Nighthawk

The NUMA Files, Book 14

By: Clive Cussler, Graham Brown

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

NUMA crew leaders Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala must beat the clock to stop the world's most dazzling new technological advance from becoming mankind's last in this action-packed thriller from the New York Times best-selling grand master of adventure.

When the most advanced aircraft ever designed vanishes over the South Pacific, Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala are drawn into a deadly contest to locate the fallen machine. Russia and China covet the radical technology, but the United States worries about a darker problem. They know what others don't - that the X-37 is carrying a dangerous secret, a payload of exotic matter extracted from the upper reaches of the atmosphere and stored at a temperature near absolute zero. As long as it remains frozen, the cargo is inert, but if it thaws, it will unleash a catastrophe of nearly unthinkable proportions.

From the Galapagos Islands to the jungles of South America to an icy mountain lake many believe to be the birthplace of the Inca, the entire NUMA team will risk everything in an effort to avert disaster...but they may be caught in a race that no one can win.

©2017 Clive Cussler (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Just okay for me.

Unfortunately, Cussler is getting boring. This is the same story with the same gorgeous genius working with the gorgeous NUMA people and of course she's keeping some sort of secret. There's also the submersible getting stuck under water, the bad guy who reveals his diabolical plot before dying, and whatever else has been in every NUMA File book. That said, the space plane plot was sorta fun and the ending was a bit humorous. It's not horrible but not awesome. Listening while gardening or doing chores works with this story.

Nighthawk is a book to read/listen

Bravo! Another  Cussler masterpiece. The narrator was able to keep the listener on the edge of their seat showing emotions that kept you riveted to the story. The idea of getting anti-matter from earths magnetic field was a stroke of genius. It was an excellent balance of drama and comedy which brought the story  to a delightful and sarcastic conclusion.

not up to par

I generally love the NUMA stories and was eager to start my summer with this one.
Joe and Kurt had their usual banter but much felt canned. The story just didn't have the meat of previous ones. seemed a bit too contrived and a but far fetched, even for NUMA. New characters didn't get developed to a point that you really cared one way or another about them.
lt waa okay but I hope the next will be more like previous books with great New characters and plenty of the NUMA family.

The idea of the story

Where does Nighthawk rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Having read the Dave Barry books about the Starcatchers, this reminds me of them having to contain the same thing. But being a children's book, there were no Russians or Chinese persons. I like the same impossible themes that they do. A bit of real combined with fantasy.

Excellent thoughtful intelligent adventure.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, details accurate, great characters and story.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

You'll never guess who the bad guy is until he is revealed . Be surprised

Have you listened to any of Scott Brick’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes . He is one of the bests!

Any additional comments?

Must read/listen to

You know what you're getting, but it's still very satisfying.

As a long time Clive Cussler fan, i've always known that I would have to suspend a significant amount of disbelief in order to enjoy his work, so that's exactly what I do. And I still enjoy the stories. Yes, some of the physics and science involved are pretty shaky, but it's fiction, right? Another very engaging story, with solid narration. As a narrator of several books on Audible myself, I've always enjoyed Scott Brick's interpretation of Cussler's work.

A new adventure.

Not bad but sometimes the books are getting a bit predictable.
Hope the next one has a better plot twist.

Kurt’s Team. Does it again

Exciting story lines, cleverly interspersed with plenty of suspense built in! Yes, it’s formulaic but effective and characters are solid, so I still love it!

Twisted

This book kept presenting new challenges. About the time that I thought I had things figured out there was a new twist. I listen through my hearing aids. This way it’s always private.

This one may be my favorite

Ten out of ten! I would definitely recommend a listen or a read. One of my favorites!