Eruption: Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller

“Eruption” has a very interesting base plot, which honestly was the reason why I was so invested in the book. Crichton crafted one hell of a nail-biting story, and you can see what his vision for this project was. With that being said, this isn’t necessarily Crichton’s project, but rather Patterson’s, and you can tell. Crichton would meticulously research the science in his projects and would not shy away from keeping the science in them, but with Patterson involved, this became more of a beach-read action book, rather than a scientifically based one. The actual science was abandonded to instead insert over 100 chapters and endless cliffhangers, rather than crafting an intriguing scientific story. You can only read so many instances of the “*nudge nudge* See, I know what locals talk like” and not take this story seriously. It feels like this book was meant to be something much larger than the surface-level book it ended up being. And I’ll give it to Patterson, the book was very fast paced, which made for a pretty quick read when I was reading, but I honestly was reading so quickly so I could just have this book finished. I was not a fan of Patterson’s writing style, which severely contrasts with the prior writings of Crichton. I’m glad that we were able to have this story see the light of day, but I just wish that someone else, someone who would be more invested in preserving what Crichton would have written, would have been attached to it, rather than an author who barely writes his own work.

I LOVED the first half when Crichton was the author, but it felt disjointed and confusing once Patterson took over... the chapters became short and the action happened too fast and didn't add up. I still recommend this book, though, for the first half! It would have been a MASTERPIECE if Crichton had lived to finish it.

I was leery at first of ANOTHER Patterson but too much a fan of Crichton to pass up. I think Patterson did a great job keeping this book in Crichton’s voice. There are a few bits you can tell the difference in the authors but that’s only fair. It’s solid cheap thrills and a wild ride. The last sixty pages or so really had me excited for the next page and the next. Really enjoyed it. Great easy read for summer and vacations.