previous novel "Atlantis Found" at an airport while I was on a layover. It was a two day business trip and I simply could not put the book down, I finished that one shortly after returning home. Since then I have devoured nearly all the Cussler novels and eagerly picked up "Valhalla Rising" when it was published.
I have long been a Viking lore buff and so it seemed unbelievably true when I heard the title and it's obvious Viking connection. I was not dissapointed. Although I would have liked a bit more concerning the Viking subplot I was thrilled for all its 500-plus pages.
The plot . Well Cussler is the master of weaving a complex and well structured plot. Basically, it concerns an oil companies efforts to seize a new formula.
Along the way Dirk, and his sidekick Al, manage some hair raising escapes and participate in some exciting action sequences. My favorite action scene in the novel is probably the aeriel dogfight in New York City, and the best escape in my view is the raising of the luxury cruise submarine.
Cusslers novel simply scream to be made into a movie series, and in fact a movie adaptation of the novel "Sahara" is presently in the works.
Cussler has the Pitt novels down to a fine art which leads a number of people to criticise his work as formulaic, but I say, if it aint broke why fix it. I certainly enjoyed "Valhalla Rising" and recommend it to all.
Rating:
Summary: Dirk Pitt delivers again
Review: I know of no one who writes with more vividness than Clive Cussler. From the opening, the action scenes are remarkable and non stop and Dirk Pitt continues to be one of the great James Bond-like adventures figures of our time.
Cussler's use of the ocean and the history of ocean travel make his books unique among adventure stories. He has also mastered the art of weaving a variety of themes into one compelling action-filled narrative. In this volume we go back and forth from the Vikings in the eleventh century to Jules Verne and the Nautilus in the 19th century to a giant cruise ship being sabotaged with thousands of lives at stake in 2003.
All of this is tied into a giant corporate conspiracy which seems a little more plausible after Enron and other recent scandals. You will be kept guessing on at least three different fronts as Pitt and his team rush from problem to problem and from threat to threat.
The action never stops; the entertainment never stops.
Rating: 
Summary: How does this retard publish books...
Review: I wish there were negative stars. I swear i thought it was a freakin' joke when i listened to it. Let me get this straight, this scientist invents an engine that SOLVES ALL WORLD ENERGY PROBLEMS FOREVER, and some agency sends TWO assasins to steal the secret to the most valuable thing EVER CONCIEVED that the media DOESN'T CARE ABOUT which an old man carries in a briefcase supposedly... oh wait, no, not only has he created an endless source of energy, but he stole it from captain Nemo, perfected the system with another impossible invention of super oil, again which nobody in the media seems to care about, and then (here is the kicker) to keep it safe he invents a way to TELEPORT THE OIL FROM HIS SECRET HIDEOUT. I listened to this book on audio tape on a 24 hour drive and almost threw them all out the window, but then decided to ebay them to some tool. Clive Cussler is a waste of oxygen, unless Cussler is the pseudonym for a 13 year old writing books out of homeroom in 8th grade.
Rating: 
Summary: Dirk is Back
Review: In Valhalla Rising Clive Cussler gives every character, big or small, a very in depth personality. Dirk Pitt the main character is at his best to stop a company from creating a monopoly in the economic world. While at the same time trying to solve an ancient mystery. This story takes you back in time and around the world. Al Giordino his childhood and most trusted friend. Along with all of the other members of the NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency) staff.
I liked this book because of all the action and adventure that takes a reader all around the world. Like all of Cusslers other books you can easily follow the movement of the story from one point to another. Like most of the newer Dirk Pitt novels Cussler takes an active role in the development of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone who has read a Stephen Coonts novel. In my opinion if Dirk Pitt and Jake Grafton ever meet each other they would get along really well. The reasons for this being they are both loyal to there country and to their friends. Each has many resources at their disposal.
Cussler like in his other novels has put a wide range of characters in his book. Some examples of this are Dirk and Giordino are round and dynamic characters. They each have their own personalities and they each change over the coarse of the novel. Then there's flat characters such as some of the mercenaries who just follow orders and don't do anything else. Also their are static characters who after messing with Dirk only have one thin on their minds, revenge. He is also very direct in the way he describes them. He starts with a detailed physical description of the character followed by telling about their psyche.
This novel is told in third person objective. The narrator tells every thing without taking sides in the story. Yet the narrator also gets into the characters psyche. He can tell you what they are thinking in any one perk of the novel.
Cussler also gives very good descriptions of the locations that the novel takes place. Also when they change the location of the story he gives the location, date, and time.
