What do you think?
Rate this book
Indiana Jones: Prequels #8
Indiana Jones and the White Witch
England, 1930. It begins when a gang of hooded thugs breaks into the secluded home of a modern-day witch deep in the mysterious New Forest. Stolen is a map that will lead Indiana Jones and fiery fellow archaeologist Gale Parker to an incredible discovery. Somewhere in the world is hidden an enormous hoard of gold, including ancient coins from the time of Christ . . . coins meant to spread Christianity.
With the aid of a young mistress of Wicca, the age-old religion of white witchcraft, Indy and Gale risk their lives on a round-the-world quest for the long-lost treasures. Racing them to find it is a cunning and ruthless criminal mastermind who has set his sights on world domination. But Indy and Gale have formidable the powers of Wicca, the sword of the legendary Merlin, and Indy’s own adventurous brand of magic.
With the aid of a young mistress of Wicca, the age-old religion of white witchcraft, Indy and Gale risk their lives on a round-the-world quest for the long-lost treasures. Racing them to find it is a cunning and ruthless criminal mastermind who has set his sights on world domination. But Indy and Gale have formidable the powers of Wicca, the sword of the legendary Merlin, and Indy’s own adventurous brand of magic.
336 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 1994
About the author
Martin Caidin
167 books73 followersMartin Caidin was a prolific and controversial writer. Most of his work centered around the adventures of pilots and astronauts. A number of his books were notable for their reasonable, realistic predictions of then-futuristic technology.
Caidin's body of work was prolific and varied, ranging from additional speculative/SF novels such as Marooned, which was made into an acclaimed film and considered a harbinger of the Apollo 13 accident, to a novel based upon the character Indiana Jones. He also wrote many non-fiction books about science, aviation and warfare.
Caidin began writing fiction in 1957. In his career he authored more than 50 fiction and nonfiction books as well as more than 1,000 magazine articles. His best-known novel is Cyborg, which was the basis for "The Six Million Dollar Man" franchise. He also wrote numerous works of military history, especially concerning aviation.
In addition to his writing Caidin was a pilot and active in the restoration and flying of older planes.
Caidin's body of work was prolific and varied, ranging from additional speculative/SF novels such as Marooned, which was made into an acclaimed film and considered a harbinger of the Apollo 13 accident, to a novel based upon the character Indiana Jones. He also wrote many non-fiction books about science, aviation and warfare.
Caidin began writing fiction in 1957. In his career he authored more than 50 fiction and nonfiction books as well as more than 1,000 magazine articles. His best-known novel is Cyborg, which was the basis for "The Six Million Dollar Man" franchise. He also wrote numerous works of military history, especially concerning aviation.
In addition to his writing Caidin was a pilot and active in the restoration and flying of older planes.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
November 3, 2023
Not including the Young Indiana Jones novels (and Young Indiana Jones Chronicles adult novel by James Luceno, of which they only released one for some reason), this serves as the last Indy prequel novel I planned to read before Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny releases in June of '23. I'm not exactly excited for Disney's installment of the franchise, but I'm a huge Indy fan, so I need to see how this plays out till the end.
After my rant on Martin Caidin's first Indy title (which I enjoyed), Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates, I am saddened to agree with the other reviews on here in this one.
The second and last of Martin Caidin's Indiana Jones prequel novels, since Mr. Caidin grew sick and passed away, had a strong opening. The opening to Sky Pirates was probably the best part of the last novel, just as the opening for this one was, but this one had what I believe to be the better climax of the two. Besides those two things, the novel felt as though I was reading a history book.
I get Indy is a professor, but these are supposed to be fast-paced stories full of intense action and adventure. Instead we get 85% dialogue/exposition and the remaining 15% is the good stuff. If someone is hiding from the enemy and trying to keep quiet, in reality, it would be best to give a quick version of a story to your crew, rather than 2-3 pages of it.
I'm not sure I'll be re-reading these two Martin Caidin Indiana Jones novels, but I did at least enjoy the first one he did. This one was a bit of a chore to get through though.
P.S. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a good movie that stayed true to Indy's over-the-top, swashbuckling, and pulp roots, but I wholeheartedly agree with anyone who bashes the monkey scene.
After my rant on Martin Caidin's first Indy title (which I enjoyed), Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates, I am saddened to agree with the other reviews on here in this one.
The second and last of Martin Caidin's Indiana Jones prequel novels, since Mr. Caidin grew sick and passed away, had a strong opening. The opening to Sky Pirates was probably the best part of the last novel, just as the opening for this one was, but this one had what I believe to be the better climax of the two. Besides those two things, the novel felt as though I was reading a history book.
