Athabasca

By: Alistair MacLean

Narrated by: Mark Meadows

The nail-biting tale of sabotage set in the desolate frozen wastes of two ice-bound oil fields, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.

SABOTAGE!

THE VICTIMS

Two of the most important oil-fields in the world – one in Canada, the other in Alaska.

THE SABOTEURS

An unknown quantity – deadly and efficient. The oil flow could be interrupted in any one of thousands of places down the trans-Alaskan pipeline.

THE RESULT

Catastrophe.

One man, Jim Brady, is called in to save the life-blood of the world as unerringly, the chosen targets fall at the hands of a hidden enemy…

©1980 HarperCollinsPublishers (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers

Cold Weather Review

I am a fan of Alistair MacLean; however, this book is average at best. The cliché of Texas oilman and Americans in general is readily available in this tale. The story could have been above average when drawn in with better narration. The fake “Southern Drawl” is only surpassed in audible agony by the “Northern” accent used throughout. Timing and cadence were either off, or poor editing is the culprit for this disaster.

Mr. MacLean wins again!

MacLean writes stories that burn and flare in one’s imagination like an all consuming blaze which makes his books so very hard to put down. This one more like a blue white flame which simply welds the book to the hands and the words to the mind’s eye.