Name: Paige LeBook's review of Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton
Item: Dragon Teeth
Rating: 3
Author: Paige LeBook

Michael Crichton

Not since Jurassic Park has digging up the past been so dangerous. Michael Crichton, the #1 New York Times bestselling author, returns to the world of paleontology in this recently discovered novel - a thrilling adventure set in the Wild West during the golden age of fossil hunting. Ancient discoveries. An epic rivalry. An adventure that made history. The year is 1876. Warring Indian tribes still populate America's western territories even as lawless gold-rush towns begin to mark the landscape. In much of the country it is still illegal to espouse evolution. Against this backdrop two monomaniacal paleontologists pillage the Wild West, hunting for dinosaur fossils, while surveilling, deceiving and sabotaging each other in a rivalry that will come to be known as the Bone Wars. Into this treacherous territory plunges the arrogant and entitled William Johnson, a Yale student with more privilege than sense. Determined to survive a summer in the west to win a bet against his arch-rival, William has joined world-renowned paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh on his latest expedition. But when the paranoid and secretive Marsh becomes convinced that William is spying for his nemesis, Edwin Drinker Cope, he abandons him in Cheyenne, Wyoming, a locus of crime and vice. William is forced to join forces with Cope and soon stumbles upon a discovery of historic proportions. With this extraordinary treasure, however, comes exceptional danger, and William's newfound resilience will be tested in his struggle to protect his cache, which pits him against some of the West's most notorious characters. A page-turner that draws on both meticulously researched history and an exuberant imagination, DRAGON TEETH is based on the rivalry between real-life paleontologists Cope and Marsh; in William Johnson readers will find an inspiring hero only Michael Crichton could have imagined.Perfectly paced and brilliantly plotted, this enormously winning adventure is destined to become another Crichton classic.

Dragon Teeth

Marc Pitty

Michael Crichton, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Jurassic Park, returns to the world of paleontology in this recently discovered novel -- a thrilling adventure set in the Wild West during the golden age of fossil hunting. The year is 1876. Warring Indian tribes still populate America's western territories even as lawless gold-rush towns begin to mark the landscape. Against this backdrop two paleontologists pillage the Wild West for dinosaur fossils, while deceiving and sabotaging each other in a rivalry that will come to be known as the Bone Wars. Into this treacherous territory plunges William Johnson, a Yale student with more privilege than sense. Determined to win a bet against his arch-rival, William has joined world-renowned paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh on his latest expedition. But Marsh becomes convinced that William is spying for his nemesis, Edwin Drinker Cope, and abandons him in Cheyenne, Wyoming, a locus of crime and vice. Soon William joins forces with Cope and stumbles upon a discovery of historic proportions. The struggle to protect this extraordinary treasure, however, will test William's newfound resilience and pit him against some of the West's most dangerous and notorious characters...

The unfinished, posthumous publication is always going to be a two-faced conundrum.

Paige LeBook

Michael Crichton, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Jurassic Park, returns to the world of paleontology in this recently discovered novel—a thrilling adventure set in the Wild West during the golden age of fossil hunting. The year is 1876. Warring Indian tribes still populate America’s western territories even as lawless gold-rush towns begin to mark the landscape. In much of the country it is still illegal to espouse evolution. Against this backdrop two monomaniacal paleontologists pillage the Wild West, hunting for dinosaur fossils, while surveilling, deceiving and sabotaging each other in a rivalry that will come to be known as the Bone Wars. Into this treacherous territory plunges the arrogant and entitled William Johnson, a Yale student with more privilege than sense. Determined to survive a summer in the west to win a bet against his arch-rival, William has joined world-renowned paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh on his latest expedition. But when the paranoid and secretive Marsh becomes convinced that William is spying for his nemesis, Edwin Drinker Cope, he abandons him in Cheyenne, Wyoming, a locus of crime and vice. William is forced to join forces with Cope and soon stumbles upon a discovery of historic proportions. With this extraordinary treasure, however, comes exceptional danger, and William’s newfound resilience will be tested in his struggle to protect his cache, which pits him against some of the West’s most notorious characters. A page-turner that draws on both meticulously researched history and an exuberant imagination, Dragon Teeth is based on the rivalry between real-life paleontologists Cope and Marsh; in William Johnson readers will find an inspiring hero only Michael Crichton could have imagined. Perfectly paced and brilliantly plotted, this enormously winning adventure is destined to become another Crichton classic.

A Novel

rumbledethumps

A fun Western novel, with some historical characters mixed in. Felt a little disjointed, almost like it was two different stories, and one character is just kind of forgotten with motives never explained, but overall a pleasant enough read.