I get Indy is a professor, but these are supposed to be fast-paced stories full of intense action and adventure. Instead we get 85% dialogue/exposition and the remaining 15% is the good stuff. If someone is hiding from the enemy and trying to keep quiet, in reality, it would be best to give a quick version of a story to your crew, rather than 2-3 pages of it.
I'm not sure I'll be re-reading these two Martin Caidin Indiana Jones novels, but I did at least enjoy the first one he did. This one was a bit of a chore to get through though.
P.S. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a good movie that stayed true to Indy's over-the-top, swashbuckling, and pulp roots, but I wholeheartedly agree with anyone who bashes the monkey scene.
June 16, 2015
This is the second of two Indiana Jones prequel novels written by Martin Caidin, and also includes the character of Gale Parker, the major character from the previous novel, Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates. This prolific author has written many adventure novels but is probably best known for Cyborg, the novel which served as the basis for the Six Million Dollar Man TV series.
Caidin really throws everything plus the kitchen sink into this novel and I think it suffers for it. We have amphibious flying boat adventures, King Arthur/ Avalon/ Merlin/ Excalibur/ Glastonbury adventures, Graf Zeppelin adventures, Stonehenge adventures…all the way to Civil War battle and lost gold adventures. And all of it is surrounded by a quasi-real magic explanation for events. There is simply too much to the plot, crammed into a single novel. I also found the supporting characters to be somewhat annoying, so much so that I didn’t really care how the novel would turn out.
I am a big Indiana Jones fan from the moment I saw the first movie in the theater. What makes for a good Indy novel is simple: it’s the character of Indy himself. Caidin really missed the mark this time around, even more so than in his first Indy novel, completely failing to capture his essence. If I hadn’t known Indy as a character before reading this book, I would no doubt be picturing him as a rather bland person who can demonstrate encyclopedic knowledge of every topic on earth precisely when it’s needed and destroying any build-up of suspense at the same time. He’s just a flat character in this one, swinging from one adventure to the next.
Max McCoy takes over the authorship of the next four Indy prequel novels; I’m anxious to see how he compares to his predecessors.
Caidin really throws everything plus the kitchen sink into this novel and I think it suffers for it. We have amphibious flying boat adventures, King Arthur/ Avalon/ Merlin/ Excalibur/ Glastonbury adventures, Graf Zeppelin adventures, Stonehenge adventures…all the way to Civil War battle and lost gold adventures. And all of it is surrounded by a quasi-real magic explanation for events. There is simply too much to the plot, crammed into a single novel. I also found the supporting characters to be somewhat annoying, so much so that I didn’t really care how the novel would turn out.
I am a big Indiana Jones fan from the moment I saw the first movie in the theater. What makes for a good Indy novel is simple: it’s the character of Indy himself. Caidin really missed the mark this time around, even more so than in his first Indy novel, completely failing to capture his essence. If I hadn’t known Indy as a character before reading this book, I would no doubt be picturing him as a rather bland person who can demonstrate encyclopedic knowledge of every topic on earth precisely when it’s needed and destroying any build-up of suspense at the same time. He’s just a flat character in this one, swinging from one adventure to the next.
Max McCoy takes over the authorship of the next four Indy prequel novels; I’m anxious to see how he compares to his predecessors.
June 3, 2015
Since I don't normally write reviews unless I have something specific to say, here's the break down of how I rate my books...
1 star... This book was bad, so bad I may have given up and skipped to the end. I will avoid this author like the plague in the future.
2 stars... This book was not very good, and I won't be reading any more from the author.
3 stars... This book was ok, but I won't go out of my way to read more, But if I find another book by the author for under a dollar I'd pick it up.
4 stars... I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the look out to pick up more from the series/author.
5 stars... I loved this book! It has earned a permanent home in my collection and I'll be picking up the rest of the series and other books from the author ASAP.
December 12, 2010
"Indiana Jones and the White Witch" is the first book of the Indy novels I have read. "The White Witch" is the 5th novel in the series, although as I'm aware, they don't follow Indy's adventures chronologically. I've heard good things about the film novelizations, claiming they portrayed Indy in a more hardcore, pulp hero kind of way (as if the cinematic Indy wasn't manly enough already!), so when I found this book on a discount I said to myself: "Well, it's a good title to start as any". And besides, it's Indy. It can't go wrong, right? Eh...
