Iceberg ltd

Peggy Meetchum #3

by Brussolo Serge

254pages. poche. Poche.

255 pages, Paperback

First published December 27, 2001

Reviews

[Cornelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Liviu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iceberg (3rd in the Peggy Mitchum series but can be read independently as all are standalone thrillers - have not yet read the first 2 myself and based on this one not sure if/when as I have way too many more interesting Brussolo to read first) is an action-adventure thriller with a strong psychological component.

A fast read and with a lot of haunting imagery, the book left me a bit empty at the end as it does not transcend the thriller mode as other Brussolo novels so magisterially do (see La Main Froide for a recent example from my reads or Labyrinth aka Visitateur Sans Visage - Visitor without a Face for another); so yes the imagery is haunting and the Arctic setting, details and extreme hardship all, is superbly done, but the rest is just stock thriller that soon becomes very predictable and borders on ridiculous on many occasions; not to speak that being part of the Peggy Mitchum series the heroine is guaranteed to survive against all odds and that is quite un-Brussolo so to speak and it shows, as one of the big pluses of Brussolo fiction is his lack of get out of jail cards from impossible situations which tend to make thrillers cheap wish-fulfillment in an armchair

Still a 4 star novel for the imagery, tension and world building but a let down compared say with the Avenue of the Floes (Boulevard des Banquises which has a similar setting)

Here is a quick English synopsis:

Peggy Mitchum (young accomplished swimmer and diver) fled Florida after book 2 a briefcase full of $ 100 bills in her hand. She moved to Laguna Beach near Los Angeles because she can not conceive of living away from the ocean. She opened a shop renting surfboards, but her business did not prosper as surfers kept boycotting the store of this stranger unfamiliar with local customs.

Soon the money from her briefcase threaten to run out but one day a Japanese young woman who has heard of her and her exploits in Florida offers her a job. Yuki's father has disappeared off Alaska in a plane crash, research rescues to find him have been botched and she is convinced he's still alive. Her father is a famous computer scientist specializing in data encryption, an expert who knows a lot of secrets and the Yakuza wants dead.

Peggy agrees to help Yuki to find her father. They arrive in Alaska's Sanashtawa Harbor, a small port for seal hunting vessels in decline since the end of the hunt. Sanashtawa Harbor has become a minor port for refueling and where one provides alcohol, parts and prostitutes. They meet Rolf Amundsen nicknamed "Captain suicide" specialist navigatoramong icebergs, who agrees to take them in his icebreaker to search for the Japanese computer scientist disappeared on the ice.

But Rolf has his personal demons as a shipwreck had seen his previous boat squeezed and crushed by icebergs, with his wife and son aboard while he miraculously escaped (or this is the official story anyway), Since then images of the accident continue hunting him unceasingly and seem to have deranged his mind. So he lives only to navigate between icebergs...

The crew, consisting of superstitious Eskimos, believes that a supernatural being comes out of the blizzard to harass the ship. A climate nightmare soon envelopes the ship while the sailors disappear one by one, while ice tightens its grip on the hull and the captain may be descending into madness, so it is up to Peggy and Shaman Old First Mate Ignuk to save what can be saved...

