Ognisty przypływ

Sigma Force #17

by James Rollins, Robert Waliś (Translator)

Zagłada przyjdzie z morza…

Trzęsienia ziemi, wybuchy wulkanów, zabójcze fale tsunami – najlepszy film katastroficzny zamknięty w okładkach powieści!

Emocjonująca powieść o zagrożeniu czającym się w głębinach oceanów i dramatycznej walce ludzkości o przetrwanie w obliczu niosących śmierć klęsk żywiołowych.

Projekt Titan – międzynarodowa stacja badawcza u wybrzeży Australii – odkrywa kwitnącą strefę życia pod powierzchnią martwej wody. Obszar ten obfituje w dziwny bioluminescencyjny koralowiec, który na razie wymyka się znanym kategoriom naukowym, ale uczeni nie wątpią, że jego właściwości okażą się w przyszłości bezcenne. Rozpoczęcie dalszych badań zostaje jednak udaremnione przez niespodziewany atak zamaskowanych napastników. Ich wtargnięcie uruchamia niszczycielski łańcuch zdarzeń i katastrofę geologiczną, która destabilizuje cały region. Potężne trzęsienia ziemi, erupcje wulkanów i śmiercionośne tsunami zwiastują nadejście jeszcze większego kataklizmu, wywołanego przez zagrożenie ukryte przez tysiąclecia głęboko pod oceanicznym dnem.

Czy grupa agentów Sigma Force zdoła powstrzymać to, co uwolnili tajemniczy napastnicy? Wokół nich morza wypełnią się toksynami, linie brzegowe zapłoną, a ich dawny przeciwnik powróci i nie zawaha się przed niczym, by udaremnić każdy ich ruch… Aby mieć jakąkolwiek nadzieję na sukces, komandor Gray Pierce musi zanurkować głęboko w przeszłość, a kluczem do ocalenia ludzkości może okazać się mitologia Aborygenów. Jednak to, co odkryje drużyna Sigmy, może okazać się tak nieprzewidywalne i przerażające, że wstrząśnie fundamentami ludzkości.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Adventure, Science Fiction, Mystery, Action, Audiobook

512 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 2023

About the author

James Rollins is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of international thrillers. His writing has been translated into more than forty languages and has sold more than 20 million books. The New York Times says, “Rollins is what you might wind up with if you tossed Michael Crichton and Dan Brown into a particle accelerator together.” NPR calls his work, “Adventurous and enormously engrossing.” Rollins unveils unseen worlds, scientific breakthroughs, and historical secrets matched with stunning suspense. As a veterinarian, he had a practice in Sacramento for over a decade and still volunteers at local shelters. Nowadays, Rollins shares his home up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with two furry companions, Echo and Charlie. He also enjoys scuba diving, spelunking, kayaking, and hiking. Of course, he loves to travel and experience new places around the world, which often inspire his next globe-trotting adventure.

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love geological disaster and deep sea premise, but it was a slog.🥱 Many friends gave this 5 stars so it's probably me. Cool author's fact vs. fiction notes. Although I listened to this, it's nice to have a hard copy for images and maps. I used to really enjoy his novels. Maybe Rollins' older ones/standalones suit me more.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tides of Fire is the 17th book in the Sigma Force series written by James Rollins. I stumbled upon this one at least a decade ago while waiting in an airport. Since then, I read them in order, enjoying the suspense thrillers as the heroes and heroines travel the world to save the planet from nefarious evildoers and unnatural disasters coming at us from earth, wind, rain and fire. In the latest novel, volcanoes are erupting at a quickening pace, and then water turns to fire in Southeast Asia. It all connects to a similar event back in 1815 when the infamous earthquake and its dark summer killed an enormous amount of people around the planet. What could rainbow serpents, matter from Mars, and coral have to do one another? Sigma solves the case but comes close to losing a few members several times. Overall, I enjoyed the book but it definitely is erring a bit too technical and science-fiction these days for my tastes. I prefer the more historical connections rather than alien life, but there was a mix here. Good history lessons, and Rollins always shares a few thoughts at the end of the book on what is reality and what he used as fiction to expand the story. You can read these in order except you may learn in reverse about some deaths or romantic liaisons.

[Jeremy Peers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tides of Fire– the 17th Sigma Force novel by James Rollins– employs history and science to build a foundation of truly harrowing events that threaten the survival of the human race. And will give you new fears to haunt your dreams. While visiting the grandmother of Gray and Seichen’s son in Hong Kong with their close friends, a massive earthquake and tsunami hit the region. With the earthquake ongoing, the compound everyone is staying at is attacked. In the melee and confusion of the disaster and attack, Seichen’s mother is taken.

