Pirate Latitudes - Michael Crichton

I've never read a book by Michael Crichton before, though I have seen several of the movies based on his novels. One thing I was impressed by was his versatility as a writer. He wasn't one of those people who writes a certain kind of book (e.g., legal thriller, horror, romance); instead he seemed able to move between a lot of different genres. I find that very interesting.

The villa Jim and I stayed at in St. John had many novels, and I found this one. Since it was a sea adventure, it seemed a fitting read for the poolside. I got hooked very quickly. In some places it's a bit silly but it really struck me as a kind of homage to all those pirate/swashbuckler sea novels from the past, such as Captain Blood or Treasure Island.

It wasn't published during his life, so I don't know if he was working on it and didn't finish it or if it was a sort of lark for him. In any case, I enjoyed it. A pleasant surprise as I find it very hard to sift through contemporary writers in order to pick something worthwhile. Though, like I said, this was definitely not a deep book. Have some fun!