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Peter Benchley ListingsIf you cannot find what you want on this page, then please use our search feature to search all our listings. Click on Title to view full description
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Peter Benchley Beast
Fawcett 19920701 0449220893 / 9780449220894 MM Very Good
0449220893 0449220893 From Publishers Weekly Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, along comes Architeuthis , a giant squid, the eponymous beast of Benchley's latest tale. At an estimated length of anywhere from 30 to 90 feet and armed with two predatory tentacles, a huge, snapping beak and eight writhing arms, each lined with razor-sharp hooks; the giant squid has been wreaking havoc off the coast of Bermuda. By the time the protagonists--Bermuda native Whip Darling and Navy helicopter pilot Marcus Sharp--figure out what sort of beast they're dealing with, Architeuthis has killed five people. As they ponder this carnage, both men remember another scary fish story, Jaws --Marcus recalls "parents refusing to let their children get their feet wet," while Whip proclaims, "Whenever I hear talk about monsters, I think about 'Jaws.' " This monster, unfortunately, is not nearly as scary as the one they remember so vividly, because the reader comes to know it too intimately. Each time the squid prepares to attack its next unwitting victim, we are given an in-depth, close-up view of the beast, usually in a separate chapter. This technique, used sparingly (as it was in Jaws ), can be a heart-stopper, but overindulged, as here, it robs the narrative of dramatic tension. Worse, the author's own references to his more memorable work only serve to emphasize the weaknesses of his newest. Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition. From School Library Journal YA-- Small boats are ripped apart, their passengers vanish, divers disappear, and partially eaten body parts are found. Because Bermuda's waters are depleted, Architeuthis Dux (giant squid) turns to the residents and tourists as its primary food source. Whip Darling, local marine expert with a boat for hire; Lt. Marcus Sharp, Navy pilot and amateur oceanographer; Dr. Herbert Talley, foremost authority on the giant squid; and media magnate Osborn Manning, whose two offspring fell victim to the squid, form an alliance to track down and destroy it. Beast is set in an ocean community filled with bumbling officials and red tape. The monster terrorizes the island, gobbling up its citizens and forcing a group of experts to join forces to combat it. Benchley has combined interesting, colorful characters with a surefire plot, producing another of the well-written, well-researched sea adventures at which he excels. However, its similarity to Jaws (Doubleday, 1974; o.p.) lessens its impact. --John Lawson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Price:
3.50 USD
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Peter Benchley Beast
NY Random House 1991 0679403558 / 9780679403555 First Edition Hardcover Very Good
0679403558 0679403558 350 pages, Very Good book in very good dust jacket. Foxing on edges. Possible price on front of dustjacket. From Publishers WeeklyJust when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, along comes Architeuthis , a giant squid, the eponymous beast of Benchley's latest tale. At an estimated length of anywhere from 30 to 90 feet and armed with two predatory tentacles, a huge, snapping beak and eight writhing arms, each lined with razor-sharp hooks; the giant squid has been wreaking havoc off the coast of Bermuda. By the time the protagonists--Bermuda native Whip Darling and Navy helicopter pilot Marcus Sharp--figure out what sort of beast they're dealing with, Architeuthis has killed five people. As they ponder this carnage, both men remember another scary fish story, Jaws --Marcus recalls "parents refusing to let their children get their feet wet," while Whip proclaims, "Whenever I hear talk about monsters, I think about 'Jaws.' " This monster, unfortunately, is not nearly as scary as the one they remember so vividly, because the reader comes to know it too intimately. Each time the squid prepares to attack its next unwitting victim, we are given an in-depth, close-up view of the beast, usually in a separate chapter. This technique, used sparingly (as it was in Jaws ), can be a heart-stopper, but overindulged, as here, it robs the narrative of dramatic tension. Worse, the author's own references to his more memorable work only serve to emphasize the weaknesses of his newest.Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.From School Library JournalYA-- Small boats are ripped apart, their passengers vanish, divers disappear, and partially eaten body parts are found. Because Bermuda's waters are depleted, Architeuthis Dux (giant squid) turns to the residents and tourists as its primary food source. Whip Darling, local marine expert with a boat for hire; Lt. Marcus Sharp, Navy pilot and amateur oceanographer; Dr. Herbert Talley, foremost authority on the giant squid; and media magnate Osborn Manning, whose two offspring fell victim to the squid, form an alliance to track down and destroy it. Beast is set in an ocean community filled with bumbling officials and red tape. The monster terrorizes the island, gobbling up its citizens and forcing a group of experts to join forces to combat it. Benchley has combined interesting, colorful characters with a surefire plot, producing another of the well-written, well-researched sea adventures at which he excels. However, its similarity to Jaws (Doubleday, 1974; o.p.) lessens its impact. --John Lawson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Price:
1.49 USD
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Benchley, Peter The Deep by Benchley, Peter
New York Doubleday & Company, Inc. Good
p. 1976, c. 1976, First Edition, green/black cloth w/price clipped d.j., 301pp., G/g+(lt.shelf wear, spine cocked, X-Library, d.j. taped to bds.)
Price:
4.25 USD
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Peter Benchley White Shark
St. Martin's Paperbacks 1995 0312955731 / 9780312955731 Mass Market Paperback Good
0312955731 0312955731 From Publishers Weekly We never thought it was really safe to go back in the water, and Benchley's new eco-thriller exploits the fear he engendered in Jaws . Here the menace is a creature spawned by a demented Nazi scientist, which has hatched 50 years later in a quiet Atlantic fishing community. Simon Chase has dropped his society wife and infant son, Max, to finish school and start the Osprey Island Marine Institute near Long Island's North Shore. Shark studies are his speciality. Chase fears the responsibilities of fatherhood, but when Max, now 12, visits, the two get on famously and soon Max has the run of the institute. Then, a crew tracking a pregnant Great White named Jaws spot a porpoise with a claw gash in its tail and see massive kills of sea life; when they then observe the same claw marks on Jaws herself, Chase knows "there's something out there." Enter Dr. Amanda Macy, who studies whales using sea lions with strapped-on video cameras. Macy leases the institute, both solving Chase's money woes and making first contact with the unknown menace. Soon Macy's camera gets a shot of a steel-clawed hand grappling with a sea lion. After additional bloody encounters at sea, the beast comes ashore, eventually to threaten Amanda and Max. Benchley's writing is fast-paced, and he alternates the tension with poignant family scenes and ample amounts of marine ecology. Literary Guild main selection; major ad/promo; author tour. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From School Library Journal YA-YAs whose tastes run to monsters and man eaters will enjoy this tale of a Nazi plot gone awry. Near the end of World War II, a German scientist and his bizarre creation are smuggled out of Europe on a submarine. An accident destroys all but the creature in its protective box; the story then fast-forwards to contemporary New England. Simon Chase, marine biologist, is attempting to keep his tiny marine institute solvent, raise his young son alone, and continue his research. He is among the first to notice the effects of an unidentifiable predator in the local waters that consumes humans, sea birds, dolphins, and sharks, leaving evidence of metal teeth and razor-like slashes on its victims. Into this chilling scene comes Dr. Amanda Macy and her trained sea lions to do research on whales. With her financial and technical support, Chase can continue his own work, but the growing threat from the monster forces them to direct their attention toward it. After a series of grisly events, they meet a Jewish survivor of Nazi medical experiments; from him they learn that they are tracking Heinrich Guenther, a half-human, amphibious warrior programmed to be a relentless killing machine. Benchley provides a clever, tense, and explosive ending to this tale of science run amok. Evil is satisfyingly vanquished, and the hero gets his institute and an engaging new partner to boot. An action-filled novel that's perfect for poolside reading. Carolyn E. Gecan, Thomas Jefferson Sci-Tech, Fairfax County, Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Price:
1.69 USD
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