There’s a reason why I stopped going to the movies and spend my time reading. It’s to be found in CRUSADER GOLD. Written by David Gibbins, it’s everything I hate in a novel: derivative, shallow and probably written with the hope that someone will turn it into a shitty blockbuster film with Nic Cage. I got about halfway through it and gave up.
It’s a bad historical mystery/conspiracy (they were sooooo crafty back then, those people who thought the world was flat!!!) that’s been written several times over before, with nothing unique to say. Then we get notes at the end telling us how it all could have happened, but really didn’t because of history, religion and society.
That being said, I could give a shit about Clive Cussler, whom Gibbins obviously desires to be in some twisted way I don’t want to imagine. Perhaps I’m not the best one to review this one since Clive doesn’t move me. Or maybe Cussler stands out because he milked the subject first and I’m not the right judge.
Here it goes: Archeologist Jack Howard uncovers another golden treasure, overlooked by history. Present-day Nazis rush to stop him. Everything has some redeeming qualities here, so let me share them with you and save you the tedium: Gibbins – who, according to his bio, dives shipwrecks, splits time between continents, gets more chicks than any of us and has a brilliant marketing machine behind him – does his best to bolster his work at the end with historical info. His main character is unbelievable and rather uninteresting.
There’s a major advertising push and probably a movie deal. Wait for it on cable, because it won’t be in the mall long. CRUSADER GOLD is the perfect example of trying to cash in on a trend by being No. 2, but there’s nothing different enough about the story to fill the seats. –Matt Adder
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree, these Da Vinci Code ripoffs (which was not very good anyway)are getting old.
I hear you, Matt. I hate it when a thriller is so predictable it bores me — and they do from time to time. It’s a sad commentary on society that artists (authors and performing artists as well) aren’t pure to their craft any longer and think about ALL the angles they can to eek money out of their craft, even as they create it. I hope you understand what I’m trying to.
I just read a thriller a la James Patterson and Dan Brown that I loved and want to share with you — Prophecy. It has elements of historical fiction, edge-of-your-seat action, and also genetic engineering (of all things). Some of the books a la Da Vinci Code have been great IMHO and this one goes in that group.
Yes, art is subjective, but I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
Cheers,
Linda
wow another plug for prophecy!!! What r u getting paid 2 spam boArds, Linda?
I hate to butt in with a grammatical nitpick, but it’s “could have happened,” not “could of happened.”
You’re right, and that error is one of my pet peeves I usually catch. Thanks for pointing it out!