Rating: 
Summary: Not bad... for a beginner
Review: As a first novel for a beginning novelist, James Rollins' Subterranean is not bad... but it's nothing special. In a world of Clive Cusslers, Michael Crichtons, and other authors who lead readers into exotic worlds filled with equally exotic danger and adventure, this book needs a lot of work. The concept alone holds promise. Some mysterious, potentially earth-shattering discovery has been made in some caves in Antarctica and a group of scientists and experts are sent in to explore the mystery. It's not going to be easy, of course, there's also something mysterious and dangerous lurking down there. Once you get past that, though, and figure out what the hubbub's all about, you're left with a rather uninteresting action plot and some VERY uninteresting characters. The good guys are bland and you never identify with them. I didn't really care if any of them died or lived. The bad guys (creatures and humans alike) are equally predictable. I never felt that the world or the people Rollins created were believable and real. It felt like I was reading... well, a beginning writer's book. If Subterranean were made into a movie, it would be a cheesy, straight-to-video potboiler starring Dolph Lungdren.
Rating: 
Summary: An incredible book full of surprises.
Review: I've read a few of James Rollin's books and they are always a pleasure to read and everyone in my family passes them around and enjoys them as much as I did. Its hard to imagine this being a first novel, because its written so well and the world he creates is very intriguing. I'm always one for the suspenseful, archaeological type books and this is the perfect one. When a team of researchers disappear in a cavern system under Antarctica, there are little clues to what had happened to them. The military picks a select few of experts in various fields to go down there and search for them. But the team has no idea of the dangers until their arrival and even then they are thrust into a journey that will take them beyond anything they imagined. Underneath the earth are many mysteries I won't give away, but the whole premise is intriguing and well-written. All of the characters are very real to me and this book is just about as perfect as a suspense novel can be. There are good guys, bad guys, riches and something else I won't give away. This is a great read and one that almost anyone can enjoy. Great!
Rating: 
Summary: Subterranean
Review: I really love the Rollins books. This was no exception. It is a fast page turner and a stay up late to finish book. I do look forward to have characters develop differently in future books, this format is not as much fun; since we already know who will live and who won't just by having read previous books. Still a great read and very imaginative.
Rating: 
Summary: poor character development & research
Review: Pretty good plot but the character development is terrible and research is worse. Main character Ashley is a whiner you quickly grow to detest. Ben is a nerd. Poor research. Khalid is from Egypt, a country whose "lifeblood is oil". Egypt has very little oil production. Another scene has a character who tapes a bunch of bullets together and shoots them to cause a explosion. An impossible feat. Author has two SEALs he ranks as majors. No such rank in the navy, would be Lt. Commanders. Two Marine brothers calling each other "soldier". Marines call themselves "marine", never soldier. This just goes on and on. Started to give the book two stars because plot is decent but, on reflection, decided one star was ample reward for what is clearly a lazy writer.
Rating:
Summary: SUBTERRANEAN
Review: This was my second book I read by James Rollins. His second book was the first I read so these 2 I kinda rearranged in order. Anyway, this book was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! I love the dinosaur-crocdile things, the albino cave shark, and the other cave creatures. Set in the Arctic, this book tells the story of a hand-picked team of scientists assigned to find out about a mysterious cavern in Antarctica where people have been disappearing and turning up mutilated. Also, Alpha Base is invade by the reptile things and is destroyed. The team of archaeologists later discovers some enormous crystals with human skulls in them. They also are attacked by a distant relative of the pterodactyl, possibly a pteranodon. But the main reason people have disappeared is because a ancient ancestor of man has been living down there for centuries and wants to overrun the world. First of all, they can speak English and make diamond-spears as weapons. The group's leader decided to have one of the main scientists of the group named Ashley executed! Overall, a very good book. 410 pages.
Rating:
Summary: A bit of a wasted effort, I think
Review: On the remote continent of Antarctica, below the huge ice cap, lies a hidden world where the early hominids survived, along with mutated dinosaurs who resemble a cross between an Alien creature and Godzilla. And so is the story here. There, of course, is a team of scientists who stumble upon all that lovely stuff, and Darwin's theory (at least part of it) flies out the window. A book, with a plot like that, should be an interesting read but it is not. Sometimes I had to skim pages just so that I could get to the end. The only character I liked was an Aussie caving expert with aboriginal blood flowing in his veins (although when that blood started talking to him, the book quickly moved from semi-normal to ridiculous). The compulsory Arab terrorist who tried to blow all of them up to hell, was also included in the story. The general idea was good, like something from "Journey to the centre of the Earth" by Jules Verne, but the actual narrative (while some of it good) just lacked that 'something' that would make me interested. Not totally bad, but not good either.
Rating:
Summary: Terrible
Review: Absolutely dreadful. This book held my interest for maybe 50 pages, and after that I had to muscle through the rest just so I wouldn't feel like I wasted 8 bucks. I did. There's nothing worse than reading a bad book. Watching a bad movie is one thing, but when you spend 10+hours invested in something, it better be worth your while. This is Michael Crichton lite. The characters are my biggest complaint. I could enjoy reading about interesting characters doing boring things, but I can't enjoy uninteresting characters doing exciting things. They were so flat, and the main character, a woman, has to be one of the most obnoxious "heroes" I've ever encountered. She's like a nagging wife. The Aussie is typical, the Terrorist guy is typical, everyone is mundane and boring, and the entire premise is just stupid and uninteresting. I don't care who or why or how the little caves were made, nor do I care about the outcome. The dialogue was horrible, the scene descriptions were amateurish,and there isn't one redeeming thing in this book. I'm going to give Descent a read, it comes highly acclaimed, but I'd recommend any Michael Crichton novel over this dreck.
Rating:
Summary: Blew me away.
Review: This is my second by Rollins. Okay I'm reading the order of his books backward the first was Amazonia fantastic by the way,now Subterranean was a gradual action build-up that was so much fun that I had go back and re-read part of it. The characters were good together and even Ashley's young son Jason was an important part of the team. Picture Jurassic Park in the middle of the Earth. I cannot recommend enough that you read his books. I found Indiana Jones characters, some hot romance,and allround Science fiction fun when you read his books. All I can say is read them.
Rating:
Summary: Subterranean
Review: James Rollins has that rare gift for knowing how to write a story that flows along and keeps one's interest. In fact, Subterranean is such an easy read, that I was really surprised to learn that this was Rollins' first novel. The quality of his storytelling reflects that of a more experienced author. I really enjoy (and appreciate) his writing style and look forward to reading lots more from him in the future.
Rating:
Summary: STUNNING Debut!!!
Review: When my father asked me to read this book, I really doubted i would like it.....until i finished the first few chapters!!! This book would easily place in my favorite books list!!! I recommend you READ this book!
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