Raise the Titanic! - Clive Cussler (Audiobook)

Audiobook Reader:  Larry A. McKeever

Books on Tape, 1991

Originally published by Viking Press, 1976

Listened to April 2012, at age 34

First time listened to

This is the fourth book in the “Dirk Pitt” series of novels.  I know that later books are better, so I wouldn't bother starting here.

Publisher’s summary via Books on Tape:

The Sicilian Project is the defense plan of the decade. It aims to create a network that frees us from foreign attack. But there's a catch. The plan requires byzanium, an extremely rare element, and the only byzanium in the world lies in the hold of the Titanic, 12,000 feet under the North Atlantic. The solution: Raise the Titanic!

The Russians, however, fearing for their own national security if the Sicilian Project succeeds, block the mission at every turn. But Dirk Pitt, jack-of-all-trades and master of most, has other ideas. He swears that whatever it takes, whatever the odds, he will raise the Titanic before it's too late. 

My reactions (no spoilers) after the break:

Overall:

I listened to this book over quite a long time in short little snatches here and there.  That didn't help it, but I don’t think it was that good to start with.   Since I don’t have a clear feel for the whole of the book, I’m going to do this one in point form:

·       His female characters are starting to have some agency, but they are still terribly unrealistic in terms of dialogue and motivation.

·       The book was split into two parts – one spy story revolving around unobtainium byzanium that really stretched my incredulity past the breaking point, and the other an interesting hypothesis on how to get the Titanic off the floor of the ocean.  Neither story was particularly thrilling, and combining them didn't make it better.

·       There were a lot of similarities to Space (Michner) in that the characters really didn't matter much, and the events took over.

·       The supporting cast was weak.  Other than the recurring characters, I didn't care much for anyone.

·       It just so happened that I listened to this book over the centennial of the sinking of the Titanic.  It was all over the news.  Odd coincidence.

·       I had to keep reminding myself that this book was written well before the Ballard expedition to find the Titanic – so many things turned out to be wrong.  That’s not the fault of the author, but I think it’d have been a different thing to read the book before the Ballard expedition, James Cameron’s Titanic movie, the Titanic exhibit at the Royal Alberta Museum, etc., etc.

·       I really need to find these stories read by a different reader.  The NPR drone just doesn't work for these stories.  It’s easy to understand, but there needs to be pacing.  The bit that stuck out for me was “And … I’m… going… to … say… this … as… nicely… as… I… can…, but… you… can… go… f**k… yourself.”  This needs a bit of anger in the voice, and to be read a bit faster than the descriptive text.  It was throughout the whole book, too, not just in a few places.

Rating: 2

Other Opinions:

Audiobook Heaven

The only audiobook review I could find.  He didn't like the narrator, either.

I didn't find any decent reviews of just the written book, either.  If you find one, let me know!