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Megalodon
When a nuclear submarine is destroyed and evidence points to the Megalodon, an immense, supposedly extinct, prehistoric shark, Frank Acremann of the Institute of Marine Studies seeks a solution to the problem
232 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1981
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 30, 2019
So...yea. This wasn't a great read.
I've always been fascinated (and petrified) by sharks. Megalodons, in particular, have long been a favorite research topic of mine. In fact, I consider myself an extremely amateur "expert" on Megs...I've been studying them, and their distant cousins, the Great White, for more than two decades. Megalodon took everything I've learned about these apex predators and shit all over the information. I'm not sure this author got much of anything right...this novel is nothing but a hot mess express.
First, the Megs aren't really even a part of this story. They're secondary at best. Biologically, this book focuses more on dolphins, orcas, and sperm whales...but even they're secondary to 80s politics (i.e. the Cold War).
Second, the information about Megs in this novel goes against everything I know to be true after years of research. For example, we know that Great White sharks are cousins to the Megalodon. Great Whites are apex predators who hunt alone and who utilize ram ventilation. This means they must be constantly moving to force water through their gills...it's how they breath. It's safe to assume, since Great White sharks have these characteristics, so too do Megs. However, Robin Brown has these giant sharks living in family units, hunting together, and burrowing in a cave on the sea floor for warmth. The misinformation drove me crazy.
Third, while I do consider dolphins to be one of the most intelligent creatures on Earth, the fact they're able to talk in this book really forces the reader into some serious suspension of belief. This book was written in the 80s. It's currently 2019, heading into 2020. We still can't communicate with sea creatures like they do in this book...even with our far advanced and superior technology. While it was sort of fun to read the thoughts of these amazing creatures, it also made the novel seem cartoonish.
Further, there were a million plot holes, story lines that went absolutely nowhere, characters with agendas I frankly didn't understand, and an immensely unsatisfying conclusion. Bottom line, fellow readers...if you want to read about Megalodons, check out Steve Alten's Meg series of books. Although still mildly implausible, they're much more entertaining, and stick far closer to the science of predatory sharks.
I've always been fascinated (and petrified) by sharks. Megalodons, in particular, have long been a favorite research topic of mine. In fact, I consider myself an extremely amateur "expert" on Megs...I've been studying them, and their distant cousins, the Great White, for more than two decades. Megalodon took everything I've learned about these apex predators and shit all over the information. I'm not sure this author got much of anything right...this novel is nothing but a hot mess express.
First, the Megs aren't really even a part of this story. They're secondary at best. Biologically, this book focuses more on dolphins, orcas, and sperm whales...but even they're secondary to 80s politics (i.e. the Cold War).
Second, the information about Megs in this novel goes against everything I know to be true after years of research. For example, we know that Great White sharks are cousins to the Megalodon. Great Whites are apex predators who hunt alone and who utilize ram ventilation. This means they must be constantly moving to force water through their gills...it's how they breath. It's safe to assume, since Great White sharks have these characteristics, so too do Megs. However, Robin Brown has these giant sharks living in family units, hunting together, and burrowing in a cave on the sea floor for warmth. The misinformation drove me crazy.
Third, while I do consider dolphins to be one of the most intelligent creatures on Earth, the fact they're able to talk in this book really forces the reader into some serious suspension of belief. This book was written in the 80s. It's currently 2019, heading into 2020. We still can't communicate with sea creatures like they do in this book...even with our far advanced and superior technology. While it was sort of fun to read the thoughts of these amazing creatures, it also made the novel seem cartoonish.
Further, there were a million plot holes, story lines that went absolutely nowhere, characters with agendas I frankly didn't understand, and an immensely unsatisfying conclusion. Bottom line, fellow readers...if you want to read about Megalodons, check out Steve Alten's Meg series of books. Although still mildly implausible, they're much more entertaining, and stick far closer to the science of predatory sharks.
March 19, 2014
For fans of Michael Crichton and Matthew Reilly. Adventure at its best. Read while I was a teen in the 1980's. But love to this day. I blame my twin brother and his obsession with sharks for this one. Jaws gave me nightmares but I loved this.
August 11, 2012
Really enjoyed this book. The American title is SHARK! Great story line, characters and informative information on the Megalodon. Could there still be some around?? Highly recommend.
September 8, 2017
This was enjoyable enough just for pure entertainment but it wasn't very well written. The pacing was off and there was all this political stuff that just didn't make sense to me.
