The Lost Island: A Gideon Crew Novel (Gideon Crew Series, 3)
The Lost Island: A Gideon Crew Novel (Gideon Crew Series, 3) book cover

The Lost Island: A Gideon Crew Novel (Gideon Crew Series, 3)

Hardcover – August 5, 2014

Price
$14.93
Format
Hardcover
Pages
368
Publisher
Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1455525775
Dimensions
6 x 0.94 x 9 inches
Weight
1.3 pounds

Description

"THE LOST ISLAND, the third novel to feature master thief and brilliant scientist Gideon Crew, is another clever and compelling tale from Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child....The stellar writing that readers expect from Preston and Child is still in abundance, and they balance the line between page-turning suspense and ancient history."― Associated Press "Sparkling...Gideon refreshingly doesn't fit the superhero mold, and the enigmatic Amy is more than his equal in daring and intelligence."― Publishers Weekly "The ever-reliable Doug Preston and Lincoln Child are back with typical aplomb in the splendid THE LOST ISLAND. Preston and Child have been in the business of keeping secrets for years now and simply no one's better at knowing just how long to keep them... wildly entertaining and lightening paced... impossible to put down."― Providence Sunday Journal "When it comes to novels by this famous duo, the things all readers can expect are excitement, intrigue, and a story that will not soon be forgotten...The 'Crew' stories move at a super-fast pace and never leave the reader wanting...[This is] yet another perfectly unforgettable Preston & Child creation."― Suspense Magazine "[Preston and Child] always go big in their storytelling. The Lost Island is no exception."― Fort Worth Star-Telegram "The latest Gideon Crew novel offers fast-paced action, intriguing characters and an adventure-filled plot. The attention to detail in the initial heist scene adds tension that continues throughout this thriller."― Romantic Times "[Preston and Child] stretch the boundaries of the action-adventure novel."― Kirkus Reviews "Another intelligent tale by the longtime writing partners."― Sacramento Bee "With equal parts action, intrigue, suspense, romance, and wonder, the story maintains a breakneck pace without ever feeling like it is tripping over it's own feet."― TheBestOfWhatsAround.com "They have few peers at creating taut scenes of suspense."― Publishers Weekly "A terrific mix of mystery and the unexpected that will keep you reading into the late hours of the night. They promise a great read and they have delivered."― Clive Cussler on White Fire "A mile-a-minute thriller with a deeply entertaining plot and marvelous characters."― Diana Gabaldon on White Fire "The action zigzags like an out-of-control rocket toward a double-deceptive conclusion."― Kirkus Reviews on Gideon's Corpse "Gideon, an engaging fellow from the get-go, lives up to his initial promise, demonstrating an intelligence and resourcefulness that should endear him to adventure fans."― Booklist on Gideon's Corpse "Like Michael Crichton, Preston and Child weave their stories at a thrilling pace...Preston and Child never fail to entertain. And GIDEON'S CORPSE is a thriller that ranks high among their many co-authored offerings to date."― BookReporter.com "Preston and Child deliver a tight, literate thriller...The writing is fast-paced and cinematic."― New Mexico Magazine on Gideon's Corpse "Ever timely and provocative, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child have given us yet another one of their taut page-turners in GIDEON'S CORPSE...The issue is never if he'll escape, but how. It's the thrill of the ride that counts, and GIDEON'S CORPSE gives the reader a front seat."― Albuquerque Journal on Gideon's Corpse "The writing is taut and intense with twists and turns to surprise even the die-hard thriller fan...the authors make it fresh and original."― RT Reviews on Gideon's Corpse The thrillers of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child "stand head and shoulders above their rivals" ( Publishers Weekly ). Preston and Child's Relic and The Cabinet of Curiosities were chosen by readers in a National Public Radio poll as being among the one hundred greatest thrillers ever written, and Relic was made into a number-one box office hit movie. They are coauthors of the famed Pendergast series and their recent novels include Fever Dream , Cold Vengeance , Two Graves , and Gideon's Corpse . In addition to his novels, Preston writes about archaeology for the New Yorker and Smithsonian magazines. Lincoln Child is a former book editor who has published five novels of his own, including the huge bestseller Deep Storm . Readers can sign up for The Pendergast File, a monthly "strangely entertaining note" from the authors, at their website, www.PrestonChild.com. The authors welcome visitors to their alarmingly active Facebook page, where they post regularly.

