Rating: 
Summary: 5-GOLD Stars for Kurt Austin's 2nd Adventure
Review: A Cussler adventure is ALWAYS welcome to me, whether it features Dirk Pitt or now, Kurt Austin...and Cussler has EARNED that opinion from me by finding a co-writer in Paul Kemprecos who knows how he thinks, and has mastered Cussler's trademark 'style' of adventure writing to a 'T'. When I first saw 'Serpent' I was skeptical to say the least, but after a couple of pages, it was apparent that the 'action-magic' was definitely on overdrive and it made for an amazingly fun story virtually on par with almost any of Pitt's exploits. Now comes Austin's 2nd literary adventure, and I am happy to say that everything which made 'Serpent' fun and entirely worth reading is found in the pages of 'Blue Gold'. From the jungles of the Amazon to an underwater explosion off the coast of Mexico to a very tall woman who has her sights set on controlling the virtual bulk of the world's drinking water, thus placing most of the world at her mercy. 'Blue Gold' has something rare for a Cussler story: the bad guy is a GIRL. But don't let that fool you into thinking she is all bark and no bite...nope. She packs a whallup, that's for sure. Between Kurt and his Giordino-sidekick/clone, Joe Zavala, they manage to become central figures to the problems facing Mother Earth, and due to their quick thinking and all around knack for being in the right place at the right time, they end up saving us all without us none the wiser. Some have been faulting Cussler and Kemprecos for using a tried-and-true formula that has paid off in multiple back-to-back bestsellers over the years, but I for one welcome it all and look forward to Kurt & Joe's next adventure eagerly. Face it, if you can manage to substitute Dirk Pitt for Kurt Austin and Al for Joe as you read 'Blue Gold' you would be hard pressed to tell the difference, and with that in mind, just remember: if you are a fan of Pitt, do yourself a favor and get to know the other side of the NUMA coin, and soon you too will be singing the praises of Kurt Austin. A fine thrill-a-minute-seat-of-your-pants story that deserves to become every bit as popular as Dirk's exploits.
Rating:
Summary: Still Thrilling
Review: Blue Gold reminded me a great deal of Shock Wave. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Great action, great storyline, and an overall great read. Kurt and Joe are awsome.
Rating: 
Summary: Blue Gold
Review: Ok guys this one is worse than bad. The writing is sophmoric choppy short sentences with a failure to develop the story line fully. I have read all but three of Cussler's Dirk Pitt books plus Serpent and thoroughly enjoyed them all. Blue Gold does not even come close to an exceptable Cussler standard. I have to ask what Clive Cussler is doing putting his name on such poor quality work.
Rating:
Summary: A big welcome back to Kurt and Joe!
Review: In this entertaining second entry in the NUMA Files/Kurt Austin new series by Cussler and Kemprecos, mankind faces a huge threat in the shape of a mutli-billion dollar organisation, Gogstad, who are planning to dominate the world's fresh water supply and ultimately the world. At the start of the book, a plane crashes in the Venezuelan rainforest and Francesca Cabral, inventor of a unique desalination techinque(turning sea water into fresh water) is taken in by a tribe of Chulo Indians. Then, ten years later she is discovered later by NUMA archaeologists Paul and Gamay Trout, who are investigating bio-pirates intent on stealing rare species of plants. Meanwhile, our new NUMA hero Kurt Austin and sidekick Joe Zavala are investigating Gogstad's water purification facility in Mexico when a bomb nearly destroys their submarine mission. Suspecting the facility is killing off rare whales, their trail soon leads them to Alaska and the sinister intrigue of post World War 2 black operations involving a rare atomic substance, and ultimately Lake Tahoe. Can they stop Gogstad from dominating the world and piece all the clues together? We will surely know the outcome(or will we?!), but this winner from Cussler just moves along so well that I never cared - the journey there is part of the fun of reading his books. Cussler features it all - powerboat racing, environmental issues, escaping from certain death, a suitably James Bond style baddie, interesting and well researched locations and a fast pace with simple prose. Plus tons of action and wisecracking humour help to pull it along nicely. In other words, it is well worth the money and one you'll want to re-read again and again. Don't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: Gold That's Worth Your Money
Review: I was sad to see good ol' Dirk and Al vanish into the background of the NUMA files, but I have to admit that I'm warming up to the new heroes of Clive Cussler's books. Cussler had Kurt and Joe bring a new kind of style and action to Serpent's plot. There was an even more interesting plot in Blue Gold. The storylines in the two newest novels are more complicated than those of Dirk Pitt's time. This is definitely a big plus for the readers. You can compare it to the two Mission Impossible movies because it was the more twisted plot of the first movie that made it better than just the non-stop action of the second. I guarantee Blue Gold by Clive Cussler and Paul Kemprecos to be worth your time and your money.
Rating:
Summary: Much Better Than the first "numa files" book
Review: When i read Serpent written with Paul Kemprecos i thought it was horrible, but this time around it is much more similar to Cussler's writing style. Very Entertaining book!
Rating:
Summary: Sorry to See Dirk Pitt and Clive depart
Review: A sad misrepresentation of a Clive Cussler novel. Gone were the temptations to stay up all night reading of the adventures of Dirk Pitt. Now there seems to be a sad replay of Dirk adventures throught the eyes of "another" writer and another bit actor. Quick unexplained actions with little foresight into realism. I am sorry to say that I will not be reading any more Clive Cussler books if this is the shadow that will be forwarded in the next series from the Numa files.
Rating: 
Summary: Not one of his best
Review: I love Cussler's theses. Imagine someone trying to control the world's freshwater supply! Such a great change from the usual spy stuff. But c'mon, adding Kemprecos's overblown prose ("her sweaty brow knitted in concentration", adding "the lovely" as a prelude to any description of the heroine; i.e. "the lovely Gamay Trout") to Cussler's usual great, irreverant, to-the-minute writing style does nothing for Cussler's books. I actually PUT THIS BOOK DOWN (shock horror) for more than a few hours. I've never done that with a Cussler adventure before; usually it's a 2:00 a.m. job and my husband's complaining at me to turn off the (*&^ light. Even the action scenes were rather ho-hum. My heart didn't pound and I didn't get all sweaty reading this like I usually do with a Cussler novel.If you can get past the B-grade writing the plot is just a fun as any Cussler book, but this ain't no "Atlantis" or "Sahara."
Rating:
Summary: where o where is clive cussler
Review: i have read all of the pitt series and have loved everyone of them this new series is a disaster i know cussler can't live forever but better to go out with a successful pitt series than to settle for this new series which lacks all the real numa players
Rating: 
Summary: Blue Gold
Review: I thought Blue Gold was one of the better recent Cussler reads.As usual the action was exciting and intriguing.It did not get bogged down in stage setting and mechanical specifications but moved quickly from scene to scene.I particularly enjoyed the topic of fresh water and its value to us humans.Interesting characters.However,Austin and Zavala are such exact replicas of Dirk and Giordino that I wonder why the name change is necessary. If you like Cussler you will like this book.
| 
