Review by Booklist Review
Originally published under the John Lange pseudonym in 1968, this early Crichton novel is a fast-paced thriller in the pulp style. An archaeology professor learns about a previously undiscovered pharaoh's tomb in Egypt; he puts together a small team, intending to loot the tomb and make himself rich. But, and this should come as no surprise, dissension in the thieves' ranks soon puts the professor's plan, not to mention his life, in jeopardy. Crichton published the Lange novels (eight of them in total) between the late 1960s and the early '70s. If you didn't know they were written by Crichton, you'd have a hard time telling that from the books: the resemblance between a Lange novel and, say, Jurassic Park is so slight as to be insignificant. But it's also worth noting that the Lange novels are great fun, with entertaining characters and exciting stories. Leave it to the author's fans to decide whether they're curiosities or legitimate additions to the Crichton canon.--Pitt, David Copyright 2014 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
While Crichton's later work typically involved the grim consequences of combining human hubris and technology, he was also able to thrill while maintaining a lighter touch, as in The Great Train Robbery. Humor and suspense are again mixed harmoniously in this third novel he wrote under the John Lange pseudonym, featuring a team of plotters scheming to steal millions from the Egyptian government. The idea comes from an unlikely source, Harold Barnaby, a 40-something associate professor of archeology in Chicago specializing in deciphering hieroglyphics. While doing research in Cairo, he finds that a papyrus pertaining to "the procurement of firewood for the queen's hot baths" is actually a record of a previously unknown pharaoh's tomb. Estimating that the tomb's treasures might be worth as much as $50 million, Barnaby reaches out to world-wise journalist Robert Pierce to help loot the tomb. Pierce assembles a team, and concocts a plan to carry out the robbery under the very eyes of the authorities. Fans of caper novels such as Eric Ambler's The Light of Day will be happy. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
