Rating: 
Summary: Surprised by the xenophobic undertones
Review: I'm an Australian of Asian descent, and I've been a huge Clive Cussler (and Tom Clancy) fan since I was about 12 years old. It was Clive Cussler that introduced me to the concept of "sex scenes" within books, and because I had a fascination of the ocean, NUMA as a concept always fascinated me. Up til' now, I'd always assumed that Dirk Pitt as a character was fighting for the freedom of everyone around the world, regardless of their race. This isn't the first time Clive Cussler has used Asian villains in his novels (Deep Six), but it's the first time he's ever expressed any antipathy or animosity towards Asians in general. Both Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler formed an integral part of my childhood reading. Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Raise the Titanic, Deep Six - these were all books I loved reading. But now that I'm aware of their antipathy towards Asians, I feel like I've been unceremoniously excluded from an important club. I want to love Cussler's novels, but I just can't if he's not going to extend the same respect towards me as a reader.
Rating: 
Summary: Cussler's disturbing xenophobia continues
Review: I agree with reviewer David Lim's comments that Flood Tide continues a disturbing trend in Cussler's later works of xenophobic and derogatory attitudes toward Asians. All the predictable negative stereotypes are here: ruthless human smugglers, sadistic triad gangsters, even a "dragon lady" femme fatale. To Cussler's credit, he's toned the Asia bashing down from his previous book, Dragon. In Flood Tide, the villains are evil individuals who happen to be Chinese and it's clearly implied that most Chinese people are good. In Dragon, every Japanese is portrayed as a nameless, faceless cog in a giant evil machine out to enslave the world. The Asian girl love interest in Flood Tide is, at least, a strong-willed character capable of holding her own. In Dragon she's a geisha girl/sex slave. Still, the xenophobic overtones in Flood Tide leave a bad taste in the reader's mouth and get in the way of what is otherwise a pretty good story. All the elements you expect from a Cussler/Pitt novel are here: an elusive shipwreck, hidden treasure, a 50 year old mystery, and so on. If you can look past the negative Asian sterotypes, Flood Tide is an enjoyable read. If not, go for one of Cussler's earlier novels like Raise the Titanic or Night Probe.
Rating: 
Summary: wonderful! not as good as atlantis found
Review: A ship carrying priceless Chinese art treasures sinks in a storm in 1948. Decades later, locating this lost ship becomes one of the goals of a super-rich, greedy Chinaman. In walks the infallible super wonder, Dirk Pitt. He just happens upon one of the many dastardly deeds that super greedy evil Chinaman is doing in efforts to amass his immeasurable fortune: the smuggling and enslavement of Chinese immigrants to America. Pitt saves the day by fouling and exposing his smuggling operation and beating the rich, evil scumbag to the location of the lost ship. Dear reader will recognize a predictably formulaic Cussler story, but nonetheless enjoy it, as he has all his other creations. They are a consistent source of non-stop action and adventure! There is never a straight line of chaos in a Cussler story. There always seems to be a multitude of misdeeds going on all at once. Flood Tide remains consistent, since Dirk Pitt manages to play a hand in the corruption of all these dirty deeds and save the day. It is quite an enjoyable story.
Rating:
Summary: Not CUSSLER's best
Review: I have been a CUSSLER fan for years and I will continue to read his novels, however, this is not one of Clive's strongest novels. The flow is lacking. The classic Cussler tie from history to current era does not flow well. The treasure recovery is a side bar to maintain his traditional pattern but really is secondary to the story. Even with the red herrings the plot is predictable. I think the hand was tipped early when he spoke of the Mississippi in the early chapters. After the that we didn't guess what would happen but read to find out how. I also was surprised to see Clive refer to the world famous RCMP as the "Canadian Royal Mounted Police". I would still recommend this and will continue to read his novels. Not every book will be a five.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable read
Review: A good adventure and an enjoyable read. I am looking forward to reading the next Dirk Pitt adventure.
Rating:
Summary: Clive Cussler's Flood Tide
Review: This is another of Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt novels. While not fine reading, it is extremely entertaining. All the Dirk Pitt novels follow the same basic storyline, but that doesn't mean you know how Dirk will solve the mystery or defeat the bad guy (which he always does)! This story starts out (after the chapter describing a scene from the past that figures into the culmination of the book) with Pitt vacationing on a small lake in Washington State (I especially like that since I am a native Washingtonian). Immediately he is pulled into trying to discover the secret behind a Chinese shipping mogul's secret resort. After finding the lakebed is covered with dead bodies, Pitt predictably tries to find the answer to the mystery. This only pulls him in deeper and he ends up rescuing the heroin of the story, an INS agent posing as an illegal Chinese immigrant who is destined for the bottom on the lake. Through many twists and turns (literally) and close calls, Dirk and Julia (the INS agent) end up breaking the smuggling ring, solving the mystery of lost treasure, and destroying the "bad guy." What more could you ask for? For light reading that gets you away from reality and even gives you a laugh sometimes it's a great book. If you're looking for serious reading I wouldn't recommend it.
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