 Riptide (1998)
Riptide is a passable thriller by my favorite modern pulp-writing duo, Preston & Child (who also wrote The Relic and its sequel, Reliquary). They're very good at writing a certain type of techno-thriller that combines some element of the supernatural with a lot of quasi-science and characters who speak in paragraphs of easy to understand exposition. I read Riptide right after completing their most recent book, The Cabinet of Curiosities, a far superior read that I should probably be reviewing instead of this, but whereÍs the fun in that?
The book starts when adventurers Cody Allen and Nick Ryder join forces with nerdy computer whiz Murray "Boz" Bozinsky and a cute robot named "The Roboz," to create a detective agency with a twist: they all live on a boat called "The Riptide."
Wait a minute. Wrong Riptide.
This Riptide offers no shiny robots, but lots of filthy pirate skeletons! The story takes its cue from the real-life legend of a pirate's treasure buried on Oak Island, and how centuries of would-be treasure-hunters have been drowned, crushed, and bankrupted by attempts to get at an estimated $2 billion in gold and jewels. The reluctant hero, Malin Hatch, has inherited the fictional Ragged Island and wants nothing to do with it; understandable since it claimed the lives of his brother and father. Into Malin's boring life steps a mysterious captain who promises that with modern technology and millions in equipment, know-how, and personnel, they can quickly break the island's back and share the bounty. What would modern techno-thrillers do without mysterious characters who know everything and have limitless financial resources?
Of course, things quickly go wrong, proving the old saying, "Arrogance = death." Or was it "Silence = death"? "Meat = murder?" "Love = sexy?"
The book offers some action, some suspense, some scientific jargon, some horrible deaths (one poor guy gets slowly crushed between two huge rocks), some laughable romance, generally awful dialogue, and ends with a positive message of "Money = evil."
The most interesting parts are where the treasure hunters work together to solve the mystery of the island, which is basically a very large, very complex, very deadly booby-trap. The least interesting parts are anything involving the characters and their personal lives and motivations. Even leaster are the moments when Malin spouts poetry, a hideous trend I've seen in all kinds of pop culture lately – NO ONE remembers poetry, so everyone please stop thinking it makes your characters seem cultured or intelligent, it just makes them seem all the more fake.
There's no actors in the book, so I can't comment on the performances. However, I kept trying to cast the book, since it was clearly written as bait for Hollywood fatcats. Note to Hollywood: for Malin, get Ben Affleck; for the captain, get Michael Caine. I will look for my "Special Thanks" at the Oscars.
There is no compelling reason to read this book, unless you have very little to do with your time (as with those of us in Ward 6) or are relatively stupid, or if you like stories about people who talk about pirates. I enjoyed the book – it was a quick read – but simply didn't care, and there weren't enough cruel death scenes to justify reading the whole thing.
Review by Crimedog |
