Helpful Score: 3
An ok thriller if you don't think too hard about it.
Helpful Score: 1
I found this book to be scary and interesting. Scientists discover two separate groups of Neanderthals; a friendly group of vegetarians and a not so friendly group of carnivores. I loved the suspense. John Darnton also dives into taboo rituals. It was an excellent fictional book about two groups of the same species with different values, beliefs, language, and rituals.
Helpful Score: 1
A facinating look into what it would be like if Neanderthals had to interact with modern man.
Intriguing and exciting. A team of scientists heads for the high Pamir mountains to try to find Neanderthal-type hominids they have heard may still be living there, hiding from homo sapiens.
Tho I am not a science fiction fan, I love simian studies and anthropology so those parts of the book were very interesting to me. Reminded me of a Harrison Ford adventure movie. Probably should be made into a film.
I picked up this book and could not put it down. I read this in two days. What a great book one which will make you want to read again and again
Loved this book, picked it up at a book sale and waited about 2 years but once I started reading it couldn't put it down. Great premise for a book, it's the Lost World re-examined.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
In the mountains of northern Asia, a guerrilla fighter vanishes, a schoolgirl is murdered, and an eminent Harvard paleontologist disappears. To a shadowy government agency in Maryland, these are all signs that something has gone terribly wrong with the most extraordinary expedition ever mounted. Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot, who were once lovers and are now academic rivals, are dispatched to find the secret their Harvard mentor was seeking: a species linked to the origins of mankind. They have existed for over forty thousand years. They possess powers man cannot even imagine. And in a world dominated by humans, they are about to alter the face of civilization forever. John Darnton combines breathtaking suspense, thorough scientific research, and dazzling storytelling as archaeologists and rival governments attempt to track down a relic band of creatures.
In the mountains of northern Asia, a guerrilla fighter vanishes, a schoolgirl is murdered, and an eminent Harvard paleontologist disappears. To a shadowy government agency in Maryland, these are all signs that something has gone terribly wrong with the most extraordinary expedition ever mounted. Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot, who were once lovers and are now academic rivals, are dispatched to find the secret their Harvard mentor was seeking: a species linked to the origins of mankind. They have existed for over forty thousand years. They possess powers man cannot even imagine. And in a world dominated by humans, they are about to alter the face of civilization forever. John Darnton combines breathtaking suspense, thorough scientific research, and dazzling storytelling as archaeologists and rival governments attempt to track down a relic band of creatures.
Good read i would recoment it
good book. kept me interested
What would you do if you found a living band of Neanderthals? What would the "goverment do?
Would they be peace loving vegetarians or meat loving brain eaters?
This good story touches the boundries of ethics and humanity.
Some inconsistancies but over all a good read!
Would they be peace loving vegetarians or meat loving brain eaters?
This good story touches the boundries of ethics and humanity.
Some inconsistancies but over all a good read!
good beginning and end, drags in the middle
Really thought provoking!
An anthropological novel about discovering factions of Neaderthals in the mountains of central Asia. Tense at times, dragging at times, ultimately focussing on the scientists' obligations to one another morally and to their science as independent researchers. Not bad.
REALLY good book! Read this and also another really good one like it but not as quick of a read is "Almost Adam."
Loved this book made me think about bigfoot and other
unexplained things people have seen you never know.
GOOD READ!!!
unexplained things people have seen you never know.
GOOD READ!!!
Very interesting - but quite gory. Historically, a lot of research was done on this book and was fascinating.
Interesting story. little disappointed at the end.
Quite well-written. I enjoyed the "idea" of this story very much. Makes you think!
Good book on a subject that has been written about numerous times: modern man finds lost tribe, in this case two tribes of Neanderthals. The author takes a different approach in having the two tribes not coexisting peacefully with each other. I thought the book would conclude the way so many books do: with an earthquake or volcano destroying all the evidence of the primitives. The author, thankfully using another twist.
The book as a whole is a fun read but there were a few lines that were not well thought out or researched. First was the description of the pistol one of the scientists carries, it is mentioned as a .345 magnum revolver. This is not a caliber of pistol that exists, author probably meant a .357 magnum. The second is when the party reaches a saddle between mountains and the author says they can see the valley 50 miles below. That left me thinking that they were looking down at the valley and not off in the distance. Last they reference a scuba diver that has made numerous dives of serval hundred feet. A normal scuba setup is not made for several hundred feet but usually is maxed at around 130 feet.