The Indy novels are all prequels to the film quadrilogy. This one takes place in 1930 and starts in New Forest, England. Indy is taking flying lessons from his female companion from old adventures, the fiery redhead Gale Parker. Just when they were passing above Gale's home village, St. Brendan's Glen, they see massive explosions and the Glen getting destroyed. Upon arriving on the scene, they learn that a terrorist group had attacked the Glen, which is actually a mystical village of the practitioners of Wicca, and stolen a map that supposedly leads to a invaluable treasure in gold. Joined by Caitlin St. Brendan - a modern-day witch - whose mother had been killed in the assault, Indy and Gale embark on a quest that will again lead them across the globe.
There is one problem when you read the best writer there ever was - Robert E. Howard. Why? Because it sets your expectations bar waaaaaaay too high and ruins everything else. A book that I would otherwise consider a quality read, just pales in comparison and becomes average at best. That was the case with this one. Howard was a master of eloquence, suspense and pacing. He could describe a scene like no other.
The trouble is, Caidin is not Howard. Compared to, for example, the Conan stories, his descriptions of both places and characters are rather vague. If I wasn't familiar with Indy and knew who he was, the protagonist of "The White Witch" could've as easily been a certain John Smith. Some paragraphs have strikingly amateurish writing - short sentences in a row all beginning with she or he. Fortunately, they are few and far in between.
I have to praise the action scenes which are told in a manner where you can easily picture the action and what's going on in your mind (something that was a pain in the ass, for example, in David Morrell's "First Blood").
About the characters. Indy is OK, but to my liking, he was not badass enough. He simply wasn't the swashbuckling adventurer I remembered him to be, but instead a little toned-down version. Gale Parker was generic. That's the best I could describe her. Basically, she's just a drag that brings nothing to the story. But the worst is Caitlin St. Brendan. In her Caidin succeeded in creating a really, really annoying character that comes across as a total bitch and a pompous snob who thinks is the smartest person on Earth. If that was the intention, then good work. Whatever the case, I really wished Indy would just punch the wench in the face. But he didn't. Others were minor characters, barely described, with an extremely bleak main villain Cordas who literally appears in person on a single page and is featured in 2 or 3 lines.
The biggest gripe I've got with this book is the complete lack of suspense, the thing that drives you to read on and on and devour more than a hundred pages a day. There is no build up, no climax. It's all a straight line from start to finish. Humor, something that was a trademark of the Indy films, is also lacking.
The dialogues, the consequences of which is the aforementioned lack of suspense, are uninspiring and would act as fillers in superior works. There is too much beating around the bushes without getting to the point. I can't even tell the number of times a character said "You just have to trust me." and its variations, in response to a proposal or idea that seemed illogical at the moment. There's more, and all of it just brings the novel down considerably.
I also loathe the cheap use of magic as a means to resolve fatal conflicts. In fantasy and sword and sorcery novels that's alright, naturally. But casting blizzards and the likes, which characters do here, is just an easy way out.
Overall, "The White Witch" is a decent adventure book. It gained points in my eyes because it deals with topics interesting to me personally, that usually fall into conspiracy theories: leylines, Earth's energies, secret societies, and even mentions how the Ancients knew true knowledge and the ways to use it - something that our faulty modern education system tries to eradicate from an early age in order to confine us to five basic senses. More so, the afterword claims nothing in this book raging from topography, historical sites to the topics concerning Earth's energies, is fictional. That was a positive surprise. However, as a read, it's an average effort and far behind being memorable.
Rating: 6/10
The Indy novels are all prequels to the film quadrilogy. This one takes place in 1930 and starts in New Forest, England. Indy is taking flying lessons from his female companion from old adventures, the fiery redhead Gale Parker. Just when they were passing above Gale's home village, St. Brendan's Glen, they see massive explosions and the Glen getting destroyed. Upon arriving on the scene, they learn that a terrorist group had attacked the Glen, which is actually a mystical village of the practitioners of Wicca, and stolen a map that supposedly leads to a invaluable treasure in gold. Joined by Caitlin St. Brendan - a modern-day witch - whose mother had been killed in the assault, Indy and Gale embark on a quest that will again lead them across the globe.
There is one problem when you read the best writer there ever was - Robert E. Howard. Why? Because it sets your expectations bar waaaaaaay too high and ruins everything else. A book that I would otherwise consider a quality read, just pales in comparison and becomes average at best. That was the case with this one. Howard was a master of eloquence, suspense and pacing. He could describe a scene like no other.