Also in the region is a massive scientific research project studying the ocean’s deepest trenches. With billionaires tripping over themselves getting to space, one billionaire is going the opposite direction. Building a structure with multiple levels and anchoring them to the bottom of the ocean thousands of feet below the surface and can only be reached by submarines. The billionaire is self-funding hundreds of projects with the world’s best and brightest scientists in numerous disciplines to discover the secrets of the deepest oceans on Earth.

In the midst of a research expedition, a submersible notices what looks like a crumpled submarine in the middle of a kelp forest. The research submersible is the first to experience the earthquake and when they surface what they find is hard to fathom. Multiple volcanoes are erupting, spewing ash and raining fiery boulders, and the ocean is on fire. Doing what scientists do, they begin searching for the reason why the world is on fire and how to stop it. Eventually meeting up with various sigma members, their predicament becomes abundantly clear: the fate of the world is in their hands. Good luck! It’s going to take multiple approaches, big ideas, and lots of luck to stave off whatever is happening around them.

What James Rollins does is so impressive. To take actual events in world history and science and to develop a coherent story that stretches our construct of believability is ridiculous. He treats science with the utmost respect which is greatly appreciated, especially in the bizarro world we live in now. I’m a big fan of Rollins’ author’s notes regarding the historical and scientific principles within his books. Always read the author’s note! I learn something new each time and that’s never a bad thing.

Rollins creates multiple environments within Tides of Fire and each of these environments has its own unique set of atmospherics that are diametrically opposed. You have literal fire and brimstone on the surface while beneath the water is at times dark and peaceful; others bright and violent. Then there are times when Tides of Fire has a whimsical quality to it. Almost fairytale-ish. It felt like I was reading the Book of Revelations that veers off into a Disney movie and back again. These environments are so different and weird they enhance the other. I’m not sure I’ve experienced anything like that before. It was jarring and unexpected but in the best possible sense.

Anywho, do yourself a favor and don’t miss Tides of Fire and the rest of the Sigma series. I can’t recommend Rollins enough!

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Tides of Fire!

[Blaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

“It presents our greatest challenge. Humanity’s future will not be discovered on the surface of Mars, but in that 99.9 percent of the Earth’s oceans that remain a mystery. And we neglect it at our peril. The oceans are our breadbasket, our playground, even our pharmacy. More importantly, the seas are the true lungs of our planet, producing 80 percent of the world’s oxygen and consuming 25 percent of the carbon dioxide. If even a quarter of the ocean dies, so does most life on Earth.”

Even though I don’t normally read military thrillers, the Sigma Force novels have been a guilty pleasure for me over the years. They usually do a nice job of blending the action sequences with interesting history and science. Yes, they’re formulaic, and the bad guys are irredeemably eeeeeeevil while the good guys are effectively invincible. Usually one team is working on a problem in the present, often involving the kidnapping of a person uniquely important to this book’s plot. Meanwhile, often on a different continent, the other team is investigating a historical approach to solving the problem. And sooner or later there will be a traitor because ... there’s always at least one traitor.

And Tides of Fire stays pretty true to that formula. There’s an international research station off the coast of Australia called The Titan Project, and they’ve found some really strange coral … and a missing submarine. Meanwhile, the South Pacific is suddenly experiencing an increasing number of deep-earth quakes and volcanic activity. A mix of new and old characters led by Monk make their way to Titan to try to understand what’s happening there, while a team of new and old characters led by Gray follows historical clues that may lead to an explanation of and solution for what’s happening.

Tides of Fire is definitely one of the stranger entries in the series. There’s a healthy dose of action. The history portions are much more mythological than historical, outside of the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora that led to the so-called year without summer. I thought the geology ideas here were cool, but the biology with the coral and beyond—and the solution to it all—felt pretty farfetched to me, and I can imagine some readers being unable to roll with it. But there’s a solid cliffhanger ending that left me excited for the next book in the series.

[Scottsdale Public Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rollins has always been great at looping just a little bit of science and speculation about science into the most wonderful plots. I studied Math and Physics in college, so I always look with a jaded eye at books hoping to coopt science into their plots. Many fail; Rollins produces a winner.

Grayson, Monk, and Kowalski are back and in big bold color as usual. A CEO, William Byrd, who has built a fantastic underwater observatory and science station, is not unlike today’s tech giants that are hoping to go to Mars. Then there are new heroes like Phoebe Reed a biologist who steps up when the world needs her.

