Ad Hoc Read May 2024So, with the legendary House Move From Hell still dragging on, it was time to grab another Cussler book to escape into. And this was the one – well, to be honest, most of our books are packed and boxed up because of the move that got cancelled, aaaggghhh!Anyway, this is, I think, my first non-Dirk Pitt Cussler novel. Was it set on the sea, full of adventure? Yes. Was it exactly the same character with a different name? Surprisingly, no, it wasn't. Kurt Austin is definitely di...

Right up my alley! This book is packed with action, all stemming from a clever historical angle. Having devoured quite a few Dirk Pitt novels, I was thrilled to see familiar faces popping up in *Serpent (NUMA Files, Book 1)*. I'm a huge fan of the Oregon Files and the Isaac Bell series, so diving into Clive Cussler's NUMA Files felt like the perfect next adventure. If you're looking for a thrilling action-adventure read, you can't go wrong with *Serpent (NUMA Files, Book 1)*. Highly recommended ...

4.25 stars - Dutch paperback I enjoyed Serpent (NUMA Files, Book 1), the first of the NUMA Files Books. It made a nice introduction to the main characters, and the story moved well and engaged my brain. KURT is a good new character – brave, a little James Bond-esque, with a charm thrown into the mix. I felt that the story could have lasted another 50 or 100 pages to really provide a satisfying, well-developed, and creative ending. But it's the first book in the series, so we don't know what's in...

I've never picked up Clive Cussler before, but I stumbled across *Serpent (NUMA Files, Book 1)* and thought I'd give it a shot. I really enjoyed this adventure! It's fast-paced with a ton going on, and I had a blast reading it. Now I'm itching to read the next book in the series – just not sure if my ebook app has it. Definitely a great choice if you're looking for exciting adventure books!

4.75 stars - rounded up to 5 stars - Dutch paperback 🍀🍀🍀*** Greetings once more. Welcome to one of the greatest Mesoamerican mysteries. In 1938, the National Geographic Society and the Smithsonian sent an expedition to Mexico to investigate gigantic basalt heads, buried up to their eyebrows, that were said to be found there. At three locations in and around La Venta, the sacred center of the Olmec civilization, they found eleven of these African-looking stone figures. Thirty kilometers from t...

A complete lunatic wants to carve a new nation out of the Southwestern US and Mexico, and the only person standing in his way is Dirk Pi--I mean Kurt Austin. Kurt rescues a woman from a hit team that massacred an archaeological dig, also destroying some of the artifacts they unearthed. Kurt and his team then embark on a cat-and-mouse game with these mysterious killers, eventually getting to the heart of the matter. This marks Cussler Inc's first foray into a spin-off series. They play it safe ...

Clive Cussler has been on my 'To Read' list forever. After getting some recommendations from fellow bookworms on where to start, I decided to dive into *Serpent*, since it's the first in the NUMA Files series, and the whole NUMA concept intrigued me. The book opens with the Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria setting sail, and we get a glimpse into the lives of the crew, passengers, and the ship's cargo. But the story quickly takes a dark turn as a conspiracy to capsize the Doria surfaces, and su...

Hello random book for a random challenge!Serpent had an interesting synopsis... but in the end, it was just kind of meh. I've never read a Clive Cussler book before, so I didn't really have any expectations going in. I thought Kurt Austin was an interesting guy, kind of reminding me of Indiana Jones? However, I was also getting some Bones vibes too, and that's probably when I started getting bored.It had an interesting plot that just sort of fell flat for me. I wish I was more invested than I wa...

Meh. I guess there's a reason I haven't picked up one of Clive Cussler's books in at least five years. To be fair, I was on vacation, finished the books I brought, and *Serpent* was one of the only reasonably decent choices at the hotel gift shop. There was a time when I really enjoyed Cussler's Dirk Pitt series. He's like a modern-day swashbuckler who always knows the right thing to do and say, always gets the girl, and always nails the villain in the end. While *Serpent* isn't a Pitt novel exa...

Okay, so I’m a Dirk Pitt devotee, and when I first grabbed *Serpent*, I was all, "Kurt Austin who now?" But I dove in anyway, and I'm so glad I did! Kurt’s a fantastic character, he’s got a great sidekick, tons of NUMA folks pop up (MAX IS THE BEST!), and the story just flat-out delivers. I really dig the historical and archaeological angles. My only real gripe? The old-school chauvinism that seems baked into this kind of adventure. I mean, it's got that whole James Bond vibe with the women. Sur...