The trouble is, Caidin is not Howard. Compared to, for example, the Conan stories, his descriptions of both places and characters are rather vague. If I wasn't familiar with Indy and knew who he was, the protagonist of "The White Witch" could've as easily been a certain John Smith. Some paragraphs have strikingly amateurish writing - short sentences in a row all beginning with she or he. Fortunately, they are few and far in between.
I have to praise the action scenes which are told in a manner where you can easily picture the action and what's going on in your mind (something that was a pain in the ass, for example, in David Morrell's "First Blood").
About the characters. Indy is OK, but to my liking, he was not badass enough. He simply wasn't the swashbuckling adventurer I remembered him to be, but instead a little toned-down version. Gale Parker was generic. That's the best I could describe her. Basically, she's just a drag that brings nothing to the story. But the worst is Caitlin St. Brendan. In her Caidin succeeded in creating a really, really annoying character that comes across as a total bitch and a pompous snob who thinks is the smartest person on Earth. If that was the intention, then good work. Whatever the case, I really wished Indy would just punch the wench in the face. But he didn't. Others were minor characters, barely described, with an extremely bleak main villain Cordas who literally appears in person on a single page and is featured in 2 or 3 lines.
The biggest gripe I've got with this book is the complete lack of suspense, the thing that drives you to read on and on and devour more than a hundred pages a day. There is no build up, no climax. It's all a straight line from start to finish. Humor, something that was a trademark of the Indy films, is also lacking.
The dialogues, the consequences of which is the aforementioned lack of suspense, are uninspiring and would act as fillers in superior works. There is too much beating around the bushes without getting to the point. I can't even tell the number of times a character said "You just have to trust me." and its variations, in response to a proposal or idea that seemed illogical at the moment. There's more, and all of it just brings the novel down considerably.
I also loathe the cheap use of magic as a means to resolve fatal conflicts. In fantasy and sword and sorcery novels that's alright, naturally. But casting blizzards and the likes, which characters do here, is just an easy way out.
Overall, "The White Witch" is a decent adventure book. It gained points in my eyes because it deals with topics interesting to me personally, that usually fall into conspiracy theories: leylines, Earth's energies, secret societies, and even mentions how the Ancients knew true knowledge and the ways to use it - something that our faulty modern education system tries to eradicate from an early age in order to confine us to five basic senses. More so, the afterword claims nothing in this book raging from topography, historical sites to the topics concerning Earth's energies, is fictional. That was a positive surprise. However, as a read, it's an average effort and far behind being memorable.
Rating: 6/10
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 4, 2009
I like Indiana Jones...He's the best!
The story was quite exciting and extremely page-turner. I love its lexical contradictions between "witch" and "white". Was there any real good witches out there in the fictional world, or even our real world? Indiana Jones will bring us, readers, to have extraordinary experiences through his tremendous archaeological world. Two-thumps up.
The story was quite exciting and extremely page-turner. I love its lexical contradictions between "witch" and "white". Was there any real good witches out there in the fictional world, or even our real world? Indiana Jones will bring us, readers, to have extraordinary experiences through his tremendous archaeological world. Two-thumps up.
July 22, 2012
In "Indiana Jones and the White Witch" by Martin Caidin, Jones goes in search of the legendary sword, Excalibur. He, of course, gets involved with a sassy British pilot named Gale... and her sister Caitlin! Uh oh! Raucous mayhem abounds.
October 9, 2018
I first started this book in 1994, after reading the first seven books in this series, and I couldn’t get too far into it. IJ and the Sky Pirates, the seventh book in the series and the first written by this book’s author, Martin Caidin, was not a favorite. I remember liking the female lead, but not all the flying or how the character of Indiana Jones was written. Then continuing into The White Witch I decided to take a break from this series. I continued to purchase the other books as I fully intended to return because I greatly enjoyed the first six, especially how they were interconnected. Fast forward almost 25 years and here we are, finally returning to the series.
To make sure history didn’t repeat itself I read the first half as fast as I could to get invested. And that helped some until reality set it. IJATWW reads fine, the mythical aspects are more interesting than the missing gold - which seems to be tagged on... because Indy goes on quests in the movies I am guessing.
