Treasure of Khan

October 9, 2006
Dirk Pitt's 19th adventure, the second collaboration between father and son Clive and Dirk Cussler (after 2004's Black Wind
), offers a plot as credible as it is monstrous and the kind of exotic aquatic detail that amazes, informs and entertains. The action, and there's plenty of it, ranges from Siberia's Lake Baikal and the wilds of Mongolia to the Hawaiian islands. The treasure is that of Genghis and Kublai Khan, the great Mongolian conqueror and his grandson. The villain is a modern-day Mongol with dreams of restoring national power and pride. The heroes are Pitt, sidekick Al Giordino and Pitt's son and daughter, Dirk Jr. and Summer, all affiliated with Pitt's National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA). The exploits of Pitt and company, particularly their narrow escapes, tend toward the larger-than-life, but these are nicely balanced by down-to-earth explanations of such phenomena as seiche waves and oil seeps. 750,000 first printing.

November 15, 2006
Dirk Pitt Sr. and his partner, Al Giordino, take center stage in this latest National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) adventure. The two are on Lake Baikal in Siberia when a massive earthquake disrupts their research. The rescue of a scientific survey vessel and its passengers reveals a sinister agenda somehow tied to the history of Genghis Khan, one of the world's greatest conquerors. As more earthquakes occur around the globe, major oil-supply pipelines are fractured, and the U.S. President and his staff watch as soaring gas prices create a worldwide panic. Can Dirk Sr. and Al repair the pipelines, deduce the culprit, and save the world? The quality fans expect from a Clive Cussler novel is in abundance, even as Clive shares billing for a second time (after "Black Wind") with his son, Dirk. Their latest will easily top the best sellers lists. For all fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 8/06.]Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2006
Dirk Pitt returns in a fast-paced adventure that takes the latter-day James Bond from a Russian lake to the sands of Mongolia in search of the treasure of Xanadu. Meanwhile, a murderous tycoon is bent on world domination, and only Pitt and his crack NUMA team can stop him. Cussler has been writing the Pitt thrillers for 30-odd years, and he has the recipe down pat. (His son, Dirk, recently has assumed the role of coauthor.) Fans of the long-running series will hungrily gobble this dish of genre pudding, but those who find Cussler's work slick and formulaic won't discover anything here to change their minds.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)