| This political detective story starts when people | | | | do in books. Too bad it's not that easy in real life - for |
| aboard the British military frigate Ariadne - one of | | | | example when oil gets spilled into the water and |
| NATO's most advanced vessels of its time (the book | | | | nobody knows how to plug the hole. Commander |
| is written in 1986) witness the crash of a mysterious | | | | Talbot and Leutenant Denholm might suggest |
| plane they can't identify. Engulfed in flames, it sinks in | | | | something, if they were real. |
| the Aegean, in the vicinity of Thera Island. About the | | | | The book itself is full of humour and reads in one go. |
| same time they witness the last minutes of the plane | | | | The plot is perfectly thrilling; the author's language flows |
| they receive a SOS message from a sinking private | | | | with ease; the character are, as I said above, |
| yacht, also burning badly after an explosion. They | | | | admirable, each in his own way, and even the villains |
| arrive just in time to rescue six survivors from the | | | | are somewhat amusing. Hard to believe these people |
| yacht, but there is nobody to rescue from the plane. | | | | are talking about a possible catastrophe that will |
| Commander Talbot and his able crew members - and | | | | destroy most of the world if they don't prevent it: you'd |
| later, Vice Admiral Hawkins - set out to investigate an | | | | have thought they discussed a picnic. The author |
| unpleasant plot involving highly positioned military staff | | | | mentions the Russians a few times - in the way typical |
| of the Pentagon. From the beginning they started | | | | for the Cold War times, but jokingly, so I never once |
| suspecting one of the rescued survivors - the yacht | | | | felt hurt or offended, but grinned every time. |
| owner Andropulous - of being something different | | | | Who will like the book? All those who like political |
| from what he claims. Later, their suspicions get | | | | thrillers, for sure, though, perhaps, it's not tough enough. |
| confirmed in the most terrible way. | | | | As I'm reading in Wikipedia, it's the last work by the |
| The sunken plane presents a real problem, its cargo | | | | author, written just a year before he died, and that his |
| consisting of atomic and hydrogen bombs and a timing | | | | latest works were received by the critics with less |
| device ticking. Should they get detonated, they might | | | | approval than his earlier ones. Well, I haven't seen the |
| cause, apart from their own deadly effect, a strong | | | | rest of them yet, so it's hard to judge. Even if the plot |
| eruption of a nearby volcano and an earthquake. The | | | | is indeed improbable, as the critics claim, it is, at least, |
| consequences might be apocalyptic... | | | | amusing and has given me a few pleasant hours of |
| But, needless to say, our brave and in every way | | | | reading. |
| admirable men prevent the catastrophe. They always | | | | |