Clive Cussler’s ‘Piranha’ Keeps Readers Holding On for the Ride of Their Lives [REVIEW]

Danger is the name of the game in Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison’s Piranha.
(Photo courtesy G.P. Putnam’s Sons)

In Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison’s Piranha, the crew of the Oregon is tasked with stopping a madman from attacking America’s vice president and devastating the world in the process. But will the crew’s quick thinking be enough to stop this new villain dead in his tracks? 

G.P. Putnam’s Sons

Readers will be fascinated by this latest chapter in the Oregon Files as the ship’s crew works to stop “The Doctor,” a traitorous American weapons designer who wants absolute power over the entire world.

Like most readers of adventure fiction, I enjoy learning about new tech, and I wasn’t disappointed here. I am thoroughly impressed by the camouflage that makes the Oregon invisible to any port in the world and the many gadgets used to outfox the villainous mastermind behind the mayhem.

I also loved the interesting, quirky cast of this book. As one of Clive Cussler’s most avid fans, I didn’t think I’d ever love any character more than I do Dirk Pitt. However, I have been wonderfully surprised in Piranha. First there is Juan Cabrillo, known as the Chairman by most of his team. He’s smart and dominant, and everything a hero should be, and the Doctor is a great adversary, one that you will love to hate by the end of this book.

Cussler and Boyd also do well crafting beautifully detailed scenes and costumes that produce a very visual experience for the reader, such as in this excerpt where the Chairman opens a hidden passage.

“Cabrillo spun the handles on the faucet of the nonworking sink in a specific pattern. With a sharp click, the back wall opened wide, revealing a hallway that would have been at home on the finest cruise ship. Recessed lighting glowed softly above the mahogany walls and sumptuous carpeting, a far cry from the rust and grime the harbormaster had seen. He walked through the opening and down the corridor toward his cabin.”

Most thriller writers plunge readers into political intrigue and power struggles, but with Piranha, Cussler and Morrison have raised the bar and taken us on a ride that you won’t want to end. Packed full of twists and turns, impossible situations, unforgettable heroes and dastardly villains, this is one book that takes off like a rocket and never stops until the last page is turned.

Clive Cussler
(Photo by PhotosByLeanna)

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Clive Cussler is the New York Times bestselling author of Piranha, The Assassin, The Solomon Curse, The Pharaoh’s Secret, and Havana Storm. The majority of his adventure novels are part of multi-book series, including the Dirk Pitt Adventures, the NUMA Files, the Oregon Files, the Isaac Bell Detective Series, and the Fargo Adventures. He has also written non-fiction titles and children’s books.

He began writing in 1965 and his first book, The Mediterranean Caper, featuring Dirk Pitt was published in 1973. His first non-fiction work, The Sea Hunters, was released in 1996 and earned him a Doctor of Letters degree in 1997 from Maritime College at the State University of New York.

Clive is the founder of the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA), a non-profit organization dedicated to American maritime and naval history. He is also a fellow in both the Explorers Club of New York and the Royal Geographic Society in London.

A California native, Cussler now divides his time between the Colorado mountains and the Arizona desert. Visit his home on the Web at Clive-Cussler-Books.com, like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

Boyd Morrison

Boyd Morrison is the co-author of Piranha, the 10th book in Clive Cussler’s Oregon Files. He is also the author of the Tyler Locke Adventures and two standalone thrillers, Rogue Wave and The Catalyst. 

But Boyd is much more than just a writer. With a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Rice University and a PhD in industrial engineering from Virginia Tech, he has also worked at Lockheed where he spent a couple years at NASA, earned 11 US patents at RCA and played video games professionally for Microsoft.

He’s also a professional actor and has appeared in commercials, films and stage plays such as Noises Off, Barefoot in the Park, and The Importance of Being Earnest. He also became a Jeopardy! Champion in 2003. When he’s not on writing or acting, you can find him white water rafting, skiing, scuba diving or bungee jumping.

Morrison currently lives in Seattle with his wife, a physician at the University of Washington. Visit his home on the Web at BoydMorrison.com, like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

PIRANHA
By Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison
432 pgs. G.P. Putnam’s Sons.$28.95.