... Its not really my usual type of book anything along the ‘Jaws’ theme really puts me off, but once I had started reading it (last night) I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough until I had finished it (early hours of this morning)!
The story is about Megalodons, ancestors ... Read review
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A review by LICARUS on Meg - Steve Alten October 8th, 2001
Author's product rating:
Would you read it again?
Story
Characters
Readability
How does it compare to other works by the same author?
Advantages:
A fast paced, exciting adventure, with the occasional gruesome bit
Disadvantages:
as above plus the ending is a little far fetched
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I actually picked this book up at my local car boot sale on Sunday. Its not really my usual type of book anything along the ‘Jaws’ theme really puts me off, but once I had started reading it (last night) I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough until I had finished it (early hours of this morning)!
The story is about Megalodons, ancestors of the Great white shark. This 20 tonne, 60 foot killing machine was though to have become extinct along with the dinosaurs, there is a fantastic graphic account at the beginning of the book, of how the megalodon hunts and kills a T-rex, shaking and shredding it with its nine inch serrated teeth!
There is only one man that still believes in the existence of the megalodon, Professor Jonas Taylor – a forty two year old paleontologist and expert on Megalodons. After retiring from the hunting game, after a nasty experience, he hunted down on the lecture circuit to assist in the identification of the ‘creature’ that is attacking and destroying data collectors in the Marianna trench 7 miles beneath the Pacific Ocean.
Professor Taylor is the only man to have descended into and returned from the depths of the Marianna trench, his last expedition down there saw the demise of two of his colleagues, due to a fault Taylor made. He has always been held accountable for their deaths as his explanation of events leading up to the deaths, was thought to be too fantastical to be believed. With his reputation in tatters and his courage wavering, he is reluctant to descend once again into the horrors of the Marianna trench.
Taylor is persuaded by an old colleague to make the descent, that and the fact his wife is having an affair with his best friend. He accompanied on his mission by the son of his colleague, both in one man submarines. Once on the floor of the trench, 7 miles beneath the ocean and in complete darkness, the megalodon feels their presence. After a ferocious and grisly battle the megalodon becomes ensnared in the steel cable attached to the surface boat and is hauled through the icy waters to astonish the people on the boat.
When Taylor surfaces his theories are believed and his reputation restored. However Taylor is not happy, what he saw as the megalodon was hauled to the surface was beyond belief and no one believes him. The gates of hell have been opened and a supreme killing machine has been unleashed in a most credible fashion.
There is only one man with the skill and the know how to stop the ensuing carnage……..
There is a lot of technical jargon in the book such as vivid description of how exactly the submersibles are made this doesn’t take anything away from the book and can easily be skipped if it gets too intense. The ending does seem to be a little far fetched in the cold light of day, but once you start to follow the story, you are entranced, horrified and delighted by it all. Anyone who reads Meg and is a little wary of the sea as I am will be absolutely terrified by the end of the book!
Advantages: excellent story Disadvantages: disappointing ending
I read Meg in hard back a years ago after my mum had picked it up in airport. I enjoyed the book alot and with all other good books it was consigned to the loft. Cleaning out the junk heap a few weeks ago I came across this book again and was totally engrossed once more.
The story is about a species of super-shark thought to be long extinct. Carcharodon megalodon is a 70ft shark that is supposed to have lived with, fed on and died with, the dinosaurs ... ...and also some of the Meg hunting passages. There are some nice touches as well such as the Meg being pregnant and Alten also comes up with a very believable reason for why the sharks have never surfaced before, and how this one manages to make it to the surface - all without breaking his own rules.
The story is let down slightly by the ending. I realise there is a slight metaphore involved but it really is far fetched and put a bit of a dampener ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Screaming for a film version,Great characters Disadvantages: Dodgy ending,a little of scientific in patches
I actually first bought Meg in 1998/1999.
Any book with a shark is liable to be bought by me-I'm a total Jaws fanatic, so I didn't even read the back cover!
What can I say,but wow!
I couldn't believe this was from a first time author!
But I get ahead of myself.
In order to entice you properly,I'll give you a summary of the novel.
Meg opens similarly to Jaws-in as much as we have an electrifying attack to kick things off.
The difference here ... ...the victim is a T-Rex!!
We then skip to present day, where we meet Jonas Taylor, Professor & expert on Carcharadon Megalodon - the extinct 60 foot long prehistoric relative of Carcharadon Carcharias-The Great White Shark.
Slowly we are introduced to Jonas' world-his cheating, career obsessed wife, his crumbling marriage, and his own obsession with Megalodon, after a disasterous submersible dive in the Marianas Trench which cost the lives of his ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Excellent and exciting story Disadvantages: Scottish dialogue
...SYNOPSIS:
I became aware of this book after reading the three books in the 'Meg' series (soon to be a film apparently). I liked the way SteveAlten mixed action with human emotional events and also some of the snappy dialogue between the characters and so bought this book from Amazon.
The story is told mainly in the first person (strange for Alten) from the point of view of Zach Wallace. Zach is a marine biologist, originally from a small Scottish village, but then from America when his partents split when he was nine.
Zach is young and top of his field, however an accident awakens darkened fears in him of when he almost drowned during a boating accident as a child on Loch Ness. Faced with this new fear and mounting other personal problems he's at a low eb when he receives news that his estranged father is on trial for murder...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
02.05.2006