Rating: 
Summary: Same old stuff, but much worse
Review: Lets start by saying that I have read every Dirk Pitt book through Valhalla Rising and this will be the last one I read. This book was awful and was the first Cussler book I didn't finish. It follows the same pattern and I'm not even talking about the impossible plots or sci fi stuff. I'm talking about a ship that sinks, then for for some reason Dirk Pitt gets a bug up his butt to figure the mystery out. First he goes to Hiram Yaeger who seem to be the only programmer for what must be the biggest computer in the world. If only NASA had as nice a computer. But for as super as this computer is, there is always something it can't figure out. So then he goes to see the heart attack waiting to happen Julian Perlmutter to look it up the old fashion way...in a book. Then there is Cussler who seem to think he has to put himself into every Dirk Pitt book he writes. He has done that so many times that it insults the intelligence of Pitt and Gordino (By the way, I always call my childhood friends by their last names...not) who are not allowed to remember him. Maybe his son (who is named Dirk) will do a better job. If you want to read Dirk Pitt stories, try Iceberg, Raise The Titanic, Deep Six or The Mediterranean Caper. The difference in the stories will amaze you.
Rating:
Summary: Another over-the-top Dirk Pitt adventure.
Review: Pitt is back for another over-the-top epic actioner. In "Valhalla", Pitt becomes embroiled with Cerberus, an aggressive petroleum cartel that will do anything to monopolize the flow of oil into America (the baddies are actually Americans. Though it's soon clear that "Valhalla" was written before 9/11, a more baiting author would have easily gone for the "OPEC" panic-button). There prime target is the inventor of a revolutionary form of propulsion that will put a severe dent in the global demand for oil. Luckily for them, the inventor, and his beautiful daughter, are both at sea on a revolutionary cruise ship powered by the inventor's magnetohydrodynamic engines - giving the cartel the opportunity to take out two birds with one stone (or in this case, one fire at sea). To late to save Dr. Egan, deep-diving hero Dirk Pitt arrives to save the plucky Kelly Egan, and become the cartel's latest target. Pitt, the special projects director for the "National Underwater & Marine Agency", isn't a guy to take "no" for an answer (he's also the only hero left who has no problem tossing off bon mots like "I hope you can forgive my tardiness"). In protecting Kelly Egan, and shutting down Cerberus, Pitt will find himself tangling with modern-day pirates in the Pacific, dogfighting a modern-day Red Baron over the streets of Manhattan, suffocating aboard a luxury submarine trapped at the bottom of the ocean and taking on a rogue super-tanker rigged to vaporize a city. He will also have to track down the mysterious hidden lab of Dr. Egan, but luckily for Pitt he and the departed doctor share similar interests. Cussler tosses an army of ruthless mercenaries, a lost Viking colony a mysterious 19th century submariner and ultimately...himself (again) into the mix for another Dirk Pitt adventure. Okay, so it gets a bit wearing at times, and Cussler doesn't so much blaze any new paths as much as follow old ones (he used the bomb-ship idea in the excellent "Cyclops"), while sticking to his trademark brand of pedantry (we always know what everybody is eating, and what they're wearing). Normally, the above would kill the story, but Cussler's brand is actually fun, and he doesn't allow dinner menus and wardrobes to kill the story, which manages to be both consistently action packed yet never a mindless videogame turned novel. There's probably some stuff that could have been tossed out (the Vikings and Jules Verne plot-lines were interesting, but they don't really connect to the story), but adventure fans should enjoy it. Cussler shows he can go deeper into a genre he essentially created.
Rating:
Summary: Deep-Six this one
Review: The beginning sequences of ancient norsemen and a 19th century mystery sub seemed interesting, and I was hoping they would tie together later. Unfortunately, the ideas were never really picked up again, and it seemed as if they were thrown in at the end of the book to "tie" everything together.
Dirk Pitt (the superhero NUMA research engineer) has numerous poorly written escapes from death. He doesn't just get attacked by an old biplane while flying over NYC. He doesn't just get attacked by an old biplane while flying a planeload of children over NYC. He gets attacked by an old biplane while flying a planeload of disabled children over NYC. The story quickly degrades from here, if that is at all possible, into one about an Evil MegaOilCorp out to dominate the USA (and secretly paying off over 100 Congressmen&women/govt agents), as well as numerous ridiculous nautical-themed terrorist attacks.
I payed $0.27 for the book at a thrift shop, and can plainly see why. Deep-six this one.
Rating:
Summary: Deep-Six this one
Review: The beginning sequences of ancient norsemen and a 19th century mystery sub seemed interesting, and I was hoping they would tie together later. Unfortunately, the ideas were never really picked up again, and it seemed as if they were thrown in at the end of the book to "tie" everything together.
Dirk Pitt (the superhero NUMA research engineer) has numerous poorly written escapes from death. He doesn't just get attacked by an old biplane while flying over NYC. He doesn't just get attacked by an old biplane while flying a planeload of children over NYC. He gets attacked by an old biplane while flying a planeload of disabled children over NYC. The story quickly degrades from here, if that is at all possible, into one about an Evil MegaOilCorp out to dominate the USA (and secretly paying off over 100 Congressmen&women/govt agents), as well as numerous ridiculous nautical-themed terrorist attacks.
I payed $0.27 for the book at a thrift shop, and can plainly see why. Deep-six this one.
|
