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0s1r1s's review
2.0
While "Nemo Rising" may be an entertaining adventure story in its own right, it ultimately falls short of the high standard set by Jules Verne's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". The book follows the further adventures of Captain Nemo, but it lacks the depth and complexity of the original work. C. Courtney Joyner's prose is serviceable but lacks the imaginative flair and descriptive power that made Verne's writing so compelling. The characters are thinly drawn, with little in the way of character development or nuance, and the plot relies heavily on familiar adventure story tropes and cliches. While "Nemo Rising" may appeal to readers looking for a fast-paced and action-packed adventure, it is unlikely to satisfy those looking for the kind of depth and originality that made "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" such a classic. In the end, "Nemo Rising" is a decent adventure story, but it falls short of the greatness of its predecessor.
a_chickletz's review against another edition
2.0
Will write longer review. But man, this boring was confusing and boring and Nemo was way too bitchy. What the hell.
Okay. A little bit of added detail on this review.
As a 7 year old - 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea was my favorite Disney movie growing up. I lived and breathed for that film. Ask anybody. I did a diorama of the squid scene as a book report, since I had a read a children's version of the book. (I read the actual book years later, as you can tell.)
Nemo is probably one of my favorite anti-heroes. Is he a villain? Is he a hero? Is he both? He is so complex that you could write so many different thesis regarding him and you'd come back with different answers. He doesn't fall in one category, and he is a man of charisma, depth, intellect. Think of if you took Ahab and Sherlock Holmes and mixed them together.
I mean, the guy who penned this said he was going to make this into a film but he took the screenplay and turned it into a book. Right-o. Okay.
I liked the girl? That's all I can and will give it. Everything else was one, huge, corkscrew mess and I want to know if the guy read the same book as I did? This sucker had the most bitchiest Nemo I have ever read. Low and behold, his favorite Nemo was the Herbert Lom one, not the James Mason. (But now, if you were to take both actors into consideration, Nemo was actual a person of color.) But still - why that one?
Anyway. You have this story, about Nemo, SOMEHOW SURVIVING HIS SUB CAPSIZING AND HIS DEATH to be taken to a prison and awaiting a hanging. Apparently President Grant was like, lets get him out of jail because there is someone who is running around the waters, blowing up boats, like him no less, and what better way to find out who is doing this than to get the original terror of the ocean back on the sea.
Nemo is cruel, he is all over the place. Think of Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes x 2 and that's what Nemo is like through this whole book. In this book, I wanted him to slap him and tell him to shove a sock in it. (Nemo has many layers to his character where you found him relatable and other times where you just wanted to shake your fist at him.)
There is some weird side story about the President being up for assassination that sorta is involved with the plot. There is an ending that is bizarre and comes off like something out of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
I kind of walked right into this with a cover like that (look at that book cover, ahem). But seriously - I'd stay far away from this book if you enjoy 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the character Nemo in general.
Okay. A little bit of added detail on this review.
As a 7 year old - 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea was my favorite Disney movie growing up. I lived and breathed for that film. Ask anybody. I did a diorama of the squid scene as a book report, since I had a read a children's version of the book. (I read the actual book years later, as you can tell.)
Nemo is probably one of my favorite anti-heroes. Is he a villain? Is he a hero? Is he both? He is so complex that you could write so many different thesis regarding him and you'd come back with different answers. He doesn't fall in one category, and he is a man of charisma, depth, intellect. Think of if you took Ahab and Sherlock Holmes and mixed them together.
I mean, the guy who penned this said he was going to make this into a film but he took the screenplay and turned it into a book. Right-o. Okay.
I liked the girl? That's all I can and will give it. Everything else was one, huge, corkscrew mess and I want to know if the guy read the same book as I did? This sucker had the most bitchiest Nemo I have ever read. Low and behold, his favorite Nemo was the Herbert Lom one, not the James Mason. (But now, if you were to take both actors into consideration, Nemo was actual a person of color.) But still - why that one?
Anyway. You have this story, about Nemo, SOMEHOW SURVIVING HIS SUB CAPSIZING AND HIS DEATH to be taken to a prison and awaiting a hanging. Apparently President Grant was like, lets get him out of jail because there is someone who is running around the waters, blowing up boats, like him no less, and what better way to find out who is doing this than to get the original terror of the ocean back on the sea.
Nemo is cruel, he is all over the place. Think of Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes x 2 and that's what Nemo is like through this whole book. In this book, I wanted him to slap him and tell him to shove a sock in it. (Nemo has many layers to his character where you found him relatable and other times where you just wanted to shake your fist at him.)
