A review by msand3
Binary by Michael Crichton, John Lange
3.0
2.5 stars. My first experience reading Crichton’s early John Lange work was underwheming. The characters were stock, with zero development beyond a vague, one sentence description of their physical features and their classically Anglo-sounding names. The names of the two main characters -- Graves and Phelps -- most certainly had to be a reference to the (then) contemporary television series Mission Impossible: Peter Graves as Jim Phelps. We get a psychological profile of Graves (an important element in the plot), but no further attempt to integrate his life or past/personal experiences into the narrative.
This was meant to be a quick, breezy thriller. And there’s nothing wrong with that kind of novel. But if that’s the aim, then it needs to be gripping to make up for the lack of any other type of character/setting/subplot development. The first half of Binary just doesn’t deliver. Perhaps the chapters discussing computers and early techno-jargon may have been more interesting to readers in the early-70s, but in 2019 it feels dated and dull. The first third of the novel (maybe more) is devoted to the “set-up” -- much like the early station-briefing scenes of a police procedural that should really only take a short time to unfold. The middle section is largely predictable. Only in the final couple chapters does Lange deliver action, some surprises, and a bit of suspense, although not without some impossible-to-believe moments and twists.
In short, it wasn’t bad for a quick, entertaining read, but nothing very memorable. There are certainly better places to start with Crichton (I haven’t read any more of his Lange novels, so I can’t compare this one to others), and there are also better spy/terrorist novels of the era to consider before this one, including the early work of Frederick Forsyth (especially [b:The Day of the Jackal|540020|The Day of the Jackal|Frederick Forsyth|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1405364996s/540020.jpg|1792180], John le Carré, Thomas Harris’ [b:Black Sunday|32417|Black Sunday|Thomas Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442372592s/32417.jpg|1582603], or even [b:the pulp procedurals of Ed McBain|647594|Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here! (87th Precinct, #25)|Ed McBain|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1176728364s/647594.jpg|633738].
This was meant to be a quick, breezy thriller. And there’s nothing wrong with that kind of novel. But if that’s the aim, then it needs to be gripping to make up for the lack of any other type of character/setting/subplot development. The first half of Binary just doesn’t deliver. Perhaps the chapters discussing computers and early techno-jargon may have been more interesting to readers in the early-70s, but in 2019 it feels dated and dull. The first third of the novel (maybe more) is devoted to the “set-up” -- much like the early station-briefing scenes of a police procedural that should really only take a short time to unfold. The middle section is largely predictable. Only in the final couple chapters does Lange deliver action, some surprises, and a bit of suspense, although not without some impossible-to-believe moments and twists.
In short, it wasn’t bad for a quick, entertaining read, but nothing very memorable. There are certainly better places to start with Crichton (I haven’t read any more of his Lange novels, so I can’t compare this one to others), and there are also better spy/terrorist novels of the era to consider before this one, including the early work of Frederick Forsyth (especially [b:The Day of the Jackal|540020|The Day of the Jackal|Frederick Forsyth|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1405364996s/540020.jpg|1792180], John le Carré, Thomas Harris’ [b:Black Sunday|32417|Black Sunday|Thomas Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442372592s/32417.jpg|1582603], or even [b:the pulp procedurals of Ed McBain|647594|Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here! (87th Precinct, #25)|Ed McBain|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1176728364s/647594.jpg|633738].