Features & Highlights

  • Gideon Crew--brilliant scientist, master thief--is living on borrowed time. When his mysterious employer, Eli Glinn, gives him an eyebrow-raising mission, he has no reason to refuse. Gideon's task: steal a page from the priceless Book of Kells, now on display in New York City and protected by unbreakable security. Accomplishing the impossible, Gideon steals the parchment--only to learn that hidden beneath the gorgeously illuminated image is a treasure map dating back to the time of the ancient Greeks. As they ponder the strange map, they realize that the treasure it leads to is no ordinary fortune. It is something far more precious: an amazing discovery that could perhaps even save Gideon's life.Together with his new partner, Amy, Gideon follows a trail of cryptic clues to an unknown island in a remote corner of the Caribbean Sea. There, off the hostile and desolate Mosquito Coast, the pair realize the extraordinary treasure they are hunting conceals an even greater shock-a revelation so profound that it may benefit the entire human race . . . if Gideon and Amy can survive.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
30%
(1.5K)
★★★★
25%
(1.3K)
★★★
15%
(773)
★★
7%
(361)
23%
(1.2K)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Too Many Unlikely Elements

There are several authors who write adventure novels based on ancient historical events, including Jack Du Brul, James Rollins, and Clive Cussler. All of these works require a certain amount of tolerance on the part of the reader when it comes to overlooking doubtful plot elements. The above authors make that easy for their readers by limiting and providing some basis for difficult-to-believe items. The problem with "The Lost Island" is that there is something that assaults the reader's common sense on nearly every page, from major plot elements to the physical abilities of the protagonists. Preston & Child simply impose too much on the readers willingness to waive incredulity in order to enjoy the story, and the result seems amateurish. The basic plot was well thought out and interesting, and it could have been developed without piling unlikely events on top of each other until the whole thing started to collapse. That is not to say that the book was not entertaining, just that it was way too lightweight. It is certainly not up to the terrific Pendergast series, which manages to make the less believable elements easy to ignore. This is the first Gideon Crew novel I have read, and it will be the last, at lease until I find one for significantly less than the current price.
37 people found this helpful
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The best of the Crew thrillers - 4.5 stars

This is the best of the Gideon Crew thrillers and actually the best work from Preston and/or Childs in several years. The book has fascinating characters, terrific pacing, and countless nuggets of interesting lore on everything from yachting to Greek literature. Yes, the premise is way out, and the evolution involved is hand-waved away with a single line of dialogue. But everyone loves a treasure-map thriller, and this book offers a treasure hunt with the potential to change the course of history (indeed, the development of humanity, though these very smart characters really don't think that through.) Gideon and his unexpected and initially unwelcome partner must unravel very obscure clues through a mix of good detective work and the occasional lucky break. Gideon's interface with hostile Miskito tribesmen is a high point - he's constantly and brilliantly improvising to impress and befriend people who don't speak his language and have no reason to trust him. There are hairbreath escapes, cool gadgets, breathless chase and hunt scenes, and homages to several classic adventures from Odysseus to King Kong, All along there are tantalizing reminders that Eli Glinn's team of super-engineers are about to undertake their biggest task ever, one that's set up by this book and should make an epic thriller when they forge ahead.
Matt Bille - author, Shadows of Existence: Discoveries and Speculations in Zoology (Hancock, 2006)
www.mattwriter.com
8 people found this helpful
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disappointed don't buy

Implausible and predictable. Would never have believed this was written by Preston & Child. Purpose of book seemed to be to set readers up for the next book in the series rather than focused on present story. Think the authors lost interest about halfway through writing it.
6 people found this helpful
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brilliant Asian women who can climb mountains when injured

Oh, please. As obvious as a ham sandwich, brilliant Asian women who can climb mountains when injured, run a yacht, use martial arts; a manipulative, damaged guy with unlimited wealth in a wheelchair. Really? An undiscovered island thrown back in time? Seems like it was written to be purchases for a movie, but it's no Jurassic Park. I'm weary of people who can get beat to hell and still get up and fight, sing, jump on choppers, and run through flames. (Okay, I made up the singing.) Disappointing from these authors, to say the least.
5 people found this helpful
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What a complete waste of time

What a complete waste of time. I am a huge fan and have read everything the two have written. This one was a sad disappointment, even if one were to suspend disbelief. Feeling very let down.
5 people found this helpful
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Was this supposed to be a comedy?