There is some weird side story about the President being up for assassination that sorta is involved with the plot. There is an ending that is bizarre and comes off like something out of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
I kind of walked right into this with a cover like that (look at that book cover, ahem). But seriously - I'd stay far away from this book if you enjoy 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the character Nemo in general.
novelbloglover's review against another edition
1.0
Book Review
Title: Nemo Rising
Author: C. Courtney Joyner
Genre: YA/Steampunk/Fantasy
Rating: DNF at 34%
Review: The opening to Nemo Rising was very gripping and had a real Moby Dick feel to it. We meet Horst and Krieg old friend aboard a ship discussed things they had received from their grandchildren when the ship is attacked and destroyed by a giant ray where both men are killed. When then jump forward to the White House where Ulysses S. Grant and John Duncan are discussed this sinking of several ships and the apparent monster that has been destroying them. While Duncan believes the accounts for dying sailors from all over the world the President doesn’t.
During their discussion Duncan makes the point that there might be someone who knows what is happening to the ships. We learn of a terrorist who went by the name Nemo aboard his ship with Nautilus who launched several attacks on military vessels to stop any future wars and preserve peace. When then jump to a prison break where the prisoners are breaking Nemo out of prison. While this story is intriguing I wasn’t keen on the location jumps almost every chapter, but I am hoping for a consistent location soon. When Grant and Duncan travel to the prison where Nemo is being held they encounter a riot in progress and despite attempts to subdue the prisoners, they are outnumbered ten to one. When Nemo finally appears, he doesn’t make ludicrous demands for prisoners to be set free, just for them to be treated better and this resonates with a few soldiers on the opposing side.
While Nemo is injured in the riot, Grant does agree that the prison is in poor shape and that men need to be taken better care of which upsets the men running the prison, but they must bow to the President’s orders. Grant also makes a deal with Nemo, he will take the Nautilus and find out how the ships have been sinking in their waters and stop whatever or whoever is doing it. Faced with the choice between the hangman’s noose and dying at sea Nemo takes the offer. We are also constantly reminded of new ships sinking constantly and the thing destroying them. We also see the tension building in other countries at the US as men are dying and ship are being destroyed in their waters. As this novel is set shortly after the American Civil War the treatment of Nemo by his supposed superiors is absolutely disgusting but it is a real visual of how these men were treated at the time, but Nemo escape the brunt of persecution as he is on a mission for the President and a pardon has been issued if he succeeds.
As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, tensions are rising to boiling point, but the Nautilus isn’t in the best of shape being an enemy vessel and one of the most powerful in existence, so it may take a while before Nemo sets off. Grant on the other hand is dealing with problems of his own and more than one attempt on his life. We are also introduced to Sara Duncan who is a lot like her father but bears her mother’s temper and while she admires Nemo’s genius she doesn’t like the way he treats her father but in my opinion Nemo treats John the best out of everyone he has met. As we cross the 1q/4 mark in the novel, Nemo isn’t happy with what has been lost on the Nautilus, some of which can never be replaced.
In addition, to the wider story we also see attacks with the US itself with the death of an Italian Bishop and a foreign general. We also see that Grant may also be a target for assassination and must take proper precautions to protect himself and his men. I also really liked the tentative alliance Sara and Nemo build over the reconstruction of the Nautilus and he talks to her about the design and some key features that no one has been able to unravel since his arrest. We see Sara recruiting a crew for the Nautilus and she is also instructs by her father to install a device aboard the ship which will allow communication but as Nemo rightly points out it can also be used to spy on him during his mission. Grant also tells Nemo he must be a sea by sunrise or he will be arrested again and face the hangman. So, up until this point the whole novel has been setting the stage for Nemo’s voyage which is about to begin, and we are over a ¼ of the way through the novel, so it requires some dedication before the novel gets interesting. I also really liked the hint at Nemo’s life before he was arrested with the portrait of his wife and son who presumably are dead and in invisible ink on the portrait are the blueprint for the ship which can only be seen under red light, this really highlights the genius that Nemo is and what he has achieved with the Nautilus.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, the Nautilus still hasn’t set sail, but we are shown another bit of trouble out at sea and I was completely bored by this point and had to DNF this book. It was just too slow paced for me and I really didn’t like the constant jumping of location and perspective making the novel feel disjointed and I didn’t have enough time with the characters to really connect with them.
tigerb99's review
1.0
I really wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't care about all the stuff happening to the president back on land. I just wanted to spend time out on the submarine with the intriguing Nemo character. I had to give up on the book. :(
jameseckman's review
2.0
Originally written as a screenplay, the book suffers from paper thin characters, plot holes you can fly a dirigible thru and other similar problems of the action movie genre. As a movie it would be a blast, I'd pay to see it, but as a book it's a great example of the differences between movies and books. One of the rare times the movie would be vastly superior to the book.
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