Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror

by Steve Alten

Book Overview

MEG: A Novel of Deep Terror is the book that launched New York Times bestselling author Steve Alten's franchise and inspired an international blockbuster starring Jason Statham. Seven years ago, and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 055357910X
• Release Date: June 1998
• Publisher: Bantam
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.9" x 0.9" x 4.2"

Customer Reviews

Meg? I think you meant Meh

Sad to say, I didn't enjoy it like I wanted too. I stopped reading somewhere in the middle I got so fed up. But I knew I wasnt gonna like it when it just kept going on and on about his annoying ass cheating wife! It took so long for that whole part to be over I didn't even wanna jump back in the first time I put it down

Best series ever!

I was skeptical BUT....

I read and write the genre Steve Alten has mastered, but I must admit that I was skeptical of MEG when I first saw it. I thought, "I've seen Jaws, how different can this be?" But my craving for deep sea adventure urged me to buy it...so I did. MAN am I glad I did. The shark in MEG is not a great white. It is a Megalodon (an extinct...we think...prehistoric shark), hence the title. As I started reading I immediately saw my mistake and became very excited (I have both a Megalodon tooth and a Kronosaurus tooth on display on my desk). Alten brings the beast to life in a terrifying way that kept me up late into the night. And as soon as I finished the book I ran out and got Trench and MEG: Primal Waters. From there I moved on to Domain, Goliath and The Loch. Alten is the undisputed champion of deep sea thrillers, folks. Have no doubt, if you enjoy the genre, Alten and MEG will thrill you. I promise. -- Jeremy Robinson, author of Pulse (A Chess Team Adventure) and Kronos

Jaws x10!

Meg, by Steve Alten is a really amazing book. This book is about a prehistoric shark species that has managed to survive within the depths of the Mariana Trench for over 70 million years. Jonas Taylor was the greatest deep sea pilot in the world, until a terrible accident during one of his dives into the Mariana trench. Jonas saw a massive shark, and forgetting to decompress the sub, he hurtled it to the surface, killing the two other men. Of course, no one believed what Jonas said he had seen, and he was sent to the military's mental hospital for several months of rehab for post-traumatic stress. For years Jonas tried to save his ruined reputation by studying the prehistoric, 60 foot long Megalodon, and theorizing how the species could still exist. An old friend of Jonas's finally convinces him to reenter the trench to retrieve the UNIS, an underwater earthquake monitor. There he faces what he never could have imagined, Carcharodon Megalodon, the fiercest predator of all time. The Meg escapes from the trench on a warm current, and she is hotly pursued by the military, and the faithful crew of the Kiku as she wrecks havoc throughout the oceans of the world. I loved this book and I think that the author's style of writing was really good. I learned some things from this book, but it was so good that it didn't seem like I was learning. I think that this book is a great read for anyone who isn't easily scared or grossed out. I gave this book 5 stars because it was really exciting and kept me on the edge of my seat with surprising plot twists. The only bad thing was that in the end it kind of leaves the reader hanging. I didn't want it to end!

Now, here IS a story about sharks!!

Unlike the much disappointing, hardly credible "Extinct", I have simply been delighted by Alten's "MEG" and its sequel, "The Trench". Alten surely knows how to write an armrest-grabbing thriller. His book's a finely balanced mixture of scientific concepts on prehistoric and sea lifeforms, and pure adrenaline-generating moments. Funny how he manages to keep you from actually hating this huge shark. Another tribute to his writer's and scientist' skills. Another thing that makes his whole story stand together is the fact that Alten goes down to a series of coherent details, little things that make the whole story credible (use of a whale's blood warmth by the shark to move from the warm ocean floor up to the surface through different layers of cold streams, description of the life environment around the heat sinks at the bottom of the ocean, constant threat of water depth pressure etc.).He had me stay up late in the evening, and in the end, I simply had not had enough of his two books! I am now anxiously awaiting any of his new productions on the subject. His competition on the Shark subject is simply appaling.Note: I strongly advise summer ocean and sea bathers NOT to read this book while on the beach...

Two words: Jurassic Shark!

This book is great. I read it all in one day! It's about a sixty foot long shark that comes out of it's hiding place deep in the Challenger's Deep and starts wreaking havoc on sharks, whales, and-you guessed it-people! This book has been getting alot of negative reviews which it totally doesn't deserve. Suspense, a few laughs, action, and a great monster make this book a must read for fans of sci-fi and adventure. Ok, so some of the things in the book were far fetched, like the part when the Meg jumps completely out of the water to catch a helicopter. Do you see great whites jumping out of the water to catch flying birds. Also the part when the megaladon attacks the sub (wich was more than twice it's length) and sinks it! But all in all, it was a great book. I applaud the first time author Steve Alten who wrote this book for all the research and hard work he put into it.

Go Meg Go!

once in a while you come across a book that draws you in from the first word and doesn't let you go until the last. Meg, is such a book. Yes its been done before but in my opinion this one is much, much better than Jaws. I found Jaws to be rather slow at times while Meg has a pace equal with that of Meg's speed. I really didn't care about the human characters in this one only the shark. Every time an attack was about to take place I was rooting for the shark to get them all! The ending i found breath taking and it was nice to see that Alten didn't go for the big explosion ending as is so common in such books. As for details, well who cares; whether or not a shark can truly jump out of the water like that its irrelevent this is a work of fiction after all. You want facts go read an encyclopedia. You want non-stop suspense, read Meg. Having bought the audio version I found it to be a good production. The music accompaniment worked quite well along with the reader and really brought up the suspense level while listening to it. Great book great production, now I can't wait to listen to the sequel, Trench.