Dark Watch (The Oregon Files)

After the first 2 books in the Oregon Series sank, I was ready to never read any future Oregon books. After hearing that Jack DuBrul was at the helm, I read two of his previous books in the Mercer series, and fell head-over-heals for another writer. I couldn't wait to read Dark Watch. STUPENDOUS!!! He gave the characters the depth to make them likeable and believable, and threw in some passion, thank God.

Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt adventures are fantastic, and I thought I would never find another series as good till I was introduced to Jack Du Brul's Mercer series. Now that Jack co-writes the spin-off series 'The Oregon Files', action/adventure readers will find that - with Dirk Pitt, Kurt Austin (NUMA files), Juan Cabrillo and Philip Mercer series - their waiting intervals are now shortened. This latest Oregon adventure is a great pleasurable improvement. Apart from thrilling actions and suspense, characters are made more round and complex - more realistic. Their admiringly idealistic business philosophy is clarified and enhanced. Readers will surely begin to love this Oregon crew like they love the NUMA family.

I wanted to enjoy 'Golden Buddha' when it first came out -- I REALLY did...but as another reviewer noted, with Juan Cabrillo and the ENDLESS cast of secondary characters that popped up on virtually every single page, I found myself less concerned with where the plot was going, and more on racking my memory for WHO this person was, and had they been introduced before, or are they brand new? I think ANY time a novel feels the need to place a directory at the beginning of the book to remind you of who is IN the book, and it STILL doesn't help, I think you have an idea of where everything is going to end up. When all is said and done, I STILL enjoyed the first two Oregon Files novels more than I initially thought I would, but I MUST admit they were well below the usual entertainment I have come to expect from the typical Dirk Pitt novels or the NUMA Files stories. On the opposite side, I discovered Jack Du Brul's books about 5-6 years ago and I instantly recognized him as Cussler's Heir when and if he ever stopped writing full-time (which he basically has now that his son has taken over the Dirk Pitt series, and Paul Kemprecos does the bulk of the NUMA novels). I have had the great fortune of having interviewed Mr. Du Brul in the past and found him to be just one really great guy who loves reading Action/Adventure novels every bit as much as the rest of us. It certainly shows in his Phillip Mercer novels (ALL of which are excellent, by the way). I see a great deal of wisdom in Cussler making a move away from Craig Dirgo as a co-author and adding Du Brul to his stable of incredibly successful tales. I KNEW 'Dark Watch' would be without-a-doubt the BEST Oregon Files book to date before I even read it. You can tell from virtually the very first page Du Brul's influence over this series. As another reviewer noted, if you want absolute reality, go read Clancy...however, if you are looking to spend several hours in the world of espionage cloaked in a world of tremendous adventure and quite literally dripping with action and quite a bit of humor, this book definitely fills the bill quite nicely. First and foremost I noticed rapidly that the introduction of a 'Cast of Thousands' has been done away with. Certainly they all still exist, but the need to make every single one a major player in the storyline no longer dilutes the tale. Kudos to Du Brul for making this drastic -- but absolutely necessary change. One can now concentrate on the here and now and better follow everything going on. Once again, if you are looking for a novel which stretches your intellect or helps you come away feeling better about life in general, you may as well look elsewhere...but for me, I simply enjoy a fun book now and again -- especially one that is written with a great deal of talent. 'Dark Watch' is most assuredly one of those tales. I WILL go so far as say that as good as this book is, the Phillip Mercer books are ALL better...(check out Vulcan's Forge, Ch

Once again Clive Cussler, with Jack DuBrul, come through with an outstanding adventure. This is purely an adrenaline filled novel that is truly hard to put down. Stunning visuals, miraculous escapes, and fast-paced action that will please all thriller fans. I'm already primed for the next 'Oregon Files' novel. Highly recommended.

As a long-time Cussler fan I have to admit the Oregon Files series has been a big disappointment. The Numa Files books are great but this second spin-off fell flat. I never cared about the characters - all five million of them, it seemed - and the plots were cartoonish. I wasn't going to buy Dark Watch except I saw there was another co-writer. Boy am I glad I did. Dark Watch is the book I thought this series should have been from the start. Cussler and Dubrul together have hit a home run. The action starts on page one, accelerates thoughout the entire novel and ends with a scene that had me on the edge of my seat. And we finally get a sense of what makes Juan Cabrillo and his band of mercenaries tick. While they are still developing I can at least understand why they have all this money and still put themselves at risk. The double meaning of the title was terrific. After finishing it I went out and picked up River of Ruin, one of DuBrul's solo efforts. If anything it surpasses even some of Clive's books. His main character - Philip Mercer - is awesome. So not only can I look forward to a lot more Oregon Files from Cussler/Dubrul but there's a whole other series of books to read. I'm glad I took that extra second to see Clive had a new co-writer.