The Solomon Curse

July 27, 2015
Bestseller Cussler’s perfunctory seventh Sam and Remi Fargo adventure (after 2014’s The Eye of Heaven), his second with coauthor Blake, takes the husband-wife treasure hunters to Guadalcanal, where in 1170 C.E. a royal residence built on islets in the shallows of a bay and laden with gold plunged beneath the water during a tsunami. Sam and Remi’s Russian friend, Leonid Vasyev, have enlisted the Fargos to help him explore man-made structures on the sea bottom off the island, which is afflicted by some sort of curse. The Fargos go about their usual business of snooping around and diving. They also put up with being shot at, run off the road, and tortured—just another day at the office, or at least that’s the way it reads. The snappy patter seems forced, and the exotic location is neither very exotic nor appealing. A number of side plots distract from the main action. Perhaps Cussler needs a new hand at the helm to get the series back on course. Agent: Peter Lampack, Peter Lampack Agency.

July 1, 2015
"There was no such thing as an honest fortune," Sam and Remi Fargo are reminded as they undertake another treasure-hunting adventure in Cussler's (The Eye of Heaven, 2014, etc.) latest. The Fargos, multimillionaires-turned-treasure hunters blessed with Tracy-and-Hepburn dialogue, have flown to Guadalcanal at the behest of Leonid Vasyev, a Russian who explores lost civilizations. He's found something odd beneath a forgotten bay. The Fargos were only supposed to be funding Vasyev, but soon they're caught up in the mysteries he's uncovered. To their surprise, they find themselves coping with local superstitions and civil unrest. And crocodiles. When one of Vasyev's native workers gets bitten, the Fargos meet a local medico, Dr. Vanya, who later introduces them to Orwen Manchester, a member of Parliament. With the help of Manchester's contacts and of Selma, a genius researcher on the satellite phone, the Fargos learn Vasyev has found the Guadalcanal palace of King Loc, 12-century ruler of the entire Solomon Island group. The Fargos tap their pocketbook to finance Vasyev a new research ship, but meanwhile they gadabout Guadalcanal, being run off the road, shot at, getting caught in riots, and discovering caves holding countless skeletons, some too recent to be POWs killed by Imperial Japan's notorious medical experimentation. They also uncover evidence the Japanese looted gold from King Loc's submerged palace, but the real villain may be linked to pharmaceutical companies' refusing to be "hamstrung by arcane rules and regulations." Scenes, settings, and action are graphic-novel worthy, from sweat-stained jungle treks to bad-guy confrontations, all laced with historical factoids and a soupcon of fantasy for across-the-board appeal. Cussler and Company continue the winning formula, and this jungle episode, featuring exotic locales and an interesting back story, will satisfy the cravings of every fan.

COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

August 1, 2015
In the latest Fargo adventure, the husband-and-wife team of explorers, Sam and Remi Fargo, are in the Solomon Islands, where, according to legend, there lies hidden a vast treasure that once belonged to the fabled King Solomon. Legend also has it that the place is cursed and that those who seek the treasure vanish forever. Like previous entries in this series, the book is long on action and intrigue and rather shorter on character development: Sam and Remi never quite come off sounding like real people, and the dialogue is sometimes stilted, as though it's there purely to advance the plot. Still, there's plenty of exciting goings-on here, and Cussler and Blake effectively blend present-day mystery and historical legend. For devoted Cussler fans, of whom there are very, very many.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2015

Sam and Remi Fargo (The Eye of Heaven) are off to find adventure again, this time in the Solomon Islands. A colleague invites them to Guadalcanal to explore an archaeological site, which appears to be an ancient structure sunken in a lagoon. What's puzzling is that the natives are clueless about its history or what it could be; instead, they believe the area is cursed and refuse to work there. The intrepid duo soon find far more mysteries and trouble than they do treasure or paradise. Missing children, secret Japanese medical experiments during the war, social unrest, rioting and looting, along with a couple of assassinations are thrown into the mix. The Fargos face down all sorts of dangers with the help of some friends. VERDICT Cussler and Blake have given us another riveting thriller. Sam and Remi are fearless, honest, curious, and resourceful in all situations. Fasten your seat belt for this wonderful read! [See Prepub Alert, 3/16/15.]--Cynde Suite, Bartow Cty. Lib. Syst., Adairsville, GA

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2015

Source of a great king's sunken treasures or a site of terrible atrocities, perpetrated by cannibal giants? That's what husband-and-wife treasure hunters Sam and Remi Fargo have heard about the bay off the Guadalcanal coast in the Solomon Islands. Their investigations lead them unexpectedly from the Solomons to Australia to Japan--and a very surprising find. Another Fargo adventure, after The Eye of Heaven.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.