Holy....this book should be categorized in Young Adult. IT WAS RIDICULOUS. The robbery of the book of kells page was so insane and poorly thought out, it made NO sense. I was literally laughing at how dumb the security guards were. And then when the cyclops showed up....the book jumped the shark....I thought "is this based on a syfy channel creature flick?" It was so sloppy, and these guys wrote the relic which was awesome. As a young adult book it succeeds, as an adult book, it swerved over the embankment.
2 people found this helpful
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Nothing at all like the Agent Pendergast novels

The most disappointing book by these two authors I have encountered. Nothing at all like the Agent Pendergast novels. Not sure I would buy any other of their books. Might have been exciting for teen readers…a real bust!
2 people found this helpful
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Perfect for travel

I enjoy all the books written by Preston and Child and have found myself rereading some. The stories are interesting
and well written.
1 people found this helpful
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Keep both eyes on the page if you can! ;)

Without driving the old "judge a book by it cover" adage too far into the ground, it amuses me to read those reviews which ranked this book very poorly. True enough, there is some really far out developments... one major protagonist in particular really stretches your suspension of disbelief to the hilt. If you pick this book and expect it to fall within the "fairly real world" yet IMO formulaic realm of Clive Custler et al, then you may laugh at the unlikelihood of some events. If however you are the type that can watch Bruce Willis take out an F35 with his bare hands and think "wow that's crazy cool" rather than "that's impossible- total BS" then you may like this book just because it is so over the top. If you massage your brain a bit to expect fun, B movie type sci-fi, and expect Jules Verne or Arthur Conan Doyle instead of another James Bondish knock off, I think you'll find that this is a great page turner. Granted, the more over the top the overall plot is, you would expect extra care with the logistics of minor events. The story kicks off with a robbery in a very high tech facility absolutely packed with people, guards and various security countermeasures. The hero/thief somehow packs in stun grenades and other miraculous tools, employs them, steals an item, hides it and returns to his innocent starting spot without being seen or questioned afterward. There is also a bit much of the "Rocky" syndrome where the heroes get pummeled and beaten and broken and bloodied and then bounce back to manage superhuman fetes within a paragraph or two. "Oversights" like that annoyed me more than the incredible elements that were purposely included for fun. A later run in with pirates, was called a "throwaway" event by a previous reviewer because it had little to do with the plot- but that was precisely the type of event I loved because it was totally unexpected... the plan did not go by the numbers as it often does in a standard, feel good, get the girl at the end piece. As a matter of fact, (as a boater myself) that sequence and the raw psychotic nature of the out-of-nowhere bad guys, was one of the most edge of my seat sequences I've read in a while. Much of my joy for this was that the previous book I read by Jack McDevitt was SO boring, I couldn't keep my eyes open. By comparison, every sentence in The Lost Island drives the plot and contributes useful (if unbelievable) information about the story.
1 people found this helpful
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Don't Waste Your Time

Die-hard Preston and Child fans will probably like "The Lost Island." I'm not one, and I didn't. I've read a few of their earlier books, and enjoyed some of them, but, in my opinion, the quality of their work declines with each new title.

"The Lost Island" is a case in point. I'm glad I checked it out of the library rather than buying it.

There's really not much to it. The "plot" is purely linear. It offers nothing for the reader to sink her or his teeth into. Main characters Gideon and Amy have ridiculously little trouble finding a "treasure" that had been concealed for thousands of years. They basically go right to it. Come on, where's the mystery and suspense? Where are the red herrings, the false trails, the plot twists, the "aha" moments? If you're looking for such things, you won't find them here.

Speaking of characters, they're shallow and uninteresting, and much of the dialogue could have come out of a comic book. And speaking of comic books--well, the less said about what Gideon and Amy find when they get to the mysterious lost island, the better.

I have a sense that Messrs. Preston and Child are now in a mode of churning out formulaic books just for the sake of doing so--or for the royalties. They're ticking the box, so to speak.

I don't doubt that most readers will rate "The Lost Island" highly, and that the book will be very popular. That's too bad, in a way, because it'll just encourage more of the same. Read this one if you like, but I think it pales to insignificance compared to the authors' earlier works. Caveat emptor!
1 people found this helpful