"A thrill a minute"
In 2003, the cruise ship Emerald Dolphin sails on its
maiden voyage from Sidney to Tahiti when a fire breaks
out. The alarms, sprinklers, and idiot lights fail to
alert the crew. When a crewman discovers the blaze and
reports it, human error and disbelief quickly compound the
problems leaving two thousand and five hundred people
facing death as the inferno spreads at an uncanny rate of
speed. National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) engineer Dirk
Pitt notices the red glow through binoculars from on board
the oceanographic survey vessel Deep Encounter. He
notifies Captain Burch and they sail at full speed towards
the fire twelve miles away. Though many die, the NUMA crew
rescues about two thousand survivors. One of them Kelly
Egan watched two men kill her father and try to steal his
attachÈ case. She barely survives thanks to Dirk's
intervention, but the case is empty. Her father invented a
magnetichydrodynamic engine that uses saltwater as its
source. When the Emerald Dolphin sinks into the Pacific,
Dirk leads the investigation into what caused the disaster,
but remains unaware of the ancient and modern sea monsters
that have marked him for death. VALHALLA RISING is a fantastic thriller that runs a full
speed ahead story line and never decelerates on its knots
until the tale is finished. Dirk remains fresh and his
watery escapades make for first rate reading. The
remaining characters round out a great action-paced sea
adventure that shows Clive Cussler is still the Great
Admiral of the seven seas. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted July 1, 2001
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