The Ice Limit

July 3, 2000
The summer-beach reader has few better friends than Preston and Child, who, beginning with Relic (1995), have produced one (generally) smart and suspenseful thriller after another, most recently Thunderhead. Their new novelDwhich, like its predecessors, skirts the edge of science fictionDis their most expertly executed (though not most imaginative) entertainment yet. Its concept is high and simple: a scientific expedition plans to dig out and transport to New York harbor the mother of all meteorites from its resting spot on an icy island offshore Chile. The mission is nearly impossible: not only will the meteorite be the heaviest object ever moved by humanity, but the Chileans, if they learn of the mission, may decimate it in order to keep the meteorite. Six strong if broadly drawn characters propel the premise into action. There's bullheaded billionaire Palmer Lloyd, who funds the expedition, and three (of the many) people he hires to get the rock: world-class meteorite-hunter Sam McFarlane, disgraced for his obsession about possible interstellar meteorites; Captain Britton, disgraced alcoholic skipper hired to ferry the meteorite to the U.S.; and Eli Glinn, cold-blooded mastermind of an engineering firm dedicated to getting incredible jobs doneDthis one at the price of $300 million. There's Commandante Vallenar, a Chilean naval officer exiled to his nation's southern wastes, who will stop at nothing to defend Chile's honor and property. Finally, there's the meteoriteDblood red, impossibly dense, possessed of strange and dangerous properties. Like the premise, the plot is simple, traversing a near-linear narrative that sustains serious tension as the expedition travels to Chile, digs out the meteorite and heads homewardDonly to face both Vallenar and a ferocious storm. What the novel lacks in sophistication, it makes up for in athleticism: this is a big-boned thriller, one that will make a terrific summer movie as well as a memorable hot-day read.

March 1, 2000
Inexplicable things start to happen as scientists try to move a massive meteorite discovered in Chile, and soon their ship is being pushed by a storm toward the "ice limit" of Antarctica. Another Relic?

Copyright 2000 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2000
The summer-beach reader has few better friends than Preston and Child, who, beginning with Relic (1995), have produced one (generally) smart and suspenseful thriller after another, most recently Thunderhead. Their new novel-which, like its predecessors, skirts the edge of science fiction-is their most expertly executed (though not most imaginative) entertainment yet. Its concept is high and simple: a scientific expedition plans to dig out and transport to New York harbor the mother of all meteorites from its resting spot on an icy island offshore Chile. The mission is nearly impossible: not only will the meteorite be the heaviest object ever moved by humanity, but the Chileans, if they learn of the mission, may decimate it in order to keep the meteorite. Six strong if broadly drawn characters propel the premise into action. There's bullheaded billionaire Palmer Lloyd, who funds the expedition, and three (of the many) people he hires to get the rock: world-class meteorite-hunter Sam McFarlane, disgraced for his obsession about possible interstellar meteorites; Captain Britton, disgraced alcoholic skipper hired to ferry the meteorite to the U.S.; and Eli Glinn, cold-blooded mastermind of an engineering firm dedicated to getting incredible jobs done-this one at the price of $300 million. There's Commandante Vallenar, a Chilean naval officer exiled to his nation's southern wastes, who will stop at nothing to defend Chile's honor and property. Finally, there's the meteorite-blood red, impossibly dense, possessed of strange and dangerous properties. Like the premise, the plot is simple, traversing a near-linear narrative that sustains serious tension as the expedition travels to Chile, digs out the meteorite and heads homeward-only to face both Vallenar and a ferocious storm. What the novel lacks in sophistication, it makes up for in athleticism: this is a big-boned thriller, one that will make a terrific summer movie as well as a memorable hot-day read. (July)

Copyright 2000 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2000
From this popular team comes another solid thriller. Billionaire Palmer Lloyd's hobby is buying up rare artifacts; the current object of his desire is the world's largest meteorite, buried on an island off the coast of Chile. Eli Glinn is the head of the high-tech engineering firm Palmer hires to figure out a way to bring the meteorite home to the U.S. Sam McFarlane is the down-and-out meteorite hunter, the expert whose own theory about the origins of the meteorite, if proven to be true, could spell disaster for everyone involved. It is no accident that this fits the description of a big-budget feature film. After all, Preston and Child have a history of writing novels that read like movies in prose form, with exciting stories, plenty of interesting characters (here we also have a boat captain who's a recovering alcoholic), and visually arresting set pieces. Most of the novel's action takes place either on "Rolvaag," a huge tanker rebuilt to carry the enormous meteorite, or on Isla Desolacion, where Palmer's group tries to uncover, and move, the meteorite without losing too many lives in the process; both locations are perfect for the big screen. The characterizations here are rather deeper than those found in most of the team's previous thrillers--the players are more "like people and less like stick figures--but, as always, the action is what keeps readers turning the pages. The authors' fans will appreciate their new novel, as will fans of such writers as Michael Crichton and Clive Cussler. ((Reviewed May 15, 2000))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2000, American Library Association.)

November 1, 2000
YA-Hired to locate a meteorite and transfer it to a billionaire collector's new museum, Sam McFarlane uses high technology and groups of experts to find, dig up, and begin shipping the gigantic rock. However, Commandante Vallenar of the Chilean Navy doesn't want it removed from his country. Action on the tanker reaches an intense strain as the crew and members of the recovery team struggle with both the meteorite and a killer storm, a panteonero, which threatens to overwhelm the ship. Gunfire from Vallenar's ship initiates a life-and-death chase as both vessels sail into the frigid waters off Tierra del Fuego. The meteorite, full of unknown properties and prone to sudden bursts of electrical charges, offers the biggest surprise of all, as the ocean stands ready to claim everyone and everything. This is a tempestuous adventure of high seas, high stakes, and high excitement. As characters enter the story, their personalities expand along with the intricate plot, taking on more intensity and power. The extreme hostility of the environment eventually proves to be the deciding factor. Like Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm (Norton, 1997), this natural thriller is not to be missed.-Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Copyright 2000 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2000
The scene: a ship near Cape Horn off the Chilean coast. The cast: a well-paid but dedicated and courageous staff of technicians, including a female skipper and a scientist each with a questionable past. The problem in this adventure by best-selling coauthors Preston and Child (Riptide): how to transport the biggest meteorite ever to a New York museum without attracting the attention of the Chilean authorities and the press? Add the further complication that the meteorite derives from a strange, unfamiliar element. At one point, the vessel is attacked and trapped by a Chilean ship. As the suspense builds, the various strands of the plot come together. Will the ship survive? What happens to the meteorite if, indeed, it is a meteorite? The book is recommended with one reservation: if you don t enjoy necessary technical passages, you may be bored. On the other hand, if you enjoy Clive Cussler, you ll probably enjoy this novel. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 3/1/00.] Fred M. Gervat, Concordia Coll. Lib., Bronxville, NY

Copyright 2000 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.