Havana Storm

Pretty standard Dirk Pitt-ing (scuba! explosions! international espionage! big-ass boats! inability to let go of the Cold War!) with the addition of Pitt's two adult children, who sprang, fully grown from Pitt's Zeus-like head a few books ago. <br /><br />Summer, his daughter, is an oceanographer and Dirk Pitt Jr (yes, that does get really confusing) is a marine engineer. Strangely, in this book they do neither of those things, and instead turn into amateur historians who save Mesoamerica, which possibly was unaware it needed saving. <br /><br />So there's the main plot (Dirk and Al fight rogue Cuban anti-ocean terrorists) which unfortunately is just not as interesting as Dirk and Summer Save Mesoamerica. I say unfortunately because the split here is 70% anti-ocean terrorists, 30% DASSM. <br /><br />Standard series characters roll out on their tracks like clockwork for tiny cameos, and after 200 pages each chapter falls into a predictable rhythm: main character, being held hostage, makes heroic effort at escape, and is foiled by villains who might just, one day, some time, I guess, actually shoot them with one of the guns they're waving around.<br /><br />And herein lies the biggest problem I had with the book: out of the four main characters -- Dirk Sr, Dirk Jr, Al Giordino and Summer -- three of the four get to be active agents of their own saving, and one gets saved by the others every. single. time. Now, can you guess who needs saving all the time?<br /><br />Misogyny is old, people, and it chaps my heiny.<br /><br />There's also definitely a creepy I'd-date-her-if-she-wasn't-my-daughter vibe here, and Summer does nothing to help with it:<br /><br /><blockquote>"I saw a bright light," she said in a weak voice [after rescue #7]. "I thought it was an angel calling me, then I realized it was something else."<br /><br />"What's that?" Pitt [Sr.] asked, leaning close.<br /><br />"It was you," she said, reaching up to her father's face and stroking away a tear.</blockquote><br /><br />*HUBLARRRRRRRRRRRRF*<br /><br />(15 pages later Summer starts out on another situation similar to rescue #7 and her father reminds her how he saved her life last time she did that. Dick move, Pitt Sr. Dick move.) <br /><br />Summer Pitt could unfortunately, at all stages of the book, have been replaced by a Sexy Dive Lamp with no noticeable change to the plot. <br /><br />One bright spark is the meaty and crucial role played by St. Julien Perlmutter and his cat, Admiral Raphael Semmes, who are awesome. I vote they get a whole book to themselves next time.<br /><br />I confess, I liked Dirk Pitt (Dirk! Pitt!) better when he was a suave 70s ladies man, turning them all romantically out the door at the end of each book so he could return to Al Giordino's side. This new Dirk-Pitt-as-a-father business just isn't the same. <br />

E mi ritrovo a divorare una nuova avventura di Dirk Pitt, il mio primo protagonista di storie di avventura (come ho già detto nelle altre recensioni, ho tutta la saga completa). Stavolta il Nostro dovrà scongiurare una terribile minaccia all'ecosistema marino causata da certi tipi loschi <br /> che per meri interessi economici (e quando mai) stanno distruggendo i fondali oceanici. Parallelamente i figli di Pitt stanno indagando sul ritrovamento di una pietra azteca che potrebbe rivelare nientemeno che l'ubicazione del mitico tesoro di Montezuma! <br /><br />Devo dire che la nuova gestione di scrittura padre-figlio iniziata col romanzo <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/11696544.Il_tesoro_di_Gengis_Khan__Le_avventure_di_Dirk_Pitt___19_" title="Il tesoro di Gengis Khan (Le avventure di Dirk Pitt, #19) by Clive Cussler" rel="noopener">Il tesoro di Gengis Khan</a> sta funzionando e, nonostante ormai il povero Clive è deceduto nel febbraio del 2020, mi restano ancora due romanzi di Dirk Pitt da divorare. Certo, sapere che il mitico Clive non ci sarà più in futuro automaticamente porrà fine alle avventure del suo alter ego Dirk Pitt, a meno che suo figlio non decida ugualmente di proseguire la scrittura della serie. Vivendo lo vedremo!

I have to disagree with any reviewer that says this is another great book by Clive Cussler, who has become as formulaic as anyone writing today. The basic plot has rogue forces in the Cuban government hoping to wrest control of Cuba from Raul Castro<input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="43f33885-7a26-4d27-8181-78c7c8d246c1" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="43f33885-7a26-4d27-8181-78c7c8d246c1">, using an arms deal for uranium with the North Koreans as currency. The uranium is being</label> mined off the ocean floor, with potentially catastrophic environmental consequences. Al Giordino and Dirk Pitt head off to investigate while the Pitt twins are seeking archaeological relics. As always, everyone is kidnapped at some point and then spend much of the book rescuing each other and solving the parallel mysteries.<br />

For years my father and brother have been telling me to try Clive Cussler novels. My response has always been "that's not my type of book." Well, recently I've decided to branch out from what I normally read and I decided to give this a shot. I'm glad I did.<br /><br />As a first time reader to the series, it was obvious to me that all the characters already had a backstory, probably revealed in earlier novels. It did make me wonder things such as why Pitt didn't meet his children until they were older and what other types of adventures Al and Pitt went on together, since they were clearly close. It didn't take away from the story though, so if you're a first time reader to the series, it can be read as a standalone. I will consider going back and reading the previous novels to fill in the backstories I'm missing.<br /><br />The novel itself was fast paced and filled with action. Pitt's children, Dirk and Summer, are searching for Aztec treasure. Their search ends up colliding with Pitt's investigation in what's going on off the shores of Cuba, and what they uncover ends up engaging them in a battle to save to their lives.<br /><br />I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to old Cussler fans and to those, like me, who are willing to try something new for a change.<br /><br />**A free copy was provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review**

Another very entertaining and enjoyable read in the Dirk Pitt series! Clive Cussler and his son Dirk have done a great job in keeping this franchise up to date with current events that are linked with ancient history. If you have never read any Dirk Pitt novels, start with PACIFIC VORTEX which is #1 in this 23 book series. If have read some of them, I feel you will have enough back story to enjoy this book as much as I did!!

An Aztec treasure that influences the history between the United States and Cuba plus adding into the narrative a Cuban underwater mining operation that is causing ecological damage that is linked to political shenanigans of the island nation’s leadership. <i>Havana Storm</i> is the twenty-third book in Clive Cussler’s <i>Dirk Pitt</i> series and the sixth cowritten by his son Dirk.<br /><br />A standard novel for the series with a fun narrative that has been the hallmark of the younger Cussler’s time writing with his father. As with the last two novels Clive goes back to the well with the elder Dirk being the hero and damsel-in-distress savior, this time with his daughter Summer being said damsel multiple times though on one occasion she is more active in saving herself. A nice change of pattern was the inclusion of a wealthy industrialist that isn’t a massive dirt bag but a nice human being. Unlike the hard retcon of <i>Trojan Odyssey</i> that has occurred over the past few books, this book had a soft retcon of some elements of <i>Cyclops</i> though the ones left in should have resulted in a few different narrative choices especially concerning the elder Pitt.<br /><br /><i>Havana Storm</i> continues the fun narratives that have marked the series since Dirk Cussler has joined his father in writing, however Clive’s desire to keep on fall back on tropes continues to be a downside that has hamstrung these last few books.

First time read from this author for me, from the plot description it looked to be a promising action adventure set in the Caribbean. It almost, almost made my top list, but there was some lacking in the actual action, the plot promised. <br /><br />The read tells of Dirk Pitt , while investigating a toxic outbreak in the Caribbean Sea that may ultimately threaten the United States , Dirk becomes involved in something more dangerous, a post - Castro power struggle for control of Cuba. Meanwhile his children are on a treasure seeking adventure of their own, they are chasing an Aztec stone that may reveal the whereabouts of a vast historical Aztec treasure. Their adventure leads them to Cuba, and squarely in harm's way. Father, son and daughter have faced some desperate adventures before but this time it seems to be dire. <br /><br />As I said the action was there but did not quite hit the BOOM mark I am use to finding in action adventure , treasure seeking reads. It peek through and before it actually takes full growth it fades out and the next part of the story kind of just drag onward to the next almost action part. <br /><br />Aside from the lack of action the book is fascinating , it's a good typical plot that certainly is entertaining , I mean it's not everyday you get to read about a missing stone that holds the clue to a treasure unlike ever seen before, oh okay maybe the treasure of King Tut comes close, but this books describes the treasure , or rather the author tries to make it sound far greater than the treasure of King Tut. <br /><br />And then there is the mystery of the toxic waters, now that little getting all scientific part was fun to read! I recommend this read for fans looking for some low key action adventure and for those who love to solve a mystery. <br /><br />4.5 star review <br /><br />" The Caribbean is meant to be magical , but what really lies beneath it's waters?"<br /><br />Copy provided by Penguin Random House in exchange for a honest review <br />

Sono un’appassionata di Clive Cussler e della sua serie su Dirk Pitt da anni, da quando mia madre mi ha messo un volume in mano e io l’ho guardata scettica, per poi finire a leggere tutti quelli che aveva in poco tempo e comprarmi man mano quelli che mancavano.<br />Gli ultimi volumi, quelli scritti con il figlio, per intenderci, però non mi hanno mai entusiasmato, li ho sempre trovati abbastanza noiosi. Ecco, questo libro è stato invece una gran bella eccezione ed è stato in grado di ricordarmi i vecchi romanzi del buon Cussler.<br />L’ho trovato infatti molto avventuroso, dalla prima all’ultima pagina, e nessuna delle tante piccole avventure e scoperte che lo compongono mi ha annoiato e mi ha fatto venire voglia di saltarla e di andare oltre.<br /><br />Come sempre il personaggio di Dirk Pitt mi è piaciuto tantissimo: è stato il primo personaggio letterario di cui mi sia mai innamorata e ancora adesso subisco il suo fascino appena inizio un romanzo di questa serie, non importa che cosa faccia durante il libro. Assieme a lui c’è, come sempre, il suo fidato amico Al Giordino, personaggio leale e divertente che ho adorato davvero tanto.<br />Per quel che riguarda i due figli di Pitt, invece, devo dire che sono stati i personaggi che più mi hanno fatto storcere il naso dell’intero libro. Dirk è la brutta copia di suo padre: sembra fatto con lo stampino, si comporta e pensa nello stesso modo, ma allo stesso tempo sembra meno sicuro di quello che sta facendo, dimostrando di essere solo una copia sbiadita dell’originale.<br />La figlia, Summer, invece è una ragazza che cerca di essere forte, ma in realtà poi si comporta come una semplice donzella da salvare, risultando abbastanza inutile e molto fastidiosa.<br /><br />Nel complesso un libro che mi è piaciuto molto. Una storia in grado di catturare l'attenzione del lettore, che si ritrova a leggere il romanzo tutto d'un fiato.

First time I read a non-Fargo Cussler book. As Mac says: Cussler aaaaalways deliver

Twenty-third in the Dirk Pitt action thriller series and revolving around Dirk and his children and their fascination with under the seas. This story is set in the Caribbean around Cuba and Jamaica and begins in 1898 before slipping into 2016.<br /><br /><b>My Take</b><br />At last. The truth behind the sinking of the U.S.S. <em>Maine</em>, *grin* <em>I do enjoy it when a writer incorporates a bit of history into his or her story.</em><br /><br />I also enjoy learning, and the Cusslers incorporate Mexico's past history from the Nahuatl (Aztecs) to Mexico City's evolution. Then they include an inspiration from Indiana Jones with what happened to the secret of the treasure. And it's a reason that makes me shake my head with a <em>that figures</em>. Very Indiana Jones-ish…sigh…<br /><br />It's a story of good vs evil, including all the subplots, with a regard for history that I love. Point-of-view-wise, <em>Havana Storm</em> uses third-person omniscient with a few scenes of the author surrogate in Cussler's usual insertion of himself as an unexpected bit of aid.<br /><br />It's also rather annoying that Cussler continues to info dump, although it's not as bad as some of the stories. I'm also curious as to why the crews of NUMA vessels don't receive defense training. Considering how often they get boarded or overrun, I'd think they'd be more concerned about protection.<br /><br />That said, it's predictable and exciting, thrilling, a ride with more ups and downs than you can imagine…or imagine surviving, lol.<br /><br /><b>The Story</b><br />Greed. Greed for money. Greed for power is threatening the environmental health of the Caribbean and the Eastern Seaboard, a disaster that piques NUMA's attention and concern.<br /><br />Besides the toxic outbreak near Jamaica, Dirk, Jr., and Summer Pitt have fallen into their own adventure, chasing down an Aztec stone with clues to the location of a treasure, one that ties into the <em>Maine</em> blowing up, setting off the Spanish-American War.<br /><br />An adventure that will bring all three Pitts to Cuba with little hope of survival.<br /><br /><b>The Characters</b><br /><strong>Dirk Pitt, Sr.</strong>, is the current head of NUMA. <strong>Loren</strong> is his wife and a congresswoman from Colorado. She serves on the House Subcommittee on the Environment. <strong>Al Giordino</strong> is his best friend since childhood and currently in charge of the Underwater Technology division. He's currently testing the <strong>Creepy Crawler</strong>, a mechanical crab. <strong>Summer</strong>, an oceanographer, and <strong>Dirk Pitt, Jr.</strong>, a marine engineer, are twins and Dirk's children.<br /><br /><em> <b>NUMA is…</b> </em><br />…the National Underwater and Marine Agency, a federal organization concerned with caring for the seas that employs oceanographers, marine biologists, and geologists. Its former director is now the Vice-President of the United States, <strong>Admiral James Sandecker</strong>. <strong>Rudi Gunn</strong> is an ex-Navy commander who is the current deputy director. <strong>Hiram Yaeger</strong> is head of computer resources. <strong>Dr. McCammon</strong> is a geologist.<br /><br /><em>The R/V</em> Sargasso Sea <em>is…</em><br />…a NUMA research vessel captained by <strong>Malcomb Smith</strong>. <strong>Barnes</strong> is the first officer; <strong>Dyer</strong> was the assistant engineer. <strong>Dr. Kamala Bhatt</strong> is the marine biologist. The <em> <strong>Starfish</strong> </em> is a submersible. <strong>Ross</strong> is one of the helmsmen.<br /><br /><em>The</em> Caroline <em>is…</em><br />…a NUMA ship captained by <strong>Bill Stenseth</strong>. It's boarded by Rudi with his friends, <strong>Jack Dahlgren</strong> and <strong>Pierce Russell</strong>. The <em> <strong>Bullet</strong> </em> is a submersible she carries.<br /><br /><strong>St. Julien Perlmutter</strong> is a world-renowned maritime historian and gourmet. <strong>Admiral Raphael Semmes</strong> is his cat. <strong>Martha</strong> is the chief military records archivist at the National Archives.<br /><br /><strong>Captain Haasis</strong> is in command of the U.S. submarine, <em>Asheville</em>, with orders to sink a ship. <strong>Parker</strong> is the officer of the deck. The <em> <strong>Oregon</strong> </em> just happens to be on hand. <strong>Admiral Stewart</strong> is a Joint Task Force Commander. <strong>Commander Harold Joyce</strong> is the base historian.