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rolf stie ca a revenit cosmarul, dar nu i se poate opune. Si e mereu la fel: aude cum trosneste coca vasului. Simte presiunea gheturilor in coastele ambarcatiunii, de o parte si de alta a bastingajului. Treptat, strangerea ca intr-o menghina pe care banchiza sparta o exercita asupra navei se transfera asupra coastelor celui care doarme. Atunci, lui Rolf i se pare ca menghina i-a prins si cutia toracica, iar un calau invizibil strange, strange... pana cand oasele incep sa-i paraie. Rolf nu mai poate respira, se sufoca. Asteapta terorizat momentul in care coastele, curbate la maximum, se vor rupe cu zgomote de ramurele uscate si ii vor perfora plamanii, inima. Sufera asemenea vasului, ajuns prizonier al gheturilor plutitoare. Nu va mai putea rezista mult timp. Se incorda, ca si cum ar vrea sa transfere forta muschilor sai coastelor navei. Zadarnic insa, banchiza e mai puternica si continua sa-si stranga metodic fragmentele laolalta. Acel puzzle al gheturilor in deriva se recompune, se sudeaza, iar vasul lui Rolf e prins in capcana, blocat in mijlocul labirintului, lipsit de posibilitatea de a se mai deplasa inainte sau inapoi. Lenta miscare de comprimare il va strivi, il va face sa se sparga ca o coaja de nuca stransa intr-un cleste. Rolf realizeaza cat de justa este aceasta banala comparatie. Era imposibil sa fi gasit una mai buna pentru a explica ceea ce se va intampla dintr-o clipa in alta. Nu era nici primul, nici ultimul care pierea astfel. Se vor gasi intotdeauna navigatori destul de increzuti pentru a se crede in stare sa dejoace capcanele marii de gheata.Se trezeste tragand cu disperare aer in piept, ca un om pe punctul sa se inece. Se rostogoleste pe o parte, cauta cu mana inhalatorul si il duce la gura. Cu ultimele forte, inhaleaza medicamentul.

„Crize psihosomatice de astm”, diagnosticase medicul, incurajandu-l sa consulte un psihanalist. Rolf ridicase din umeri. Nu credea in acele remedii de sarlatan. Stia foarte bine ce trebuie sa faca pentru a se vindeca. Dar inca nu avea curaj.

Se ridica fara sa rasuceasca intrerupatorul. Vasul e ancorat la chei, aproape ca nu se misca. Prin hublou, patrund luminile vagi ale portului, ale orasului. Straluciri electrice de neon, cu care Rolf nu mai e obisnuit. Trage cu urechea, asculta zgomotele navei, duduitul indepartat al grupului electrogen. Nu mai e nimeni la bord. Echipajul s-a grabit sa coboare imediat ce vasul a fost tras la chei. Rolf presimte ca cei mai multi nu se vor mai intoarce. Le e teama. Cred ca-i deoache. Eschimosii sunt superstitiosi. Gaseste din ce in ce mai greu marinari, toti fug de reputatia lui proasta. In barurile frecventate de mateloti, se spun tot felul de lucruri despre el. Acum e nevoit sa se multumeasca si cu drojdia marinarilor de prin porturi, cu tipi pe care niciun capitan nu i-ar vrea la bordul navei lui: alcoolici, lenesi, nepriceputi, ticniti. Asta incepea sa creeze tot felul de probleme. Dar, din fericire, spaima surda pe care o inspira echipajului ii asigura o oarecare autoritate.

[GRIMAULT Bernard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bon moment de lecture. Comme toujours avec Brussolo, il y a quelques longueurs. Mais, c'est comme le calme avant la tempête !

[Okenwillow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dernier roman de la série Peggy Mitchum, Iceberg Ltd. est sans doute le plus oppressant. On y retrouve le thème de la claustrophobie, de l’isolement et de la paranoïa, le tout dans un décor de banquise des plus inquiétant. Le suspens est efficace, l’histoire tout de même moins improbable que la précédente aventure de Peggy, et on se prend vite au jeu, on s’immerge très vite dans l’ambiance glauque et glaciale. Un bon Brussolo rafraîchissant.

[Atef Attia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comme toujours chez brussolo, le décor à lui seul vaut le détour (ici, l'arctique et les ''chasseurs'' d'iceberg), mais l'écriture est très inégale avec des moments de pure angoisse et d'autres ou ça tourne en rond.
Il reste tout de même une atmosphère oppressante au fil des pages et un suspens continu jusqu'au dénouement final envoyé un peu à l'emporte pièce. Encore une fois le livre aurait mérité que l'auteur prenne un plus son temps et étoffe son récit.