Still all in all a good fast read and a new take of the Neanderthals.
The book as a whole is a fun read but there were a few lines that were not well thought out or researched. First was the description of the pistol one of the scientists carries, it is mentioned as a .345 magnum revolver. This is not a caliber of pistol that exists, author probably meant a .357 magnum. The second is when the party reaches a saddle between mountains and the author says they can see the valley 50 miles below. That left me thinking that they were looking down at the valley and not off in the distance. Last they reference a scuba diver that has made numerous dives of serval hundred feet. A normal scuba setup is not made for several hundred feet but usually is maxed at around 130 feet.
Still all in all a good fast read and a new take of the Neanderthals.
Really a great easy to read book. A very novel plot.
A fun and fast read for the anthropologically inclined. Darnton takes you to remote Tajikistan with two anthropologists in search of their lost mentor, who lives with a peaceable colony of Neanderthals. A more warlike, savage group threatens, and the pair must rescue a colleague...Cleverly plotted, full of action, and a provocative take on our ancestors.
An action thriller. If you are into archeology, you will love this.
Darnton's best-selling adventure about scientists who discover a lost race of Neanderthals in Afghanistan is an obvious choice for libraries, so let us only observe that Jay O. Saunders does a good job of narration and move on to other thoughts. The back of the box reads, "Far away, in the mountains of Northern Asia, a guerrilla fighter vanishes, a schoolgirl is murdered, and an eminent Harvard paleontologist disappears." The listener hears about only the last of these three items, but it doesn't matter. Modern escape fiction, too jerky and dialog-heavy for unabridged recordings, lends itself to abridgment perfectly well without losing much stylistic integrity. Yes, one notices characters whizzing by without much development, but one suspects that there isn't all that much more in the full novel. Finally, although it would seem impossible to review this book without mentioning a certain other best-selling writer, we should do Darnton the favor of realizing that he falls squarely into the "lost race" tradition of H. Rider Haggard, Arthur Conan Doyle, and others from the turn of the century (though without the racism). A safe choice for all popular collections.
LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW
LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW
So, so. Too long. Got bored by the end. Interesting theories.
Two scientists are called by an eminent archeologist who has discovered a band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years. These creatures possess powers man can only imagine and that can change the face of civilization forever.
The expedition of the century...In the mountains of central Asia, an eminent Harvard archeologist discovers something extraordinary. He sends a cryptic message to two colleagues. But then, he disappears. Uncover the find of the millennium...Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot- once lovers, now academic rivals- are going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
The expedition of the century... In the remote mountains of central Asia, an eminent Harvard archeologist discovers something extraordinary. He sends a cryptic message to 2 colleages. But then he disappears. Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot - once lovers, now accademic rivals - are going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of cratures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
In the remote mountains of contral Asia, an eminent Harvard archeologits discovers something extraordinary. He send a cryptic message to two colleagues. But then, he disappears.
Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot - once lovers, now academic rivals - are going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
Matt Mattison and Susan Arnot - once lovers, now academic rivals - are going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
THE EXPEDITION OF THE CENTURY...
In the remote mountains of central Asia, an eminent Harvard archeologist discovers something extraordinary. He sends a cryptic message to two colleagues. But then, he disappears.
Matt Mattison and Susan Arnotonce lovers, now academic rivalsare going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
In the remote mountains of central Asia, an eminent Harvard archeologist discovers something extraordinary. He sends a cryptic message to two colleagues. But then, he disappears.
Matt Mattison and Susan Arnotonce lovers, now academic rivalsare going where few humans have ever walked, looking for a relic band of creatures that have existed for over 40,000 years, that possess powers man can only imagine, and that are about to change the face of civilization forever.
Okay book, but I wouldn't give it 5 stars. Typical peaceful hominids living in Shang-Ri-La type valley with evil neandertals living in caves. My copy of this book is somewhat damaged. It's a bit worn but still readable.
Good book.
I am a smoker and I also have a cat in the house.
I am a smoker and I also have a cat in the house.
