Product Description

For decades, Clive Cussler has been delighting readers with novels filled with suspense, action and sheer audacity. Now he does it again, in one of the wildest, most entertaining historical thrillers in years. April 1950: The rusting hulk of a steam locomotive rises from the deep waters of a Montana lake. Inside is all that remains of three men who died forty-four years before. But it is not the engine nor its grisly contents that interest the people watching nearby. It is what is about to come next…. 1906: For two years, the western states of America have been suffering an extraordinary crime spree: a string of bank robberies by a single man who then cold-bloodedly murders any and all witnesses, and then vanishes without a trace. Fed up by the depredations of “The Butcher Bandit,” the U.S. government brings in the best man they can find – a tall, lean, no-nonsense detective named Isaac Bell who has caught thieves and killers from coast to coast. But he has never had a challenge like this one. From Arizona to Colorado to the streets of San Francisco during its calamitous earthquake and fire, he pursues what is quickly becoming clear to him is the best criminal mind he has ever encountered, and the woman who seems to hold the key to the man’s identity. Using science, deduction and intuition, he repeatedly draws near, only to grasp at empty air, but at least he knows his pursuit is having an effect. Because his quarry is getting angry now, and has turned the chase back on him. The hunter has become the hunted. And soon, it will take all of Bell’s skills not merely to prevail…but to survive.Filled with intricate plotting, his signature dazzling set pieces, and not one, but two, extraordinary villains, this is the master working at the height of his powers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12815 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 496 pages

About the Author
Clive Cussler is the author of several other books including the Dirk Pitt adventure Black Wind, the Kurt Austin novel Polar Shift and the Oregon series novel Sacred Stone. He lives in Arizona and Colorado. Dirk Cussler, an MBA from Stanford University, worked for many years in the financial arena and has been an active participant in the real-life NUMA expeditions. He lives in Arizona.

Customer Reviews

A departure from the normal Cussler, but equally, if not more exciting
Clive Cussler certainly deserves his title "The Grandmaster of Adventure". Since "Raise the Titanic", he has blended historical fact with fiction of a truly exciting nature. Normally this is focussed in a maritime environment, but "The Chase", unusually, is primarily land-based. Cussler's love of all things mechanical now includes railway engines, but I'm still not convinced that an 'Atlantic' (4-4-2) could outpace an equivalent 'Pacific' (4-6-2)! (cf.'Mallard'). However, this does nothing to detract from the joy of reading this novel; his new hero, Isaac Bell is every bit as interesting as Dirk Pitt, Kurt Austin or Juan Cabrillo and the crew of the 'Oregon', and also continues the romantic twists. The historical significance of San Francisco on April 18th,1906 adds to the suspense!
I am one of those irritating readers who examine the end of a novel to see what happens; but I had to read every page carefully to fully enjoy this experience. And it IS good to enjoy Cussler on his own; not to decry the assistance of Craig Dirgo or Paul Kemprecos with some of his other novels. I suppose you'll eventually retire, Clive: don't do it yet, because there many readers around the world who love your unique style of fiction blended with fact, and enjoy the care and attention that you show in your writing. Thank you for thirty-one great reads, Clive!

Cussler is back on form
After the Clive Cusslers Last offering in The Navigator, I was worried he had lost his touch. When Chase arrived I was even more worried when I saw there was no Kurt Austin or Dirk Pitt. I need not have been concerned. Cussler is back on form with this ripping yarn, a great read. Cussler fans will not be disappointed!

Not your typical Cussler but still a fun read!
This one is a bit different then the typical Dick Pitt adventure but still a lot of fun. This one starts out with the recovery of an old steam locomotive in the 1950's and in it are three dead men from years earlier. The book then flashes back to the old west and the 24 month crime spree of the bank robber the Butcher Bandit. This guy is really bad! He has killed many men and woman and even children. After the butcher Is private investigator Isaac Bell who has been hired by the US government to put an end to the butcher evil run. This is kind of a mixture of Cussler's typical thriller adventure with an old west dime novel, and it all makes for a page turning enjoyable read.