Rating: 
Summary: A Good First Novel - Hope To See More in the Future
Review: Craig Dirgo has written a fast-paced and entrtaining first novel. "The Einsten Papers" has an interesting storyline and several subplots which he ties together very nicely. I would agree to some extent with the critic who gave this book 2 stars that he has used to a fair extent the writing style of his co-hort, the great Clive Cussler. But I do not think that is a bad thing. Clive Cussler writes terrific adventure stories! Is that a bad thing? Isn't that what we want?A criticism I have of the book is that the main characters (Taft and Martinez) aren't really developed very well. They just kind of show up and do their thing. But I suspect if Mr. Dirgo continues to use Taft and Martinez in future books, we'll get to know them like Mr. Cussler's Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino. But overall, Craig Dirgo has shown he can tell a good story. I hope we'll see more of his work in the future!
Rating: 
Summary: Spellbinding summer reading
Review: Dirgo's The Einstein Papers is the perfect read for the dogs days of summer or the cold nights of winter. Better yet en route to Beijing. Not only does it showcase the author's obvious knowledge of geo-politics, spydom and undersea adventure, it could not be more timely, given recent revelations about Chinese espionage in the United States. One can only hope that this new author's oeuvre will be a long one.
Rating: 
Summary: Dirgo is sure not Cussler
Review: Even though Dirgo worked with Cussler on "Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed" he doesn't seem to have learned how to write a good "thriller". After the first "James Bond" escape he makes his heros look like a couple of keystone cops for much of the rest of the book, "The Einstein Papers". His main character, John Taft, is supposed to be like Dirk Pitt but he's a bit off-- maybe because he drinks ginger ale instead of tequila. And Taft's sidekick, Martinez, has promised his wife he won't fight. Some of his premises are so far out as to be not even good science fiction. For example, Dirgo has his characters get several hundred cylotrons "scavenged from storage racks and test centers" and place one in each old plane at Davis-Monthan Air Base. Does he know that a cyclotron weigh many TONS? Oh well--maybe he can take another lesson from Cussler sometime!
Rating:
Summary: Dirgo is sure not Cussler
Review: Even though Dirgo worked with Cussler on "Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed" he doesn't seem to have learned how to write a good "thriller". After the first "James Bond" escape he makes his heros look like a couple of keystone cops for much of the rest of the book, "The Einstein Papers". His main character, John Taft, is supposed to be like Dirk Pitt but he's a bit off-- maybe because he drinks ginger ale instead of tequila. And Taft's sidekick, Martinez, has promised his wife he won't fight. Some of his premises are so far out as to be not even good science fiction. For example, Dirgo has his characters get several hundred cylotrons "scavenged from storage racks and test centers" and place one in each old plane at Davis-Monthan Air Base. Does he know that a cyclotron weigh many TONS? Oh well--maybe he can take another lesson from Cussler sometime!
Rating:
Summary: Dirgo is sure not Cussler
Review: Even though Dirgo worked with Cussler on "Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed" he doesn't seem to have learned how to write a good "thriller". After the first "James Bond" escape he makes his heros look like a couple of keystone cops for much of the rest of the book, "The Einstein Papers". His main character, John Taft, is supposed to be like Dirk Pitt but he's a bit off-- maybe because he drinks ginger ale instead of tequila. And Taft's sidekick, Martinez, has promised his wife he won't fight. Some of his premises are so far out as to be not even good science fiction. For example, Dirgo has his characters get several hundred cylotrons "scavenged from storage racks and test centers" and place one in each old plane at Davis-Monthan Air Base. Does he know that a cyclotron weigh many TONS? Oh well--maybe he can take another lesson from Cussler sometime!
Rating: 
Summary: A book so bad that you'll read it to the end.
Review: Ever watch a movie or read a book so bad that you finish it just to see if it gets worse? I just finished doing that in reading "The Einsten Papers." The characters are cardboard cut-outs. A singular "super agent" who protects the world. He's a government employee - who apparently lives well beyond his means, much like Aldrich Ames, with collections of motorcycles, boats and other possessions which normally wouldn't be accumulated by an ordinary civil servant on the government payroll. (Tom Clancy and others at least provide an explanation for their character's wealth. There is none here.) Dirgo seems to have a thing for food. I've never seen so many diversions to record what the characters ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner, none of which propel the plot forward. The plot is simple and, unfortunately, predictable. Even when attempting to place his characters in grave, even mortal, danger, Dirgo simply lacks the capability of causing the reader to worry. You know from the first paragraph who the good and bad guys are and what will be their ultimate ends. In short, there is no suspense, there is no thrill to be found in "The Einstein Papers." This is certainly not a "techno-thriller." The little bits of science and technology that appear are thrown in almost willy-nilly. This isn't like reading Dale Brown, say, where an aircraft becomes almost a living and breathing entity. This is more like hearing a know-it-all tossing off factoids about the airliner you're both on. No depth. I read it from beginning to end, but only because I was interested in seeing just how bad it could get. The ending is a whimper. Overall, I was left with the impression that Mr. Dirgo will never again appear on my reading list. Jerry
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended -- First page to last
Review: From the first page my interest peaked.The portrayal of Einstein depicted him not only as a truly great scientist but also his down to earth type quality to which the normal man could equate.The plot was well envisioned and Craig Dirgo has a way with words that showed both humor and thought.His characters came to life.It is evident that much research was gathered for this novel and I look forward to his next.
Rating:
Summary: A good first effort influenced heavily by Clive Cussler
Review: Given Mr. Dirgo's many ties to Clive Cussler, from working in Cussler's real-life NUMA to co-authoring two books with him, it struck me as slightly amusing that a positive one-line quote from Cussler himself was printed on the cover of this book. It was as if to pretend that Cussler was objective and nowhere near this project. Reading "The Einstein Papers", however, one gets a sense of just how much influence Cussler had on Mr. Dirgo's first solo effort. As with the best of Cussler's novels, Dirgo has written a story that is easily readable and that speeds right along from page one. Also, like Cussler, Dirgo has created the lead character John Taft, a creation straight out of the Dirk Pitt mold (notice he even calls himself Pitt during one chase scene!). All comparisons aside - that could take up much room and time - "The Einstein Papers" does have it unique points that makes it enjoyable, starting with a thoroughly credible Chinese strategy to reclaim Taiwan and throwing the U.S. off-track in the process. The science revolving around Einstein and the Unified Field Theory is also intriguing and plays well in tandem with the China angle. Dirgo, except for a few occasions, writes the science with a strong degree of credibility. The Taft character, unlike Dirk Pitt, does seem mortal at times and doesn't quite get into the impossible-to-believe challenges (even though the harmony between the intelligence agencies of this country DO remain too "superhuman" for real life). Also, his action sequences are, by and large, as well-written as other authors in this genre. Two major critiques must be noted. First, some of the key action and plot development writing seems too compressed. It seemed to me he could have spent less time with some of the peripheral sequences and expanded the key ones. This is glaringly evident in the conclusion, which is the second critique of the book. The climax of the whole novel occurs in the last 20-30 pages, and it seems to be very rushed. Also, the explanation of Einstein's theory and its application in the battle on the Taiwan Straits seemed to be underdeveloped. All in all, as with his mentor's books, Dirgo's first solo effort relies on some suspension of reality. The rushed conclusion does prevent me from rating it the full five stars. However, it is a solid first effort, and well worth the time to read, especially if you are a Cussler fan.
Rating: 
Summary: "Good First Effort, Some Room For Improvement"
Review: Good plot and a good job keeping your interest. The Chinese have learned that Einstein solved the Unified Field Theory 50 years ago, but hid the data after the A-bombs were dropped on Japan. Now it's a race between the Red Chinese and the U.S. to secure the UFT data. The winner will wind up with a weapon of unimaginable power. Lots of problems for anti-terrorist expert John Taft to deal with that made you want to read on. Dragged a bit as you neared the end, but picked back up for an outrageous climax. No characters really stood out, however. A few times I had to re-read some of the stuff involving the UFT, but for the most part Dirgo broke it down well for the laymen like me.
Rating:
Summary: "Good First Effort, Some Room For Improvement"
Review: Good plot and a good job keeping your interest. The Chinese have learned that Einstein solved the Unified Field Theory 50 years ago, but hid the data after the A-bombs were dropped on Japan. Now it's a race between the Red Chinese and the U.S. to secure the UFT data. The winner will wind up with a weapon of unimaginable power. Lots of problems for anti-terrorist expert John Taft to deal with that made you want to read on. Dragged a bit as you neared the end, but picked back up for an outrageous climax. No characters really stood out, however. A few times I had to re-read some of the stuff involving the UFT, but for the most part Dirgo broke it down well for the laymen like me.
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