Everyone pitches in to solve a fantastically difficult problem that is lighting the world on fire. The anti-heroes are upended by a wise commander and steps forward to collaborate with the Sigma Group to quash the Ring of Fire in southeast Asia.

This is a fun book for those with or without a bit of science in their background. -Tom L.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to William Morrow for gifting me an early copy of this novel. I really appreciate it! Below you'll find my honest review.

Sigma Force never fails me. Every single one of their books gives me the adventure and high stakes thrills that I am looking for out of an adventure/techno thriller, super high quality and with characters I really love (or love to hate).

This one had some seriously global stakes involved, and explored a place that humans have yet to venture far into - the ocean. It's stated that we only have mapped a small percentage of the ocean floor enough to see things the size of the plane crash... like 0.5% of it. That means we know more about space than we do about the hidden depths on our own planet.

This book posits some explanations for some gaps in science in a way that I absolutely enjoyed - the creation of the moon and the pieces left behind, the evolutionary track record of octopi, life-form bases other than carbon, what coral and symbiosis can do. It also delves deep into the human psyche, showcasing both heroes who will do what it takes to save the world and villains who will do whatever it takes to prove themselves, based on their insecurities, to be the superior creatures they want to be. It shows the depravities people are willing to undertake to gain advantages, and the destructive forces that can be led by nationalism.

Overall, Sigma Force is one of my longest-followed series, and will continue to be so, because Rollins knows how to write a darn good novel.

And guys... the end of this one... explosive. I can't believe we have to wait for the next. I needs it now!

Highly recommended, and always, caveat: if you haven't read the rest of the series, you're missing a lot of plot and character development, so do yourself a favor and catch up. :)

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. I started reading James Rollins books many years ago, perhaps around 2008, and I loved them for a very long time. But in recent years, I've been more and more disappointed, and I can't say if it's because I've changed as a reader (I'd like to think I've become more discerning) or if the books have gotten worse. Whatever the reason, I could barely stomach this book. I thought the history and the science was so cool, so intriguing. But the mind-numbing action put me to sleep. There was only a tiny bit of plot surrounded by a dozen shootouts, multiple car chases, never-ending natural disasters that almost but not quite killed most of the main characters, a few B&Es, some thefts, and a smattering of other "pulse-pounding" things that seemed to serve no purpose other than to pad out the book. I get that there needs to be some explosions to please readers who enjoy different things than I do, but this was just too much. It was non-stop and it meant we almost never heard about the cool science and history. Maybe 15-20% of the book dealt with the science and history, with much of it clustered at the beginning and end of the book, and the rest was mindless action. And then the ending, and how the big issues were solved, was one of the weirdest things I've read in a long time. More weird than usual. Not my favorite technothriller ending in a long time. So so strange.

I feel like Rollins' books used to be more cerebral, more intellectual, and now he's filling the pages with the equivalent of junk food. I, for one, am still hungry.

P.S. Why on earth does Rollins use the term e-tablet? Do people really not know what a tablet is so he needs to be more specific?

[Jerry Mead · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dragged on a bit took me 2 months to get through it.
I am a big fan of Rollin's Sigma series but I find it is getting to repetitive and unrealistic.
Hope the next one improves again.

[David Eppenstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last year Rollins published Kingdom of Bones which I read and gave 4 stars to but a grudging 4 stars. I criticized the book for being exhausting and too much of a good thing. The actions scenes in the book were non-stop and over-the-top to the point of compromising the reader's ability to suspend belief properly due any work of fiction...up to a limit. Apparently Rollins didn't get the message or just differs in opinion on this issue because this book is no less exhausting than last year's addition to this series. Nevertheless I will still give it 4 stars as it is a page turner that will have the reader reading long passed their bedtime. Isn't that what a thriller is supposed to do? Of course the story will also tire the reader out which should result in a good night's sleep but after reading what happens in this book I doubt the reader will sleep well but for all the worry and wonder this book will cause. So what's the book about?