Regardless, once again I found I disliked the characterization of Indiana Jones as written by this author. He is smart, he leads the charge, but the majority of this book is Indy explaining stuff to Gale, to Caitlin, to Treadwell. There is little humanity to him, little personality. He is more of a walking encyclopedia, dolling out information. No character arcs to speak of for the other characters - which can be forgiven in an action/adventure novel - and even in licensed fiction - if the action is good and the tone/feeling of the material is present. It is not here. There is little actual Indiana Jones action; much like The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, the well-researched history and mythical aspects were leaned upon heavily, leaving little room for the characterizations or action pieces that are so much a part of the movies. The climax here was particularly disappointing.
This is the last Indy book Mr. Caidin wrote, and the next four author Max McCoy takes the reins. Ideally, the series will return to form with some good maguffins, good action, good mystery, and good characters worthy of being an Indiana Jones adventure.
To make sure history didn’t repeat itself I read the first half as fast as I could to get invested. And that helped some until reality set it. IJATWW reads fine, the mythical aspects are more interesting than the missing gold - which seems to be tagged on... because Indy goes on quests in the movies I am guessing.
Regardless, once again I found I disliked the characterization of Indiana Jones as written by this author. He is smart, he leads the charge, but the majority of this book is Indy explaining stuff to Gale, to Caitlin, to Treadwell. There is little humanity to him, little personality. He is more of a walking encyclopedia, dolling out information. No character arcs to speak of for the other characters - which can be forgiven in an action/adventure novel - and even in licensed fiction - if the action is good and the tone/feeling of the material is present. It is not here. There is little actual Indiana Jones action; much like The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, the well-researched history and mythical aspects were leaned upon heavily, leaving little room for the characterizations or action pieces that are so much a part of the movies. The climax here was particularly disappointing.
This is the last Indy book Mr. Caidin wrote, and the next four author Max McCoy takes the reins. Ideally, the series will return to form with some good maguffins, good action, good mystery, and good characters worthy of being an Indiana Jones adventure.
December 27, 2019
Ugh. Another slog in this Indy prequel series. Book is bloated and overlong. To make matters worse, Indy is more of a spectator in this book. In the whole book, there is really only one action scene in which Indy participates-- everything else he is just witness to.
Even worse, Indy's characterization and speech are way off. This in no way feels like Indy. There is magic used a lot in the story, which Indy just accepts with a laugh. Sure, there is a lot of text given to explaining how the magic works in a natural/scientific sense, but, although the concepts are interesting, they are too whimsical for Indy to essentially just shrug and be nonplussed by it.
The villain is lame, the action non-existent, and the bulk of the book is just people talking. I'm still trying to figure out how so little happens in an Indy story over 300 pages in length. (I had much the same thought after reading Caidin's previous "plane-porn" Indy story.)
Rob MacGregor's books weren't great, but he at least had a grasp on Indy as a character and kept his stories moving. Even at his worst (and "Interior Earth" was certainly bad), I still felt like I was reading an Indy story. Not so with either of Caidin's.
To make matters worse, Caidin's writing just isn't that good. Way too many adverbs, generic characterization, repetitive text, circuitous conversation. Honestly, there are lots of sections that feel like they're unpolished draft where Caidin was just writing on the fly to get his ideas down and should've gone back to tighten the flow of the scene/conversation. These frequent passages contribute in large part to the book's page count and the overall plodding flow of the story.
Thankfully, this is the last of Caidin's books, and from some of the reviews of the upcoming stories, it sounds like they get better. Unless you wanna be a completist with this series, this once is definitely skippable.
Even worse, Indy's characterization and speech are way off. This in no way feels like Indy. There is magic used a lot in the story, which Indy just accepts with a laugh. Sure, there is a lot of text given to explaining how the magic works in a natural/scientific sense, but, although the concepts are interesting, they are too whimsical for Indy to essentially just shrug and be nonplussed by it.
The villain is lame, the action non-existent, and the bulk of the book is just people talking. I'm still trying to figure out how so little happens in an Indy story over 300 pages in length. (I had much the same thought after reading Caidin's previous "plane-porn" Indy story.)
Rob MacGregor's books weren't great, but he at least had a grasp on Indy as a character and kept his stories moving. Even at his worst (and "Interior Earth" was certainly bad), I still felt like I was reading an Indy story. Not so with either of Caidin's.
To make matters worse, Caidin's writing just isn't that good. Way too many adverbs, generic characterization, repetitive text, circuitous conversation. Honestly, there are lots of sections that feel like they're unpolished draft where Caidin was just writing on the fly to get his ideas down and should've gone back to tighten the flow of the scene/conversation. These frequent passages contribute in large part to the book's page count and the overall plodding flow of the story.
Thankfully, this is the last of Caidin's books, and from some of the reviews of the upcoming stories, it sounds like they get better. Unless you wanna be a completist with this series, this once is definitely skippable.
January 17, 2021
As with the previous book in this series, also by this author, this novel didn't quite work for me. The dialogue seemed off, and the character of Indy seemed very different to other books and to the films and TV series.
Possibly though the main issue was that the 'macguffin' seemed convoluted and was a little too close to home for me, covering places near where I grew up and linking disparate stories in a stretch too far for my suspension of disbelief (King Arthur, Excalibur, wicca, Jesus, and the US Civil War).
As in the last book the author makes clear that his real passion and expertise is in aviation, with any even brief encounter with a plane or zeppelin described in great detail - always down as far as the tech specs and how well they flew. I like planes myself so this is nice enough, however it highlights the comparative lack of detail and interest in other parts of the story.
Still, with all that said, a fun romp in the world of Indy and I shall continue with the series.
Possibly though the main issue was that the 'macguffin' seemed convoluted and was a little too close to home for me, covering places near where I grew up and linking disparate stories in a stretch too far for my suspension of disbelief (King Arthur, Excalibur, wicca, Jesus, and the US Civil War).
As in the last book the author makes clear that his real passion and expertise is in aviation, with any even brief encounter with a plane or zeppelin described in great detail - always down as far as the tech specs and how well they flew. I like planes myself so this is nice enough, however it highlights the comparative lack of detail and interest in other parts of the story.
Still, with all that said, a fun romp in the world of Indy and I shall continue with the series.
December 10, 2020
I imagine the reason Caidin only wrote two of the twelve books in this series is because the publisher didn't read this one until after it was printed and sold. Aside from the fact that Indy doesn't feel anything close to Indy, that the supernatural is more Temple of Doom than Lost Ark, and that the tone of the entire novel is one of condescension, it feels bonkers that Caidin would write a book that combines Jesus, Wicca religion, Arthurian legend, and the American Civil War. It's like the author pulled ideas out of a hat and said, "Yes, THAT."
Plus, having finished the book, I can't help but feel like Caidin is some sort of Civil War-Confederate sympathizer. The whole thing just made me feel icky.
Plus, having finished the book, I can't help but feel like Caidin is some sort of Civil War-Confederate sympathizer. The whole thing just made me feel icky.
August 9, 2021
As usual, Caiden delivers. Historically and factually accurate, you're in for a great ride. The beginning was a bit hard to follow, but the kinks worked themselves out. Three snags, though. One, there is a flashback to Stonehenge, which didn't reference the other activities of Dance of the Giants. Two, there is the question of Indy's ability to pilot a plane. In Temple of Doom, nada, but by Lst Crusade, he can "fly, yes, land no!" But Caiden, himself a pilot, has Indy know more than he should know.
Lastly, the reaction to snakes in chapter 22 is really out of character. He should have more irrational reaction. Other than that, these are fun books. Though there is the issue of characterization. This Indy doesn't feel like Harrison Ford.
Lastly, the reaction to snakes in chapter 22 is really out of character. He should have more irrational reaction. Other than that, these are fun books. Though there is the issue of characterization. This Indy doesn't feel like Harrison Ford.
January 31, 2023
Caidin’s second Indiana Jones novel outdoes the former by leaps and bounds. Gale returns in this story and is is a great companion for Indy. The story itself starts in England with medieval magic and wraps up with Civil War lore in the US state of Florida. An adventure aboard a zeppelin connects the two. The story moves along nicely and seldom drags. After enjoying a great adventure things wrap up in a disappointing fashion. The all too convenient swarm of Civil War reenactors that do the bad guys in left too many questionable details. Gray paint on gold cannons that survived Florida’s subtropical heat for 50+ years was also a stretch for this reader.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2023
Unfortunatley, this Author made Indiana Jones boring. I won’t let one author ruin them all but, it’s good he only wrote a few. It’s littered with over explanation of aviation knowledge simply because the author was also a pilot. The endless pages of very specific descriptions of things Indiana Jones wouldn’t know without the author’s knowledge constantly breaks the illusion. Also, if you start a sentence with “They They”, have you really read what you have written? Look somewhere else for an adventure because this one doesn't start till 170 pages in and, it's not worth the struggle to get there.
February 28, 2019
This one was of Dad's books (he loved everything Indiana Jones) and I found it a pretty read that involved an interesting use of King Arthur, Merlin, and Excaliber (although the alternate name of Caliburn was used, which most people wouldn't recognize).
