Customer Reviews

The Ice Limit

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(38)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

If you are a professional seaman, don't read this book, it's written with great authority by people that have obviously never been to sea and haven't got a clue. Their previous book, Thunderhead, was one of the best I've read in a long time so this one really disapointed me. Very poor research.

I bought this after reading Riptide and Thunderhead by the same authors, both of which were just fantastic books. I'm happy to report that the authors hit another home run with this one! Right from the start it get my attention and held it through to the final page, leaving me happy with the conclusion but wanting more from the writers! 3 for 3 now. This has definitely elevated Preston & Child into my top 10 favourite and I can't wait to read more.

This book is very similar to his other books yet different. To completely understand this you will have to read it. I found the book very entertaining...I know I use the word entertaining a lot, but thats what I look for in a book.

Lots of action, with some character development thrown in. Alone, this would have to be Douglas Preston's best book. There is something missing and that would be Lincoln Child. They both work so wonderously together and lack something when alone.

That being said, I did really enjoy this book and recommend to all fans of Preston, Child or both together.

Preston and Child are very interesting writers, but typically they dwell more towards the supernatural side. Not ghosts exactly, but stories that need scientific disbelief greatly suspended.

That isn't nearly as true with this book. It's more primal. Rather than man vs some form of strange beast, it's simply man vs the elements (and, of course, man vs man).

It makes for a more exciting read. Nothing feels terribly contrived (though, of course, some twists are), and there's an interest in the process througout.

It's a story about greed and engineering, and that melds together quite well. Highly recommended for someone interested in a whimsical novel of this kind.

The Ice Limit is on my ten best list. I was reading this book late into the night knowing I'd struggle to get up the next morning. I would say, "Okay, one more chapter." But, before I knew it, it was three more.

I've read a handful of books by Preston and Child. Although I like them all, The Ice Limit is my favorite. It's packed with adventure, and I mean packed. The characters are great. The authors' description of the characters made me grow attached to them. And for as many characters as were in the book, this was quite a feat.

The premise itself was fascinating. I'm a sucker for plots dealing with the unknown. In this case, the unknown is a meteor. The bulk of the book involves the efforts to extract the meteor from the ice and return it to Palmer Lloyd's museum. Needless to say, this is not a simple process. Beyond the environmental issues, the characters had to deal with sabotage, a mad Chilean (?) navy captain, and the meteor's strange properties.

The climax of the novel left me breathless, and the ending left me wanting more. The last final twist got me; I did not foresee it.

If you're looking for a fast read with lots of adventure and an intelligent plot, pick up The Ice Limit and settle in for a wild ride.

Preston and Child do a spectacular job with this one. Nothing's as simple as it seems. Remember that. It applies so aptly to the book. It's exciting to recommend this book. My only critique of the book is the character of the "renegade" Argentinian(?) captain. I thought he was too formulaic for a Preston and Child book.

Overall though, it's great, great, great.

I love the ending.

"The Ice Limit" by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. Warner Books, 2000.
In the first few pages of the book, Nestor Masangkay is zapped when he touches a meteor that he has found on an isolated island off the southern most tip of Chile. Then, for the next 180 pages or so, you are waiting in suspense for the entire expedition (set up by an American billionaire) to be zapped as they are digging up the bright red meteor. Of course, you know that the entire crew can not be killed, as you have another 250 or pages to read, BUT!, the suspense is there as you turn page after page.

Being chased by a destroyer of the Navy of Chile has to be better justified , in my opinion. The chase chapter, however, a cat and mouse game, (and on storm-tossed seas), keeps you reading. Towards the end you just know that the meteor will go to the bottom, but again, the book leaves you wondering as to what will happen next. This is a fine book to keep you entertained as you travel on a long flight cross country or across the Atlantic.

This is my second novel by these authors. The first one that I read was the "Cabinet of Curiosities" and I *loved* it so much! I just thought it was such a great read; I loved the story, the characters, the historical influence and the style of writing.

Although, the style of writing and character development in "The Ice Limit" is excellent; the story does contain the same high quality. The storyline is very weak and does not have a lot of substance. Basically, it is the story of a group of scientists and engineers hired by a multi-billionaire collector to sail to Chile and retrieve a meteorite from the country for the billionaire's collection. The whole of the novel is spent studying the characters and relaying their efforts to retrieve this collossal rock without letting the Chilean authorities know. That is seriously the bulk of the story.

The only element that I felt could redeem the book was the mystery of the meteorite's origin. One scientist believes that it might be an interstellar meteorite. This would be an amazing discovery since scientists commonly hold a meteorite from another galaxy would not break through our atmosphere intact. However, this mystery does not develop significantly in the story. In the very end the true source of the meteorite is revealed, but I did not "get it". I was more confused than ever and felt it was the worst ending of a book I have ever read. It was so anti-climatic.

It was a real effort to get through the book and I felt that the ending was a poor reward for my patience.

I would not recommend this book to anyone :((

Douglas and Preston are at it again!

As quoted in a media review of this book it's a real page turner except that it did not elaborate on the real protagonist of the story... The metorite itself. God damn I agree but it'll top your adventure list of great books to read.

Ice Limit took me to places I had yet to even envision. Damn I hope there is a sequel. It continues their prose of creating a story that grabs you quickly with intelligent characters and an engrossing journey. Have you ever imagined what it would be like to be on a ship two times over the size of a football field in seas 100 feet high? And oh yeah you have 25 thousand tons of cargo...ready to break loose from it moorings...There's more. You need to read this book.

Preston and Child like to use science as the basis for catastrophes. And that is putting it mildly. Most of the time their books are pretty good entertainment, but this particular one about a rather large meteor found in the islands below Chile really went overboard literally. You can almost bet what's going to happen when the scientists and the entrepreneurs try to manhandle this monstrocity onto a large boat (with triple hulls...oh goody). First off, you would think someone would show some sign of brains concerning this hare-brained scheme. Not only is it dangerous, but it is illegal!
Not recommended to take something out of a country to whom it belongs...maybe could have done that 100 years ago, but most people would not want to get involved in the legal fiasco this would cause. Not with people demanding their ancestors back from natural history museums, others wanting reparations (and there are many group with many good cases for reparations).

Usually I am fine to suspend belief and enjoy these two authors going at it. That's what their books are for...entertainment value, though I've gleaned a few historical facts from them. But this time, getting to the end, and I won't spoil the ending...but guys, there was nothing there to explain what this thing was! I closed the book, and said "Huh?"

Karen Sadler