Kirsten Simkiss

If you're looking for a great adventure from Michael Crichton, you shouldn't start with this one. This one is more of a fictionalized biography. Additionally, despite that the title of the book is Dragon Teeth and the cover prominently features a Tyrannosaurus Rex skull or something akin to that species, the "dragon teeth" refer to the teeth of a brontosaurus - decidedly not a carnivorous dino. It's a very misleading cover.

The story is... okay. It feels rushed, as though Crichton never got to really fill the characters with emotional depth that would make you really care. As this was discovered and published posthumously, I'm going to believe that this was the case. Although I've never been particularly enamored of any of his characters, they've never seemed as dull as poor William Johnson did. The writing was simple and flat. The occasional part did grab your attention a little more, but then it went back to a plain dullness. 

With the right actor, I feel like this could be a great TV mini-series or even a movie, but it just didn't make for a really compelling book. It lacks detail and emotional depth, glossing over what might have made for interesting characters so that you feel very little emotion toward anyone when they inevitably are killed. It very much is a biography, although apparently much was changed to make it more interesting if you read the afterword. I also felt this book lacked the underlying warning that Crichton always embedded into his books about where technology or mankind was headed. This book, simply put, is just not the masterpiece one might anticipate. 

Unless you're looking for fictionalized period paleontology, I don't recommend this book. It's definitely not something I'll be rereading.

Must have been good because I finished it within 48hrs.
Couldn't put it down.
The characters, the history, the story....all good.
But, then again, when has a Michael Crichton book ever not been good.
Worth the time and energy to read this one.
Love M.C.

Kerry Gibbons

Action-packed, quirky, and fast-paced. Really dug this book. Ha! Get it?!? Paleontology!

I was ecstatic to receive an ARC of this novel for a chance to read it in exchange for an honest review. I love dinosaurs, loved Jurassic Park, and the story was something that I knew vaguely enough to make it intriguing. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite what I was expecting.

What hinders this novel is Crichton not actually publishing it himself. The novel reads as a rough draft at times, with dialogue feeling more like people talking in dead space than an atmosphere or complete scene. This is less noticeable at the beginning but becomes apparent as you reach the ending. There are plot points that I think, had he intended to publish it in his lifetime, may have been neatened or otherwise revised to fit better into the story. The story also seems rather bare bones, pun intended, and other than inserting facts about the time, not much is done to create a setting and strong characters. Most any character could be replaced in a scene with another, especially the outlaws, so the continual changing of names and groups of characters can get confusing.

I think that the marketing I have seen for this novel is a little off-base as well. It's comparing it to Jurassic Park, and his wife, Sherri, is claiming this is a great companion. Frankly, I disagree. This is first and foremost a Western novel. The main plot uses the bones as a tool to get the protagonists moving westward, and little is seen of the bones themselves. I also felt that there wasn't much action between Marsh and Cope, which was disappointing since it seemed like the feud would play a more prominent role. I was especially hoping for some subterfuge and was disappointed to not see much more than a single man surviving in a weird situation.

It was an enjoyable book, especially once the second part began, but it seems like Crihcton wrote this more as an experiment than something intended for publishing. I wonder if he wasn't confident in the facts of the feud and how to present it in a believable light, because of the mix between fiction and nonfiction in the novel. I will have to check out his recommended reading about the dinosaur bone hunting in the badlands, though, it seems like there were some big incidents between Marsh and Cope.

Emily C Peterson

Some of this I really loved, but I was uncomfortable with how Crichton referred to Native Americans in this book... especially for a book written in 2017.

Judy Hudgins

Based on historical fact, not a bad read about hunting for dinosaur bones in the early west. What was really interesting is it is set in the area I am now living in, so a double bonus.

Southern Today Gone Tomorrow

Written by Michael Crichton, published after his death, follows Johnson as he goes on a hunt for dinosaur bones.

I really enjoyed this historical fiction novel. We got to meet Marsh and Cope and learn about the bone wars, which I never really knew. These two men did amazing things for paleontology.

We also got to meet a lot of historical figures (whom I will not name), which was interesting. This was a western novel, and I would definitely read more westerns written in this style.

As far as the audio went, the narrator for this book did a wonderful job. He put you back into the 1800’s, and I honestly thought that Johnson was a real person until I went and looking up more information and found out he wasn’t….

If you like westerns, or just well written novels, give this a shot.

Do. It.

Marc Pitty &
Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton

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Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton