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A review by brettt
The Lightning Stones by Jack Du Brul
4.0
His tour with Clive Cussler's "Oregon Files" done, Jack Du Brul returns to his own series character: geologist, adventurer and do-gooder Philip Mercer, in The Lightning Stones.
Mercer's old mentor and father substitute following the death of his parents has been murdered, and he wants to know why. When he digs into the old man's research, he finds clues to a strange mineral that draws lightning during storms. A multimillionaire invested heavily in clean energy has found a use for it that will help make him rich -- if it doesn't destroy the earth's weather first. Mercer will have to stay ahead of the ruthless profiteer's schemes and solve a decades-old mystery to avenge his friend's death and save the world.
The "Oregon Files" weren't substantially different from Du Brul's regular gig in style and tone. Mercer is tough, dogged, good in a fight and smart enough to figure out what's going on around him. He never gives in, never quits and never shies away from violence if that's what the situation requires. Du Brul is still gifted at action sequences, managing to make plausible an outrageous river ride in a flooded house torn loose from its foundations.
He obviously wants his characters to have more depth than a lot of thrillers do and succeeds at some level, even though a good deal of that depth comes from direct exposition rather than being built into the narrative. Either the limitations of the genre or of Du Brul's own narrative skill keep him from being able to completely hide the wizard behind the curtain.
The Mercer books don't usually rely as much on scientific gadgetary whiz-bang as did the "Oregon Files" but have plenty of science-y goodness to entertain the techno-thriller fan. If they don't hit quite as high as their author aims, they still manage to rise above the herd and aiming high doesn't seem like a bad way to write a book.
Original available here.
Mercer's old mentor and father substitute following the death of his parents has been murdered, and he wants to know why. When he digs into the old man's research, he finds clues to a strange mineral that draws lightning during storms. A multimillionaire invested heavily in clean energy has found a use for it that will help make him rich -- if it doesn't destroy the earth's weather first. Mercer will have to stay ahead of the ruthless profiteer's schemes and solve a decades-old mystery to avenge his friend's death and save the world.
The "Oregon Files" weren't substantially different from Du Brul's regular gig in style and tone. Mercer is tough, dogged, good in a fight and smart enough to figure out what's going on around him. He never gives in, never quits and never shies away from violence if that's what the situation requires. Du Brul is still gifted at action sequences, managing to make plausible an outrageous river ride in a flooded house torn loose from its foundations.
He obviously wants his characters to have more depth than a lot of thrillers do and succeeds at some level, even though a good deal of that depth comes from direct exposition rather than being built into the narrative. Either the limitations of the genre or of Du Brul's own narrative skill keep him from being able to completely hide the wizard behind the curtain.
The Mercer books don't usually rely as much on scientific gadgetary whiz-bang as did the "Oregon Files" but have plenty of science-y goodness to entertain the techno-thriller fan. If they don't hit quite as high as their author aims, they still manage to rise above the herd and aiming high doesn't seem like a bad way to write a book.
Original available here.