Thunderhead

Rating:
Summary: A Good Archeologic Thriller!
Review: This book has a lot of interesting information about archeology and the tribes that inhabited the New Mexico (I'm assuming that is where they were) area hundreds of years ago.

Nora, a university archeologist, is attacked by some weird "people" dressed in animal furs at her family's ranch house. During the attack they are demanding the whereabouts of a letter. She gets away but in her escape, she "accidentally" stumbles on the very letter they were demanding. The letter was written by her father who was missing 16 years prior and has a post mark date within the last 6 months.

Nora reads the letter and it is a description of a search by her father for the city of Quivira, an ancient city in the desert that was rumored to be a city of gold. According to the letter, her father felt he was close to finding the city and gave sketchy directions as to the route he used to get to where he was. Based on the attack, she thinks her father actually found the city and that her attackers were interested in the letter to find the city too.

Nora tells her brother some of this and he gives her a contact at the JPL lab in Berkley who might be able to use NASA's systems to look for the roads described by her father. She social engineers her way into one of the people working at JPL and he is able to get the data she needs to see some of the possible roads mentioned in the letter.

With the flimsy evidence of the letter and the mappings from JPL, Nora is able to convince the University head of her department to launch an expedition to find the city. The expedition brings together some interesting personalities including Bill Smithback, who was the journalist used by the authors in some of their previous works.

The book is a decent action thriller with interesting historical information presented. My only complaint here is that the author's notes at the end of the book did not give enough info as to what was fact and what was not so I had to search out that information on my own. The stories of Cabeza de Vaca and Coronado searching for a city of riches called Quivira are true.

Note: Possible spoilers:

This book in many ways is similar to the author's previous effort, Riptide. We have the hunt for a treasure by a descendent of someone who initially discovered it and met a tragic end, a treasure site that appears cursed, a conspiracy by some of the treasure hunters to take everything for themselves, to name a few things.


Rating:
Summary: Dunder Head
Review: I ripped right through this page turner, but it was very formulaic and had some weak points. First, the 'hero' is an anal-retentive selfish fool. The 'romances' in the book are contrived and lead nowhere. The premise that a bunch of archeologists would get gold fever was unnecessary and made the book seem dumber. The 'flash flood' would have gone in the direction of the lake, but due to a plot device, it went backwards to force the 'hero' back to the camp. Otherwise, the venue is pretty original and the pacing is good. I sort of liked it.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Read, Fun and Exciting page turner.
Review:
Douglas Preston and Lincoln child are masters at producing enthraling and captivating stories that keep the reader soin to the story that it is hard to close the book.
I read the story in about 4 days and am already excited to go get the next one at the library. I have read the other 4 book in the series and surley will read the next 3. These two authors are marvelous.

I enjoyed Thunderhead's story line very much, It centers around a group of archeologists setting out on a journey to find a lost Anaizazi city called Quivira. This city is thought to contain a huge amount of treasure and knowledge about the Anazazi culture. Throught the book the groups personalities blend and crash to create wonderful dialogue and character background. I like each character in their own seperate way. I was glad to see Bill Smithback make a return and I also like how in the Preston Child books all the female characters are hott yet smart and strong.

The authors definatly create likeable and fun books that will make you laugh. The details of the Anazazi culture and customs plus some pasages that actually teach you stuff,, shows how the authors do their research/homework very well. This was a Great book that didn't seem to have any boring parts.

A SUBERB NOVEL



Rating:
Summary: Archeological Mystery
Review: Best book I've read in a long time. I raved about it so much, my husband picked it up and is almost finished with it and we NEVER read the same titles.

Rating:
Summary: Good read
Review: Not as gripping as some of their others, but well worth a read.

Rating:
Summary: Preston/Child - They're all I'm reading right now!!!
Review: Nora Childs visits her old home and is attacked by strange animal-like creatures. She receives a letter from her father dated years ago that leads her on a quest for Quivira, a city of the Anasazi Indians. While the first 150 pages were a little slow, the rest of the book was totally engrossing. Quivira and its archealogical finds are so interesting. The climb up the cliffs and the storm throughout the canyons makes for a very scary read.
I have bought all the Preston and Child books since reading this one. "Codex" is awesome. I love "Cabinet of Curiosities" and "Still Life with Crows." You MUST read these!

Rating:
Summary: Page Turner!
Review: One of the best books I've ever read, Thunderhead is a constant page turner fuill of mystery and intruiging characters.