To begin with the reader will be exposed to a lot of information on geology, biology, oceanography, deep sea exploration and the associated vehicles for that activity, as well as the history and culture of Western Pacific native peoples and I've probably forgotten about some of the other covered subjects. Let's just say there's a lot packed into this story so you will be learning as well as be entertained. Basically, the area in the Southwest Pacific in the Indonesia area becomes geologically unstable and its numerous volcanoes begin to erupt. The cause of the instability may have something to do with the Chinese who become very interested in what is happening for reasons known and unknown. A multi-billionaire and his enormous and fully equipped research vessel and its related components is in the area and pressed into service as are some of the Sigma Force who happen to be in Hong Kong for a birthday party and family gathering for Seichen and her mother. The story is non-stop excitement with catastrophe on top of catastrophe complicated by shoot-outs with mercenaries and Chinese military and did I mention the intelligent but deadly coral? It's a fun read but HEY JIM some of your readers (ME) are elderly. We like a good book but there is a limit to how much excitement we can handle in one sitting. Please dial the excitement level down before one of your books gives me a heart attack and my wife sues you. Ha, you laugh but she is will. LOL. Enjoy the book.

[John Paxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not the best and probably not the worst from this author.

[Bill Riggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sigma Force is back doing what they do best - saving the world. The lasted mission spans the deepest depths of the oceans to the moon, features strange, fantastical creatures and is filled with pulse pounding action.

[William Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Tides of Fire" is the latest in James Rollins' highly successful "Sigma" series of thrillers. I am grateful to William Morrow, the publisher of this book, for providing me with an ARC of this text. I have been following James Rollins for many years and own much of his canon. I am, in short, a fan. For those of you not familiar with the "Sigma" series, it is predicated on a top secret organization utilizing paramilitary operatives with scientific backgrounds to investigate threats to the nation or the world rooted in new technology or new understandings of cutting edge science. Something of the style of the series can be garnered from their headquarters located underneath the Smithsonian "castle" in Washington D.C. Rollins genre is the well informed thriller, and he is very good at what he does. In the literary world, Rollins is like a combination of Clive Cussler and Michael Crichton. The structural and thematic concerns addressed are rather like a combination of television's "X Files" and "The Man From Uncle." This particular book focuses on volcanic disturbances rooted in the Coral Sea (remember "Krakatoa") and involves clashes with both Russian and Chinese agents and military forces eager to participate in a coverup of what might have stimulated the aforementioned volcanic disturbances. The body count is high, and the action is non-stop. If you enjoy open minded technofiction, this is a must read. The characters are well drawn, and it is easy to identify with both the protagonists and their adversaries. Don't forget to read the information that follows the Epilogue relating to the author's sources and influences as well as the reality behind the technology and science featured in his book!

[Sahitya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m definitely giving it a 4.5.

It’s always fun diving into a Sigma book and this was no different. At the time when I’m having difficulty reading much and can’t find enough time to focus, this was the perfect thrilling read. Even the apocalyptic events happening in the book couldn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying it. I also liked how it was resolved towards the end. But the last line promises a very different kind of next book and I have a feeling we’re gonna meet a lot of old and new characters. I’m only sorry that I have to wait an year for it.

[Mike Mcdonald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Forever

To start I have always enjoyed Rollins’ books but reading this one was a real slog. I swear the author was adding pages as I read. Bottom line is I could have skipped this book and have been just fine.

[Valerie Joy]

Sigma Force + geological disasters? Say no more.

[David Dalton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great thriller from Rollins. I feel so smart after every Sigma Force read. I skipped over several books and now need to go back a few to catch up.

[Steve Foster · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was far less about sigma force and much more in the weeds of fictional science. The roles of the main sigma force characters that we’ve come to know were far less than many of the other sigma force novels. For a 440 page novel, this probably could have been condensed into a faster paced story.

[Tim Hayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an arc of this book from the publisher. I love this series and this book does not disappoint. I love all the facts and real places and events that are used in the series. Could not recommend any higher. Thanks to @williammorrowbooks.

[Sally Atlas · Rating 5 out of 5]

another winner from James Rollins

The combination of real science/history with a fictional overlay makes for a compelling read. I have enjoyed this series from the beginning and look forward to the next adventure. I am in awe of the amount of research that went into this story.

[Pierre Tassé (Enjoying Books) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to it. The first part was exciting and intriguing...after that it was a difficult book to listen to and I knew there was 15 hrs of this...I couldn't do it. Loved mostly all the Sigma Force series...this one was a bridge too far for me.

[Kay Bates · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too technical. I had to skim a bunch.

[Sonia Cristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok, ia dar classificação positiva pelos adorados personagens mas, na verdade, apesar de eles continuarem espetaculares como sempre, aqui não houve nada de especial que sobressaísse e deixasse marca.