<br /><br /><b> <em>The Caribbean, 2016</em> </b><br /><em>Mexico</em><br /><strong>Dr. Eduardo Madero</strong> is an anthropology professor from the University of Veracruz. <strong>Professor Miguel Torres</strong> is an expert in Nahuatl.<br /><br /><em>Cuba</em><br />They've just had <strong>Fidel "El Caballo" Castro Ruz</strong>'s funeral. His brother, <strong>Raúl Castro</strong>, has been president of Cuba since 2008. <strong>Alphonse Ortiz</strong> is a Cuban vice-president on the Council of State. <strong>Roberto</strong> is his driver. <strong>Escobar</strong> is the Agriculture Minister. <strong>Minister Ruiz</strong> serves as foreign minister.<br /><br /><strong>General Alberto Gutier</strong>, Minister of the Interior, has aspirations to be president. <strong>Commandante Juan Díaz</strong> is his brother interested in archeology and with the Cuban Interior Ministry.<br /><br /><strong>Maria</strong>, an artist who simply stopped, and <strong>Salvador Fariñas</strong> have a strong sense of what's right. <strong>Jorge Castaneda</strong> is a murderer serving time in Boniato Prison.<br /><br /><em>Bruin Mining and Exploration is…</em><br />…an ecologically responsible mining company. Supposedly. The company belongs to <strong>Mark Ramsey</strong>, a wealthy Canadian industrialist. He also likes to race his 1928 Bugatti. His yacht is the <em>Gold Digger</em>.<br /><br />The <em> <strong>Alta</strong> </em> is a Norwegian drill ship owned by Bruin Mining and Exploration, exploring for oil and captained by <strong>Kevin Knight</strong>. <strong>Gordon</strong> is his executive officer. <strong>Warren "Pops" Fletcher</strong> and <strong>Will "Brownie" Brown</strong> are the divers; <strong>Tank</strong> is the bellman in the mining bell.<br /><br />The <em> <strong>Sea Raker</strong> </em> is an undersea mining ship that belongs to Bruin. <strong>Commander Calzado</strong> is a Cuban army officer aboard the ship. <strong>Lieutenant Silvio Molina</strong> is in charge of the docks.<br /><br /><em>Jamaica</em><br /><strong>Uncle Desmond</strong> and his nephew are out on their fishing boat, the <em>Javina</em>. <strong>Samuel</strong> is a fisherman with a mission. <strong>Clive</strong>, a.k.a., "Pops", is both curator of the Green Stone Museum and Bar and its bartender. <strong>Mabel's</strong> serves good seafood.<br /><br /><strong>James Maguire</strong>, ex-Marine Corps sniper and CIA field operative, and <strong>Marty Gomez</strong>, an ex-SEAL, are mercenaries aboard the <em>Surprise</em>.<br /><br /><em> <b>Caribbean, 1898</b> </em><br /><strong>Dr. Ellsworth Boyd</strong> is with Yale University. <strong>Roy Burns</strong> is a colleague and friend. <strong>Martin</strong> was the lead diver.<br /><br /><strong>Weylerites</strong> are an extremist faction loyal to the Spanish governor, <strong>Valeriano Weyler</strong>.<br /><br />The <strong>U.S.S. <em>Maine</em></strong> is a haven in Havana. <strong>Lieutenant Holman</strong>. <strong>Charles Sigsbee</strong> is the captain. <strong>General Fitzhugh Lee</strong> is the consul general of Cuba. <strong>Dr. Ralph Bennett</strong> is with the U.S. Naval Hospital in Brooklyn and performed the autopsy.<br /><br /><strong>Dr. Julio Rodriguez</strong> is a Spanish archeologist without morals who escaped on the <em>San Antonio</em>.<br /><br /><strong>Eagle Warriors</strong>, <em>cu&amp;amacr;uhtmeh</em>, were an elite group of skilled veteran soldiers as were the <strong>Jaugar Warriors</strong>. <strong>Huapalcalco</strong> was an important Toltec city. <strong>Tenochtitlan</strong>, which is now the heart of Mexico City, was besieged by Cortés. <strong>Huitzilopochtli</strong> is an ancestral deity, war god, and the Aztec's founding father. <strong>Quetzalcoatl</strong> is a Toltec leader who lived centuries earlier. <strong>Motecuhzoma</strong>, a.k.a., Montezuma or Moctezuma, led the Aztecs when the Spaniards arrived.<br /><br /><b>The Cover and Title</b><br />The cover is a detailed gradient of deep blue up through the palest of blues at the top with an orange explosion blazing up at the stern of the foremost ship with another ship in the background of the heaving seas. In the background is a profile of Havana. The primary author's name is in an embossed, gold-outlined navy with the secondary author's name in white below it. The title is in an embossed, white-outlined gold at the bottom with the series information in white beneath it.<br /><br />The title is, at the core, a <em>Havana Storm</em> that revolves around Cuban politics.