Crescent Dawn

Library Journal The Cussler family's latest Dirk Pitt adventure (after Arctic Drift) finds the head of the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) with his wife on vacation in Turkey. While visiting a friend at a museum, they stumble onto a major theft of priceless Roman artifacts connected to a sunken ship in the Mediterranean. Things turn personal for Pitt when his wife is kidnapped. His children also get caught in the sinister plot to restore the Ottoman Empire when artifacts they uncover in Israel and Turkey lead to a mysterious "manifest." Many people over the centuries have died to protect the sacred items listed in this document, and the Pitts will have to use their skills to stop the fundamentalist threat and survive. VERDICT The adventure thrillers featuring Dirk Pitt have been hit-and-miss since Clive's son took over the franchise, but this new entry defies expectations and is arguably the best of the Dirk Cussler novels. Cussler fans will be thrilled to see their favorite hero back in his prime. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/10.—Ed.]—Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.