Can action-adventure novels deliver too much action, too much shooting and too many plot twists? Look to Australian author Matthew Reilly for clues. His Ice Station (1998, Pan Macmillan Australia, 689 pages) seems to have more gunshots than words.
From cover to cover, one perilous situation follows another. When scientists make an astonishing discovery, something metallic, mysterious and maybe alien, deep in the Antarctic ice, Lieutenant Shane “Scarecrow” Scofield and a team of U.S. Marines must protect the site. Elite military forces from rival countries receive similar assignments.
By appearing on the New York Times Bestseller list, Ice Station gave Reilly an instant reputation and a position on the world’s literary stage. Born in 1974, the youthful-looking author studied law at the University of New South Wales before writing most of his screenplays, magazine articles and novels. Among his other titles are: Contest (1996), Temple (1999), Area 7 (2001), Scarecrow (2003), Hover Car Racer (2004) and Seven Deadly Wonders (2006). So far, he’s sold more than two million copies.
With Ice Station’s many hailstorms of bullets, it’s amazing and probably unrealistic that anyone remains standing by the end. The shoot-em-up aspect resembles a video game.
Non-stop violence, danger and intrigue may numb most readers, those needing to pause and catch their breath. Ultimately, Ice Station has too much climax, not enough foreplay.
Approval rating: 62 per cent.
For more information: www.matthewreilly.com
(August 26, 2007)
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