Black Ice

Rating:
Summary: too sexist for belief
Review: good locale for a story but the author's insistence on making out the women to be too emotionally fragile to play any significant role in tackling the bad guy finally got a little too annoying. after about the second or third time that he had the lead scientist (gutsy enough to work in antarctica but not gutsy enough to defend her station) wimping out, apparently simply because she was a woman or just a foil to the macho hero mechanic, i got disgusted and quit reading. the characters were too unbelievable.

Rating:
Summary: Exciting Adventure!!
Review: I picked up this book after finishing Matt Reilly's Ice Station in hopes of getting another fast and exciting adventure to enjoy reading, and I was not disappointed. I sat down with a hot cup of coffee and a nice warm quilt and let this book take me to the inhospitable Antarctica where scientists and explorers endure incredible hardships while on their personal quests. The scientists just want to survive and to be able to share their discovery of what they found in a lake deep beneath the ice. The explorer wants the glory of completing his trek on foot across Antarctica, and he is willing to do anything and sacrifice everyone to finish his journey. I found it incredibably entertaining to the point I was up till the wee hours of the morning telling myself I'll just read one more chapter before going to bed, again and again.

Rating:
Summary: Exciting Adventure!!
Review: I picked up this book after finishing Matt Reilly's Ice Station in hopes of getting another fast and exciting adventure to enjoy reading, and I was not disappointed. I sat down with a hot cup of coffee and a nice warm quilt and let this book take me to the inhospitable Antarctica where scientists and explorers endure incredible hardships while on their personal quests. The scientists just want to survive and to be able to share their discovery of what they found in a lake deep beneath the ice. The explorer wants the glory of completing his trek on foot across Antarctica, and he is willing to do anything and sacrifice everyone to finish his journey. I found it incredibably entertaining to the point I was up till the wee hours of the morning telling myself I'll just read one more chapter before going to bed, again and again.

Rating:
Summary: A Chilling Survival Story
Review: If you are interested in the hazards of Antartica and the difficulties of human survival in this desolate place then you will probably enjoy this book. The plot is rather bland. One rescue attempt gone bad results in a group of scientists trying to survive an unforgiving trek across an antartic glacier during the long winter while being pursued by a slightly crazy egomaniac. The hardships encountered while trying to survive with less than minimal supplies are described in detail. I had a chill just reading about the dangers of the antartic cold. Overall it is an average story, but provides a scary insight into a continent most people know little about.

Rating:
Summary: cold and boring
Review: The set up of this story is great and has all the makings of a good read but somehow falls short in the creative writing department. Characters are shallow and not developed, the wording repeats itself over and over - the text just begs for something really interesting to bite into. Good idea for a story but lacks in literary development and interest. After treking along with these characters for the entire book, the last chapter just ends with no explanation - it just stops and the book is over.