Rating: 
Summary: An Awesome Read
Review: An excellent novel. It read like a Louis L'amour and I look forward to more books from these authors.
Rating: 
Summary: The Lightning Never Strikes
Review: Can you recall the scene in "Frankenstein" when they raise the dead body up to the heavens so that the lightning will strike it and bring it to life? Well, that is very like this book where all the pieces are in place, everything seems okay, but the lightning never strikes! It never comes to life; you can never quite believe it. Good writers lend a kind of grace to their work and you are drawn in, seduced, involved, and you "live along with it." These authors are workmanlike, but without that grace. If I knew how to do it, I'd be writing. But I know it when I see it and this isn't it. Nothing wrong with this plot or these characters that Louis L'Amour couldn't fix. But these authors either didn't and probably can't. Still - this is a first book; maybe they'll improve.
Rating: 
Summary: Reviewer from Independent Publisher Magazine
Review: Fair enough. It reads like a pulp action story, at times. And our hero Jack is a little to good to be true. Mighty thews and all. Brooding countenance and flashing eyes. However that doesn't make this a bad book. It makes it a pretty entertaining and action-packed book, and while Jack may be a little unbelievable, the action and story aren't unbelievable. Essentially, Jack, the 18 year old son of a gun smith, is swept off on a whirlwind adventure that takes him from the fledgling USA to Cuba to the South Pacific. In it, he encounters self-righteous Yankees, evil Cuban noblemen, bloodthirsty Pacific Islanders (savages, don't you know), bloodthirstier Dutch slavers, and British press gangs. Okay, there are a lot of cliches (and I mean a lot), but there is a lot of fun in here too. And despite the notorious and nigh-legendary phrase "the pintles were sprung from the gudgeon," there's not an overwhelming amount of sea-stuff in here. Try reading Patrick O'Brian and you'll see what I mean. This book is comparable to Wilbur Smith's "Birds of Prey." Kinda like an old Errol Flynn movie. I enjoyed this book a good bit, and would be interested in reading more from these authors.
Rating:
Summary: A first-rate sea yarn...among the best of its genre!!
Review: I fully admit to buying this book primarily because of the draw of Gene Hackman's name on this project. I have always enjoyed his acting, so I was very interested in seeing how his inaugural effort as author would come out. Without question, it was a magnificent read! Mr. Hackman, in collaboration with Mr. Lenihan, have created a modern sea classic with "Wake of the Perdido Star". They have managed to successfully mix a coming-of-age element into a more grand historical fiction epic combining the best of revenge and seafaring tales. The plot, focused around the young Jack and his adventures aboard the Perdido Star, is extremely well-developed. In their prose, Hackman and Lenihan paint a vivid picture for the reader. They manage to tackle several subplots with gusto and pizazz without losing sight of the more central story: Jack seeking revenge for the death of his parents. Also, even though there are a few twists that force the reader to "stretch the imagination" a bit, they are written with tremendous plausibility, making them far more easy to digest. As I alluded to, the prose allows for wonderful imagery. Some of the passages describing the Perdido Star's voyages immediately evoke comparisons to the best of - dare I say - a Herman Melville or, more recently, Patrick O'Brian. Of note is the passage describing the Star's rounding of the cape, as well as the "battle" scenes involving the Star's departure from Manila harbor and the climactic fight at Havana. All in all, Hackman and Lenihan have hit the proverbial home run with their first effort, a feat reserved for very few authors. Fans of the aforementioned Patrick O'Brian should also love this book. For those who enjoy the "technothrillers", this is a wonderful diversion from that genre. I certainly believe it is one of the past several years, and I hope that Mr. Hackman and Mr. Lenihan will grace us with another work very soon.
Rating:
Summary: A top notch read
Review: I loved Wake of the Perdido Star. The well-rounded plot and colorful characters kept me turning the pages in eager anticipation of "Black Jack's" next pirate adventure. My favorite character was Paul Le Maire, a misguided youth whose wit and sharp mouth gave me numerous laughs. I'm amazed this is Hackman and Lenihan's first collaboration together, the authors' writing style flows beautifully throughout the book. So if you're in the mood for a fun adventure and some memorable characters, check out Wake of the Perdido Star. Anyone who loves diving, tales of the sea, or simply characters such as Paul Le Maire, who "dares to be a daisy," is sure to take something from this book.
Rating:
Summary: Reviewer from Independent Publisher Magazine
Review: I wonder who the professional literary critics were who gave this book such high marks. I agree with whomever wrote the review "The Lightning Never Strikes." I am a former reviewer for INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER MAGAZINE and was given the go-ahead to review Mr. Gene Hackman's first novel. Since I am also a writer who writes nonfiction books about piracy, I was definitely enthusiastic about this swashbuckling novel! But unfortunately I struggled through quicksand to the middle of the book, then called my editor and pleaded with him not to make me finish it and write a review. Since this was right after the book's publishing date, I don't remember the specific superficial scenes I slogged through. I just remember the book was filled with cardboard characters, dumb dialogue, many erroneous facts, and a stupid plot. I don't recommend that anyone waste their time with this novel. Instead, read a novel such as THE DIARY OF A SLAVE GIRL, RUBY JO that includes pirate photos and illustrations as well as nonfiction information about pirates that seems accurate.
Rating: 
Summary: The pintles were sprung from the gudgeons!
Review: Let me start by qualifying my review--I'm not ordinarily a big fan of seagoing adventure tales and would not have read Wake of the Perdido Star if it had not been given to me as a gift. I don't wear an eyepatch, don't have a hook, a parrot or a pegleg, don't go around drinking grog and saying "Arrr, mateys!" and have never buckled a swash as far as I know. So I'm obviously not the ideal reviewer for this book, but nevertheless... I guess that his experiences filming The Poseidon Adventure and Crimson Tide got into Gene Hackman's blood, as Wake of the Perdido Star is full of every seaman's cliche conceivable. One character does end up with a hook (no eyepatches, thankfully), the captain has premonitions of his own death, there's plenty of Jolly Rogers and piracy and cannonshot and shipwrecks and fathoms and beautiful native girls and evil Spaniards and noble British and Americans and topsails and broadsides and press gangs and fantails and even a letter of marquee, with the whole thing tied together in the tale of a young man out to avenge the death of his father. About the only thing that doesn't happen is a shark attack--maybe they are saving that for the sequel. However, that doesn't make it a bad book, just entirely predictable. Clearly the authors know their seamanship--Hackman's coauthor has impeccable credentials in this regard--but they don't always fill in the reader in a timely fashion, probably expecting him to either know the terms already or care enough to look them up. I'm sorry to admit that I didn't, and when I read the sentence I've used for my title, I couldn't help but think that it sounded like a Dr. Seuss version of The Night Before Christmas: The pintles were sprung from the gudgeons with care/in the hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there!" Not for several hundred more pages (literally) do Hackman and Lenihan tell us what pintles and gudgeons actually are, and the truth is that it doesn't really matter even then. Wake of the Perdido Star is the perfect beach book for those who prefer their beach books without any hint of erotic character whatsoever. The writing is workmanlike--the tale solid and familiar, and if the book gets washed away by a freak wave it is no great loss.
Rating:
Summary: A Boys' Adventure Story
Review: That STAR is the first effort of Mssrs. Hackman and Lenihan is painfully obvious. The plot is sophomoric, the dialog is trite and the characters much less deep than the sea over which they sail. The book reads like an old fashioned pulp Adventure Story for Boys. Our hero, Jack, is a pre-industrial Tom Swift, capable of remarkable inventiveness and inbred combat leadership. He can take a licking and keep on ticking...indeed he is regularly beaten nearly to death by villains or nature, only to be on his feet in the next paragraph for an amazing feat of daring do. Sidekick Paul is appropriately witty and irreverant, a walking encyclopedia, and overfull of the weak emotions which dull Jack doesn't have the time for - a perfect Dr. Watson. As for the evil Count de Silva, imagine Snidely Whiplash with a Cuban accent, or for you PC gamers: simply remember the evil Spanish noblemen you endlessly chased around the Carribean in the '80s classic PIRATES! Perhaps the plot and characters will entertain a 13 year old with no previous reading experience in the genre; do the kid a favor and buy him TREASURE ISLAND instead. All in all: cookie-cutter characters in a story of teenaged loss and revenge that's been told better countless times since the advent of literature.
Rating: 
Summary: Suprising Book
Review: The "Wake of the Perdido Star" really surprised me. The book was much better than I expected. The story accelerates from the beginning and doesn't slow down until the last page. The characters are likeable, the plot is exciting and intense, and the story is an adventure, taking the characters all around the globe. I had a hard time putting this book down once I started reading it. This book was truly a pleasant surprise.
Rating:
Summary: A swashbuckling tale
Review: The novel is a change of pace for Gene Hackman who is best known for his acting roles ("The Unforgiven," etc.). While not great literature, it is an interesting tale in the swashbuckling tradition of years gone by. The setting is in 1805-1808. The hero rescues himself and others from various hazards and improbable situations. He is, perhaps, a little too straight-laced, spurning the advances of a voluptuous native woman. The agressive hero acquires a sidekick who faints at the sight of blood, and a Chinese cook who is a little more than that. With various enemies, intrigues, battles, hazards at sea, etc., it never gets dull. The native women match the description from "The Journals of James Cook," i.e., naked and promiscuous. There is enough sex, language, and violence to give it, at best, a PG-13 rating. It will require some re-writing to make it into a reasonable length for a motion picture.
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