Talking Books: Rich Gotshall
Adventure tales make traveling easier
http://www.indystar.com/articles/2/192530-4412-021.html"Lost City," by Clive Cussler and Paul Kemprecos, is clearly brain candy. It's a formula yarn featuring Kurt Austin, underwater researcher and rescuer of damsels in distress. The plot follows the lines of nearly every Cussler novel: A female scientist uncovers a historical secret and is almost killed, rescued by the hero. The two go on to uncover a plot by a megalomaniac bent on controlling or destroying the world.
In this case, the novel starts with the discovery of a World War I-era airman frozen in a glacier and ends with a battle to save Earth from an unstoppable sea plant.
The reader of the abridged version (6 hours, $29.95, Penguin Audio) is Len Cariou. His clear, crisp diction adds to the drama. Some of his best work is reading detective and police procedural novels. He gives "Lost City" a sense of building drama.
In the unabridged version (13 hours, $39.95, Penguin Audio), the reader is Scott Brick, a veteran reader of science fiction. His clear voice carries the book, especially through the technical descriptions. He adds no false drama, which in a book this length could grow tiring.