Indy's adventure takes him from England to France, and from Germany to USA on the largest blimps of the 1930's. Finally to the sight of a particular Civil War battlefield deep in the south in the search for a band of murderous thieves and a long lost treasure.
Indy's adventure takes him from England to France, and from Germany to USA on the largest blimps of the 1930's. Finally to the sight of a particular Civil War battlefield deep in the south in the search for a band of murderous thieves and a long lost treasure.
November 27, 2019
This was bad. Totally lacking any thrills, excitement, adventure or archaeology. Far too much time was spent discussing the functionality of practical witchcraft instead of simply marvelling at the amazing stuff going on. Like with The Last Crusade, Indie finds himself on a dirigible, but any interest in the flight was drowned up by a meticulous account of the airship's inner workings. The vague and very empty plot of getting to a treasure before some cookie-cutter baddie gets there first barely featured in the 'story.' Don't waste your time with this one.
April 19, 2022
อินเดียน่า โจนส์ เปิดฉากด้วยการเป็นนักเรียนฝึกบินกับคุณครูสาวผู้มีพลังเหนือธรรมชาติ เกล ปาร์กเกอร์ ระหว่างที่บินพบว่าหมู่บ้านโดดเดี่ยวในป่านิวฟอเรสต์กำลังถูกโจมตี ตัวร้ายต้องการชิงแผนที่ขุมทองคำซึ่งสูญหายไปตอนสงครามกลางเมือง (เป็นทองที่อังกฤษกับวาติกันสนับสนุนกองกำลังทหารฝ่ายใต้) แม่เฒ่าของหมู่บ้านถูกสังหารอย่างทารุณ นำไปสู่การไล่ล่าของทายาทรุ่นถัดมาเพื่อล้างแค้น เธอเป็นจอมขมังเวทย์ผู้ถือดาบแคลิเบอร์ของพ่อมดเมอร์ลิน ด้วยความช่วยเหลือจากศาสตราจารย์เฮ็นรี่ วอลตัน อินเดียน่า โจนส์ จูเนียร์ และน้องสาวร่วมสาบานของจอมขมังเวทย์ (เกล ปาร์กเกอร์นั่นแหละ) การตามล่าฆาตกรและค้นหาทองคำเร้าใจตั้งแต่ต้นจนจบ
February 28, 2023
Not a bad novel, but I preferred the previous author of the series. Caidin has obviously written a lot of non fiction, as his writing sometimes gets bogged down in explanations of how mechanical things work, historical background, etc. Indy starts his adventure in the magical forest of King Arthur, and then ends up in the United States tracking a huge shipment of gold lost during the Civil War. He's aided by a white witch who may or may not be wielding the mythical sword Excalibur.
Decent read, so far I haven't read a book in this series that I didn't like.
Decent read, so far I haven't read a book in this series that I didn't like.
July 25, 2021
So awful I couldn't get past the first chapter and the blurb on the back cover. Indy is not a professor of medieval literature - that was his father's job, not his. There were no wild boars in the UK in 1930 - they were first re-introduced in the late 1990s/early 2000s and still haven't reached the New Forest last time I checked. And above all there was no Wicca in 1930 - it was invented in the mid- to late 1940s by Gerald Gardner.
May 10, 2024
This book is a guilty pleasure of mine. It was published in 1994 and I've held on to it for all these years until I could get around to reading it. I liked it. I thought it was a fun, adventure novel with enough actual history sprinkled throughout it to make it that much more interesting. I really wish they had done more with the Indiana Jones character back when Harrison Ford was young enough to play him, but barring that, this novel is a good diversion.
June 6, 2024
Earlier this year, I read Martin Caidin's other Indiana Jones book. It was called Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates. I rated it 3 stars, making it the 1st and only book I've given that rating to in 2024 so far. Indiana Jones and the White Witch is the direct sequel to Sky Pirates. You'll notice that I gave it a 4-star rating. I really thought that it was a much better book than the one that preceded it.
July 22, 2019
This book was, bluntly stated, awful. Even fictionalized religious history should be marginally more on the nose than this "hundreds of years old" tradition nonsense.
The writing was terrible, the fictionalized history was inane, and the plot was soupy at best. Of the lot of the Indiana Jones novels - which admittedly are not high fiction
The writing was terrible, the fictionalized history was inane, and the plot was soupy at best. Of the lot of the Indiana Jones novels - which admittedly are not high fiction
March 20, 2023
Maybe one sentence on dispelling your non belief in magic, not chapters. A line from the movie states "I'm making this up as I go", not chapters explaining the plans, unrelated details, and how a zepplin works. The book made me hungry because every breakfast was described in detail. More action please!!! It did not feel like the Indy character I needed and knew.
June 18, 2019
Ugh. I was going to write another review as I did for the previous Caidin disaster “Sky Pirates” but I just don’t have it in me after slogging through this garbage. Suffice it to say that it should be titled “Indiana Jones and the Endless, Mind-Numbing Expositional Dialogue.”
July 11, 2017
Can't even compare it to a pile of garbage. Out of respect for the garbage.
December 18, 2018
Dull, meandering plot with way too much flat exposition, and the characterization of Indiana Jones is all wrong.
August 3, 2019
The book felt verry weird the writing of Indy did not feel at all like the character from the movies. The way various characters were treated did feel very much of the era it takes place in.
March 24, 2024
Has Martin Caidin ever seen an Indiana Jones movie?
Has ANYONE who wrote these books seen a Jones flick?
Has ANYONE who wrote these books seen a Jones flick?
March 11, 2016
Overall this book was better than the last one I read in the Indiana Jones series: Indiana Jones and the Secret of the Sphinx (Indiana Jones: Prequels #12). In this book, the story and most of the characters weren't as vapid. However, this book needs an editor.
Several sentences simply didn't make sense due to word usage or inconsistent story telling. I had to stop and reread a few sentences over to try and make sense of them. The word 'this' was used twice consecutively at the beginning of one sentence. A lot of exposition could have been cut to reduce drag. It felt like filler and, at times, slowed the story to a crawl. More time spent developing the antagonist would have added some tension to the story. He's left so unattended I began to wonder if he was actually any sort of threat. One of the protagonists is consistently heralded as a completely awesome warrior, yet is taken down relatively easily in a small skirmish and never really fights again. That was a let down. Tidbits here and there hinted at a more intimate relationship between two of the protagonists, but it was uncharacteristic, didn't fit the story, and consequently felt forced. At the end an uncharacteristic move by the main character reduces the story to a gimmick. The other protagonists seemed just as annoyed as I was.
That said, I'm a sucker for an adventurous archaeologist and will still give this book three stars because it's crack and a guilty pleasure.
Several sentences simply didn't make sense due to word usage or inconsistent story telling. I had to stop and reread a few sentences over to try and make sense of them. The word 'this' was used twice consecutively at the beginning of one sentence. A lot of exposition could have been cut to reduce drag. It felt like filler and, at times, slowed the story to a crawl. More time spent developing the antagonist would have added some tension to the story. He's left so unattended I began to wonder if he was actually any sort of threat. One of the protagonists is consistently heralded as a completely awesome warrior, yet is taken down relatively easily in a small skirmish and never really fights again. That was a let down. Tidbits here and there hinted at a more intimate relationship between two of the protagonists, but it was uncharacteristic, didn't fit the story, and consequently felt forced. At the end an uncharacteristic move by the main character reduces the story to a gimmick. The other protagonists seemed just as annoyed as I was.
That said, I'm a sucker for an adventurous archaeologist and will still give this book three stars because it's crack and a guilty pleasure.
August 23, 2019
I have read plenty of Indiana Jones novels, and this one wasn't the worst I've read. However, it is the second worse. The worst being Martin Caidin's other Indy book, Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates. There is definitely something that is missing to the Indiana Jones formula in his books, the very formula that would even compel one to pick up an Indiana Jones novel in the first place. That being said, it wasn't all bad. There were some pretty good action scenes and a lot of research was put into the novel as far as locations and legends are concerned. At the end of the day, as I like to say, it's still Indiana Jones, and that alone makes it worth the read for a fanboy.
July 18, 2013
The second disappointment in the Indiana Jones novel series. The story felt a bit dull, and the characters felt dull as well. This story was just boring and the mysterious aura of what makes an Indiana Jones adventure super natural was missing. The ending was also just dead dull.
The odd part of this novel is that is tries to combine golds coins from the time of Jesus and the sword of Merlin and have them in the same novel. It's just odd to do so. I could have done well without this novel. Indiana Jones fans probably won't be as satisfied with this novel.
The odd part of this novel is that is tries to combine golds coins from the time of Jesus and the sword of Merlin and have them in the same novel. It's just odd to do so. I could have done well without this novel. Indiana Jones fans probably won't be as satisfied with this novel.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews