Rating: 
Summary: Needs to be Streamlined
Review: As a student of fiction writing, I'm seeing ever more clearly that "if it don't add to the story, subtract it" is a valuable maxim to remember. "Richter 10"'s story, in my opinion, could be accomplished with half the bloat I've encountered so far in my reading. The basic gist: Protaganist Lewis Crane predicts an earthquake with some accuracy on Sado, flubs it in Middle America, and has to re-establish his credibility in order to predict a much more deadly quake...but now he wants to stop it, and all future quakes.A sufficient basic plot line that can be fleshed out in several ways. How it was done troubles me. Nation of Islam stereotypes, China taking over America (yet leaving a farce semblance of American life and gov't intact), a woman posing as a man/spy, and perhaps my biggest concern...I find it hard to like the protagonist. He comes across as a drunken crazy man seeking vengeance against Mother Earth for the death of his parents during the Northridge Quake of 1994. His idea to "spot weld" tectonic plates, thereby stopping tectonic movement and future quakes, using nuclear blasts...how sane is that? And scientifically responsible? Other reviewers have already noted the problems with this plan. I've never read any other Arthur C. Clarke work before this book. Perhaps I should read 2001 so my experience with this author is broadened. Science Fiction is a tricky genre to write for...I want to give the guy a chance this book hasn't yet done for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Not excellent, but pretty good
Review: As an Arthur C. Clarke junkie, I was surprised to find a book by hin that I hadn't read that was also eight years old. Well, it turns out that it wasn't really written by him, but he had enough input into it (see other reviews for details) that he got authorship credit (although he shouldn't have been at the top). About the only thing I had trouble with was the rash of intense and destructive earthquakes that kept showing up in the book. If such disasters happened at the rate and scale they did here, the world economy would really tank, but somehow they just seemed to cause ripples. I found the characters to be quite interesting and pretty believable, except for the male impersonator (no really good reason for that, and when the character was discussed, it was a bit confusing when folks called her "him" and when she was alone, she was "her"). This book is a definite page-turner, with just a few minor issues.
Rating:
Summary: Not excellent, but pretty good
Review: As an Arthur C. Clarke junkie, I was surprised to find a book by hin that I hadn't read that was also eight years old. Well, it turns out that it wasn't really written by him, but he had enough input into it (see other reviews for details) that he got authorship credit (although he shouldn't have been at the top). About the only thing I had trouble with was the rash of intense and destructive earthquakes that kept showing up in the book. If such disasters happened at the rate and scale they did here, the world economy would really tank, but somehow they just seemed to cause ripples. I found the characters to be quite interesting and pretty believable, except for the male impersonator (no really good reason for that, and when the character was discussed, it was a bit confusing when folks called her "him" and when she was alone, she was "her"). This book is a definite page-turner, with just a few minor issues.
Rating: 
Summary: This isn't even by Arthur C. Clarke!
Review: Before you pick up Richter 10, read the authors notes at the end of the book. You will discover that this book was not written by A.C.C. The idea was concieved by him, but then handed over to Mike McQuay. A.C.C. is NOT to author of this book. In fact, he didn't even talk to Mike McQuay during the writing of the book and never even met him. So any reviewers who say that this is one of Clarke's best, you are wrong. This is one of Clarke's mistakes that somehow got his name on the cover. Im not critisizing Mike McQuay, but he simply isn't as good as A.C.C., so don't expect to much.
Rating:
Summary: Not Clarke, but not bad, either
Review: Clarke fans may be upset to learn that he did not write this book, but come on -- the man is about 500 years old and still cranking out good ideas for stories. If you like "mad scientist" stories, then this is definitely one to add to your collection. Although it deals with an area of science that doesn't captivate me (seismology) I enjoyed the fast pace and the strangeness of McQuay's near-future America.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting...
Review: I actually give this book 3.5 stars, as I don't think it quite deserves four, but it doesn't deserve three either, so I gave it the benefit of the doubt.
As well as being scientifically interesting (if not completely realistic- but since when has science fiction been completely realistic), this book was also futuristically interesting. In my opinion, I found that some of the social predictions were quite reasonable.
The plot wasn't brilliant- it was quite predictable in many areas- but I found that the setting and vision of this particular future made up for the story's shortcomings. The book ended in a very over-done way (if you read it you'll know what I mean) but not so over-done to ruin the rest of the book. On the whole, this book was quite good and quite satisfying to read.
Rating: 
Summary: A Great Story!
Review: I don't know what the reviewers who gave this bad reviews were reading, but this is a well constructed, well written novel. I believe that some of the reviewers were simply reacting to the genre not the story. Maybe, they were forced to read the book for an assignment. This was best Clarke collaboration, I've read to date. It is a shame that there will be no further works coming from the pen of Mike McQuay. Make your own decision. It seems as if the reviews fall to two extremes. The readers have either loved or hated the book. I loved it. I would recommed it to everyone.
Rating:
Summary: Scientifically intriguing
Review: I read this book looking for escapism sci-fi, and instead found a book grounded in science FACT and having a great plot to boot. I consulted with several geoscientists and seismic experts, and they consider the book to be useful in teaching seismic theory, even though the actual prediction concepts may not be provable. Overall, an excellent read - I would like to find more books as good as this.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Read for When There's Nothing Better to Read
Review: Richter 10 is, inmy opinion, a book to read when you're looking to pass the time. Summer vacation is one example. Prison is another. But whatever the circumstances may be, you will find that Richter 10 is nothing if not interesting. The author(s) of the book do many things right, while still managing to screw up the story. Surprisingly, it's about an earthquake. Several earthquakes, anyway. Crazy geologist Lewis Crane is hell-bent for revenge on earthquakes after one knocked off his parents in 1994. The book takes place in the early-mid 21st century, and we see several examples of advanced technology. Perhaps some of it is too advanced, but since we went from struggling to get a glider to hang in the air to putting men in space in about 50 years, maybe it is normal. Anyway, the characters and several parts of the story are not developed very well. We never really get to know the characters, so that when something good or bad happens, we couldn't care less. The characters aren't exactly good people, either. Crane has some good characteristics, but he is pretty much consumed by his power. His assistant, Dan Newcombe, goes from being a humble scientist to a megalomaniac in a few chapters. The book, though not being too long, drags on for quite a bit. There are ample oppurtunities to end the book, but the author(s) feel the need to keep it alive. Too much of a mediocre thing can be a bad thing. As another point of negativity, the ending sucks. I won't give it away, but, eh, it wasn't very good. In closing, I recommend this book to bored people who do not have anything else to do with their time. 50% of the population, in other words.
Rating:
Summary: Too many false stops, but still enjoyable
Review: To clear up any confusion - Arthur C. Clarke wrote a plot synopsis that he wasn't interested in pursuing. Mike McQuay read the synopsis and fleshed it out into the novel Richter 10. The novel takes place in the near future. The story: a geologist named Lewis Crane is obsessed with stopping earthquakes by fusing the Earth's plates together. To this end, he starts a foundation to predict quakes and render assistance to victims. He comes into conflict with his own employees and a seperatist group called the Nation of Islam (NOI) led by an African American of great charisma. One of Crane's men leaves to join the NOI, setting up the main conflict for the remainder of the novel. There are some obvious parallels with real life - for example, the leader of the NOI is obviously based on Elijah Mohammed, while the defecting geologist is similar to (but less influential than) Malcolm X. The vision of the future is quite dystopic (and overtly racist) - the U.S. government is a puppet for multinational (Chinese) corporations. However, the novel is not a warning or historical analogy, but simply an adventure story with lots of buildings falling over and tsunamis sweeping people out to sea. On the whole, it is quite enjoyable. The action is well-written, the technology mostly believable, and the supporting characters well-developed. Unfortunately, the main characters are generally not likable (until, possibly, in the last 50 pages), so it's hard to develop any kind of sympathy for them. In addition, the central scientific tool the geologists use - a working scale model of the Earth - is extremely far fetched. The idea that an earthquake (or any major natural event) could be predicted by a 100-foot model, to an accuracy of a couple of minutes, stretches credulity to the breaking point. Finally, there are too many Big Moments in the book. There are at least 3 points where the story reached a logical conclusion, but then went on, basically starting over with a new theme. It makes the story seem very patchwork, (in the one particular chapter, 10 years pass!) Sure, it's supposed to be an epic, but it's too choppy. Having said all that, the book is still fun and keeps you interested.
| 