Gosto da premissa dos mistérios das profundezas do mar e do início da vida no planeta. Neste livro é tudo mais baseado em lendas, em ideias não provadas. Por isso, nada me convenceu. E foi muito chato de ler, tremendamente aborrecido seguir todas aquelas explicações e conversa de biologia e geologia. As descrições dos corais e criaturas e todo o ecosistema no fundo do mar revelam uma grande pesquisa do autor e merece aplausos pela sua dedicação mas, bolas, que foi um assunto difícil de me despertar interesse.

Adoro polvo, lulas e tentáculos de pota no forno mas imaginar tudo isto em tamanho gigante? É uma ideia pavorosa😱.

[Fernanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gostei da história, apesar de não ter o entusiasmo das histórias anteriores.

Apesar de tudo, não desilude ao misturar realidade e ficção.. e as profundezas do oceano é sempre algo assustador e ao mesmo tempo curioso... infinitas possibilidades do que possa conter.

[Asib Gazi · Rating 5 out of 5]

সিরিজের ১৭ নাম্বার বই কিন্তু সেই একইরকম থ্রিল,আ্যডভেঞ্চার,আ্যকশন,মিস্ট্রির চমৎকার মিশেল। সবমিলিয়ে ক্লাসিকালে সিগমা ফোর্স।

[Sandra Matias · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mais uma boa aposta de James Rollins, sigo esta saga e posso dizer que nunca desilude.

[Linda Munro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love James Rollins' Sigmas Force Books. They are so much more than novels, at the end he will explain what is historical truth and scientific truth; this is never enough for me. I have to research the facts for myself which makes these books a learning experience.

In this novel (Number 17 in the series) an International Research Station, situated in the Coral Sea becomes the target for terrorists. Sigma Force is already on the job, trying to halt the self-destruct occurring all across the globe, massive earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and gigantic tsunamis.

The Undersea Research Station set just off the coast of Australia is known as 'The Titan Project.' The area is filled with a strange bioluminescent coral, something presently unknown to science, but the underwater lab has been situated near where a military submarine had been recently lost, and now the country has sent their best to recover the sub, at anyone's expense that is in their way. Beginning with a brutal attack on the underwater lab and its personnel, a geological disaster is touched off, destabilizing the entire region. The disaster also reaches a strange 'entity' a threat hidden for millennia.

Gray, Monk, and Kowalski each head in separate ways, but as a fan of these novels I knew in advance where this trio heads, even separately, trouble will be close behind.

[Julie Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went back and forth between rating this a 2 or a 3. This is my least favorite James Rollins book to date. The story seemed a bit convoluted and there was not a lot of interaction between the members of the team. The worst part for me was the narration of the audiobook- it was the oddest, most distracting that I have ever heard. There were random words that he would draw out, and at times his tone of voice was not in line with what was going on in the story. And some of his voices and pronunciation of the names and places...enough said. This story was so dull for me, I may be done with the series at this point.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy James Rollins's books but they do kinda scare me. The stories are such that they're in the realm of possibility. This one is no exception, with massive seismic events happening globally and volcanic eruptions everywhere, the world as we know it is seemingly coming to an end. Add to that a missing top secret submarine and possible extraterrestrial source of life and we have an exciting adventure with the Sigma Force team. I do wish Gray and Seichan can just sit back and relax and watch their kid grow up peacefully, but alas, they have to once again find ways to save the world.

[Maria Fledgling Author Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Rollins masterpiece of thrills and wonderment at the hands of The Sigma Force. Deep below the Tonga trench, lies a secret that could change the way we know life on Earth. And a secret that could destroy all life on Earth.

Working in a state of the art, technological marvel of a deep sea observation and scientific investigation lab, a discovery is made about the nature of coral at extreme depths.

Meanwhile, Sigma Force's Gray and his wife, Siechan are called to duty because of military activity by the Chinese in the same area as the scientific mission. In fact, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) know quite a bit about the research station and have a vested intered in seizing control.

Tides of Fire is fascinating fact/fiction, meticulously researched, as always, by James Rollins. Between the revelations about the biology of the deep sea coral; the crescendoing of volcano activity threatening the world and the life or death battle between American and Asian militaries, this book is completely un-put-downable.

Do take the time to read Tides of Fire, you'll thank yourself for the number of hours of enjoyment you'll get out of the book.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another masterpiece of a military techno thriller fused with science. Sigma is dealing with earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions as well as the PLA Navy of China. A very imaginative plot tying geology and biology with astrophysics and the Aboriginal people of Australia. Lots of history involving volcanic eruptions as well as mythology. It can stretch credulity and is a little too long but it never disappointed, especially a deserving end for a particularly vicious and ambitious character.