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Loading... Pirate Latitudes (2009)by Michael Crichton
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Pirates Nothing to see here. Move along. This isn't the pirate book you're looking for. You want action. You want colorful characters. You want thrills and suspense. That's all stuff that Michael Crichton can provide. We've read it and seen it before, in The Andromeda Strain, Jurassic Park, ER, and others. But this book doesn't deliver the same goods. Instead, we have a bare-bones plot filled with stereotyped characters and pedestrian writing. The entire time I read it, I kept wondering when the wonder would kick in and it never did. I'm convinced that Mr. Crichton never intended for this version to be published and would be sadly disappointed that it was (or as murph wrote on his behalf, "If only I'd have encrypted my hard drive...."). Well researched, but woefully under-executed, you're better off watching Pirates of the Caribbean for the 14th time or reading the non-fiction [b:The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down|442239|The Republic of Pirates Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down|Colin Woodard|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174806634s/442239.jpg|2082467].
Not surprisingly, Crichton’s book is at least halfway to being a film: indeed, it is more interesting to read as an extended film treatment than as a book in its own right. It is in effect the "novelization" of an (as yet) unmade film, leaving language as the temporary incarnation of a work intended for the eye rather than the page. Crichton’s devoted readers knew how taut and exciting his books could be and how much fascinating minutiae he could deliver. They won’t mistake “Pirate Latitudes” for one of his best. Its posthumous publication is bittersweet, and no amount of “Smart there with the jib!” talk can disguise that. The Crichton reputation and legacy are based on works far heartier than this. It may make a dandy movie but, as a novel, it's forgettable, and then some. When it comes to sharp, slick techno-thrillers that you can polish off on a flight to Chicago, there's never been anybody better. But a hackneyed historical novel filled with bosomy maidens and blustery old navy dialogue (''Mizzen top blown!'') is not what Crichton should be remembered for. This is one chestful of doubloons that should have been left hidden in the sand. Distinctions
The Caribbean, 1665. Pirate captain Charles Hunter, with backing from a powerful ally, assembles a crew of ruffians to take the Spanish galleon, "El Trinidad," guarded by the bloodthirsty Cazalla, a favorite commander of the Spanish king himself. No library descriptions found.
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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