Thriller Books > Alistair MacLean Thriller Books

Advantages: Attention to detail brings you right into the book
Disadvantages: None

...of fiction from one of the all time masters of the action fiction novel. MacLean in my opinion never wrote a bad novel and this rates in my top five by the same author, alongside San Andreas, Last Frontier, Where Eagles Dare and Fear is the Key. I guess most people will have seen the film with Peck, Niven and Quinn, and let me start by saying that in reading this book you will not be disappointed. If anything the books is even better than the film. ...
...its possessions in the East Med, and making a big show of it to entice Turkey to enter the war on the side of the Axis powers. One last Island remains to be captured, an island held by several thousand allied troops who were in line for the slaughter. The Royal Navy was prepared to enact a rescue but they knew that the rescue ships would be blown out of the water before they even got close, blown out of the water by the massive guns housed on the ... Read review

Advantages: More complex and creates better picture than the film
Disadvantages: None

I decided to re-write this review as I have to say my original one did not give the book the credit and detail it deserved. I would honestly say that this is one of the best books written by MacLean. Rates well alongside San Andreas, Guns of Navarone or the Last Frontier. The book opens with a tense opening chapter that sees the British spy, Philip Calvert, make the first of a number of narrow escapes from certain death. Trapped on a ship with the ...
...from a bunch of heavily armed hijackers, who have no regrets about throwing grenades into the sea, just incase Calvert is below. Set amongst the Scottish islands much of the action takes place in a nautical environment, primarily based on the Firecrest, a British spyboat disguised as marine research vessel. The story evolves and we are told that hijackings of gold bullion ships had been occuring at regular intervals, but the gold had never resurfaced ... Read review

Advantages: Goodish stroyline and some strong characters
Disadvantages: Rushed, and little action in truth

...and have just finished reading Bear Island for I think what is the third time - Every time I really want to like it and every time I come away feeling a bit cheated. Bear Island followed Carravan to Vaccares, which is a far better novel, and Bear Island was the first to be written in first person narrative. The basic premise is that of a film crew taking a trip on the converted trawler, the Morning Rose, in order to do some filming on Bear Island. ...
...a great one. So Bear Island is not MacLean's worst work but it is a long way away from reaching the heights of Where Eagles Dare or Guns of Navarone. Can't say I would recommend anyone going out to buy it unless they pick it up second hand. ... Read review

Advantages: Absorbing, Easy to Read, An Original, Page Turner
Disadvantages: Character and Thematic Depth a little shallow

...till the very end. Ice Station Zebra refers to a British meteorological outpost which is located near the edge of the polar ice cap. In the middle of winter a fire breaks out at the station and the only hopes the scientists have rest with an american nuclear submarine called dolphin as it is the only thing capable of reaching them. What they do not know is that this fire and ensuing rescue attempt is actually a cover-up for one of the most important ...
...Dolphin moves under the Arctic ice it becomes evident that it is not going to be an easy journey. The book was written in the late 60's and the style of writing is a little different, however it is suprising how little the book seems to have aged. A movie has also been made from this book in the early 80's, which if you have seen it allows for some good visualisation throughout the read. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good action ... Read review

Advantages: A true tale of tension and suspense
Disadvantages: None

One of the all-time classic action thrillers, from one of the best writers in the genre. I am an avid fan of Alistair MacLean as an authour and I am also a big fan of the Burton and Eastwood film. The book is though superior in a number of areas to the film, providing as it does greater detail and slightly differing action at key points of the story. MacLean returns to one of his most detailed areas to write about, with the book set in the Second ...
...his best works - Guns of Navarone, Force Ten from Navarone, Partisans and San Andreas. The book starts inside a Lancaster bomber and you are quickly introduced to the main characters in the story - Smith, the leader of the expedition; fellow British soldiers Carraciola, Christainsen, Thomas, Terrance-Smythe and Harrod; as well as token American Schaffer. None of whom, aside from Smith and Schaffer, appear to be front line soldiers, but rather desk ... Read review