Rating: 
Summary: Serpent-A weak snake
Review: I am in the process of reading this book and at this point am disappointed in what I have read. It seems to me the writer (I don't think Clive Cussler had any thing to do with it) tried to imitate the Dirk Pitt character and Cussler style I have come to know and love. The author tries to impress the reader with their vocabulary, but in the process loses the story line and seems to wander around looking for it again. I wish I had noticed Serpent was not the typical Cussler book before buying it.
Rating:
Summary: Disapointing - one of Cussler's Worst
Review: I've read all of Cussler's books - fiction and non-fiction and this one was by far the worst one he's authored - if he did actually write it. The plots a good one but it never fully develops and the ending is rushed for some reason. The characters don't stack up and the whole thing appears to be just barely held together. I hope the next one is far better...
Rating: 
Summary: NEW HERO- SAME CUSSLER!
Review: When I first saw the novel Serpent I said "Cool, a new Cussler book." Then I looked and saw that it was not a Dirk Pitt novel. I thought to myself "blasphemy." I wasn't too sure how I was going to accept Kurt and Joe.Let me ease your mind. You are going to love them. While they aren't Dirk and Al, they are fun characters with their own pizazz. All in all this is a pure Clive Cussler yarn about the sea, treasure and bad guys. And that ain't half bad!
Rating:
Summary: Don't be fooled by the Cussler name!
Review: I will admit at the outset to being a complete sucker. Why, you may ask? Well, it's because I saw a new Clive Cussler book was released, introducing a new NUMA hero, and snapped it up without hesitation. Nine times out of ten you can't go wrong with Cussler - he's an entertaining read. Then I got the book, and realized it was co-authored. OK, I thought, it should still be good. Well, "so-so" is a better description of this book. It seems that Mr. Cussler has finally followed Tom Clancy down the road to "franchising", in a manner of speaking. Clancy, as most will know, has slapped his name on co-authored "Op Center" and similar series in which the writing is unlike any of Clancy's Jack Ryan novels. The effort is actually a novel by a lesser-known author with the Clancy name - and perhaps some minor contributions - to sell copies. Mr. Cussler seems to have done the same here. This book does not read like the Cussler novels fans have grown accustomed to. It does seem that he lent some very minor contributions here and there, as if to make sure the NUMA background matched up with the Dirk Pitt novels, but little else seems to have Mr. Cussler's "fingerprints" on it. This suggests, like Clancy, that the Cussler name is there to ensure sales. This book does read fast in places, but overall, the story unfolds at a sloth's pace. There are passages too heavy in descriptiveness and frivolous background, which contributes to the slow pace of the story. The plot surrounding Christopher Columbus and the pre-Columbus contact with the New World is a fascinating one, but could have been better played out in a Dirk Pitt (read: solo Cussler) novel. Too much time is spent to the rescue efforts and other side stories, causing the main thread of the plot to suffer from a seeming lack of focus. I would sincerely hope that Mr. Cussler abandon the "franchising" trail he is following with this book. It makes money for Clancy, but doesn't do much for his credibility. I fear the same thing could happen here with Cussler. After talking with a friend who is a fellow Cussler fan and also just finished "Serpent", I know there is some validity to my above statement; he didn't like this book either. I think it's great that he wants to expand beyond Dirk Pitt with some other NUMA characters. But if he intends to carry on with it, I would hope he does them on his own. He could alternate between Pitt and Austin if he likes; I would be happy with that. Maybe some Cussler fans will disagree with my assessment, but I would urge that those who haven't yet bought this avoid it and wait for the next Dirk Pitt novel. This isn't really worth the time, and hurts Mr. Cussler's reputation.
Rating: 
Summary: New hero Kurt Austin isn't as grandiose as Dirk Pitt
Review: After all, Pitt's combination of James Bond, Indiana Jones and Doc Savage can be a bit much at times--kind of like a plainclothes Batman. If not for Pitt's longtime mutually respectful relationship with a Congresswoman, I'd suspect him as being a bit of a misogynist. Austin is more accessible--you don't think "superman" as you read about him. Plus, his partner Jose Zavala is a not particularly caricature Hispanic-American--when Bill Shatner gave his "Tek" series hero a Latino partner, the reader practically wound up getting Baba Looey in human form. The story here is sort of cautionary--a rich malcontent trying to set up a breakaway republic and not particularly caring how he goes about it. That's a bit reminscent of part of John Jakes' "North & South" trilogy, when a radical rich Confederate tries to set up a breakaway Confederacy from the original one. I feel that this raises a point about the trendy anti-government mania nowadays--it's best not to forget what Pandora's boxes that particular fad might be opening.
Rating: 
Summary: Clive, if you want it done right, do it yourself...
Review: To me, Cussler's novels have been a modern-day reading fix for people who like stories about action and adventure that consistently use the same character from one story to the next. Only so many books about Doc Savage were written in the 30's, and my satisfaction with the Hardy Boys has waned somewhat since my acne cleared up twenty years ago! Still, I need that consistency that Cussler provides with his action heroes and can't say that I'm accepting this change in casting. I noticed that Cussler wrote with a fellow by the name of "Kemprecos" and having read Cussler's work cover to cover, it seemed like this book dropped my interest here and there, as though Cussler and Kemprecos agreed to divy-up the workload and do a lot of cutting and pasting to come up with a story. The storyline just didn't flow as well as others in his collection, keeping those pages turning without hesitation. My other fundamental question goes to Cussler: If you wanted to introduce a new set of action heroes, why must they have the same super-human qualities of your previous ones? Why not introduce action heroes that are uglier than homemade sin, clumsy, who still get the girl and still solve the mystery? Variety wouldn't be a bad idea, Mister Cussler! Overall, I liked the story. I am a history buff and there are threads of truth to the storyline which may serve as some form of education. Learned a few things that I didn't know and some that I had forgotten about. Dear readers, I still consider myself a big Cussler fan and think that we will certainly embrace with hearty optimism, his next creation, good or bad.
Rating:
Summary: The Serpent
Review: I've read all previous Cussler novels and loved every one. Serpent is a failed attempt to substitute two new characters in a story that apes but never equals Dirk Pitt. Sorry, Clive
Rating:
Summary: Not Pitt but not bad!
Review: I have read all of Cussler's books thus far and have enjoyed each and every one. At the beginning of this one, I was a bit wary because his usual characters (Pitt, Rudy, and Al) were not the main stars. However, I feel that the new guys (and gal) have proved themselves well. The historical information is great and was woven into an interesting and plausible story. One can believe that people like Halcon do exist and ARE in power. I always enjoy the tight spots the heros get into and the ingenious ways they escape. Keep it up Clive!
Rating:
Summary: Classic Cussler
Review: I liked this book. As a big Cussler fan, I didn't mind a break from Dirk Pitt.I read this after Atlantis (in which I think Cussler indicates Dirk is going to take a break for a while), so I enjoyed the new characters. Dirk does do a brief cameo, but I missed the Clive Cussler appearance from the Pitt novels. I do recommend. Good read start to finish!
Rating:
Summary: A Cussler Clone
Review: A very good effort to try to venture off in a slightly different direction for Mr. Cussler. Still every page seemed to have Dirk written all over it. If "Dirk" were not going to return then this would be a good substitute. I enjoyed the book, but not quite up to his most resent release, but still much better than most of today's contemporary writers. I couldn't stop till I finished the book which in my opinion is always a good sign.
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