July 18, 2017
There is a certain genre of throw-away fiction that deals with monsters, but is not really Science Fiction or Fantasy. You've possibly read a few books of the type - either an extinct creature is found living in current days, or some mixture of radiation, chemical waste or bizarre electrical occurrence causes creatures to get big and nasty. In my teen years I had a bit of a fascination for this type of book, and I can remember reading titles about ants, worms and bears, to name a few. Each book followed a standard formula - brief introduction of the "cast", usually one of whom was some sort of eccentric scientist - description of the monster, some gruesome deaths, the authorities embarrassed because they didn't believe eccentric scientist, and then the death of the creature, either through human action, or natural causes. Sometimes something lurked still, ready for a sequel if one was required by the publisher.
And so we come to Megalodon. This book was sitting on the shelf of the beach house I recently rented for the Summer Holidays, and I picked it up with a sense of nostalgia. With the caveat that I'm now considerably older and wiser and memory may be failing me, this book is by far the worst of this genre that I have ever read.
The plot is as follows - the US has discovered a huge ore body of Gold and Uranium deep in an Ocean Trench. They have sent down a nuclear submarine to scan the sea floor. The sub is partially destroyed, after being attacked by a Megalodon - a giant shark, thought extinct. The Government calls in a group of, you guessed it, eccentric scientists who have developed a system of talking to dolphins and orcas, with the thought that they could find out what's going on (at this stage the authorities don't believe it's a giant shark, but of course the eccentric scientist already has it worked out).
There are a few more disasters, and the scientists realise that their whales can't dive deep enough to use their sonar.....so they capture a Sperm Whale, fly it several thousand miles under a dirigible, and teach it to communicate with the other whales, and by extension the scientists. It has a battle with a Megalodon (by this stage we know there are two parents and a juvenile shark lurking down in the deeps).
Given that this book book was written at a high point in the Cold War, the Soviets get involved, and one of their subs gets "eaten" too, but not before destroying one of the Megalodon with an aptly gory and gratuitous explosion. The talking whales,disgusted with the whole shebang, announce their departure, and that's it.
This book has it all - including the obligatory sex-scene (that occurs at a bizarre moment in the plotline), military types that don't listen, and lots of description of high-tech gadgets, most of which are useless against the ancient shark. The sharks themselves are major characters of the book - after introducing them by explaining they are animals of almost pure instinct with tiny brains, Brown then goes on to give them thoughts and even feelings. He also greatly exaggerates their size - his beasts are in the hundreds of feet long, wheras it seems the real thing didn't get much over 60 feet.
By far the weirdest aspect of the book are the talking dolphins and orca - they take the suspension of disbelief quite a few steps too far. If I hadn't taken a vow to review every book I read, I certainly wouldn't have wasted this many words on such a pile of rubbish. The author may have intended otherwise, but this book gave me quite a few laughs on a slow TV evening.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
And so we come to Megalodon. This book was sitting on the shelf of the beach house I recently rented for the Summer Holidays, and I picked it up with a sense of nostalgia. With the caveat that I'm now considerably older and wiser and memory may be failing me, this book is by far the worst of this genre that I have ever read.
The plot is as follows - the US has discovered a huge ore body of Gold and Uranium deep in an Ocean Trench. They have sent down a nuclear submarine to scan the sea floor. The sub is partially destroyed, after being attacked by a Megalodon - a giant shark, thought extinct. The Government calls in a group of, you guessed it, eccentric scientists who have developed a system of talking to dolphins and orcas, with the thought that they could find out what's going on (at this stage the authorities don't believe it's a giant shark, but of course the eccentric scientist already has it worked out).
There are a few more disasters, and the scientists realise that their whales can't dive deep enough to use their sonar.....so they capture a Sperm Whale, fly it several thousand miles under a dirigible, and teach it to communicate with the other whales, and by extension the scientists. It has a battle with a Megalodon (by this stage we know there are two parents and a juvenile shark lurking down in the deeps).
Given that this book book was written at a high point in the Cold War, the Soviets get involved, and one of their subs gets "eaten" too, but not before destroying one of the Megalodon with an aptly gory and gratuitous explosion. The talking whales,disgusted with the whole shebang, announce their departure, and that's it.
This book has it all - including the obligatory sex-scene (that occurs at a bizarre moment in the plotline), military types that don't listen, and lots of description of high-tech gadgets, most of which are useless against the ancient shark. The sharks themselves are major characters of the book - after introducing them by explaining they are animals of almost pure instinct with tiny brains, Brown then goes on to give them thoughts and even feelings. He also greatly exaggerates their size - his beasts are in the hundreds of feet long, wheras it seems the real thing didn't get much over 60 feet.
By far the weirdest aspect of the book are the talking dolphins and orca - they take the suspension of disbelief quite a few steps too far. If I hadn't taken a vow to review every book I read, I certainly wouldn't have wasted this many words on such a pile of rubbish. The author may have intended otherwise, but this book gave me quite a few laughs on a slow TV evening.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews