I’m a big fan of disaster movies. Two of my favorites came out in 1997: Dante’s Peak and Volcano. Eruption, written by Michael Crichton and James Patterson, fits perfectly into the disaster movie genre, supplying the tropes and story elements that make these types of stories engaging and entertaining.
Volcanoes, like earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes, are forces of nature that humans have attempted to subvert or prevent with zero impact on their destructive aftermath. That’s one aspect of these events that makes them scary and fascinating: they refuse to bow to the will of the human race.
In Eruption, our cast of characters, led by John MacGregor, head of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, discover that the biggest volcano on the island, Mauna Loa, is on the verge of a historic eruption. It’s an eruption that could lead to thousands of deaths and destruction in the millions if the locals and others aren’t evacuated in time.
As if this wasn’t a big enough problem, MacGregor is contacted by the United States Military Reserve and made aware that inside the smaller volcano on the island, Mauna Kea, are hundreds of tubes housing radioactive herbicide. If the tubes break open, their contents have the power to wipe out all plant life on Earth, followed by animals and humans.
With the projected lava flow from Mauna Loa’s eruption set to head directly toward Mauna Kea and the toxic containers, it’s up to MacGregor, his team, and a group recruited by the military to stop the flow and prevent the containers from contaminating the world.
Will MacGregor and company figure it out before the volcanic mayhem begins?
After his sudden passing in 2008, Michael Crichton’s wife discovered several unfinished manuscripts, outlines, and research materials for other novels that Crichton had been working on. Two of those, Dragon Teeth and Micro, were completed and published with the assistance of different authors, so a third collaboration on one of his works, Eruption, made logical sense.
Enter James Patterson, a best-selling author in his own right, who is known for collaborating with everyone from former President Bill Clinton to singing superstar Dolly Parton. It makes sense that he would be the author brought in for this novel, and he does an excellent job with the material.
Which, of course, begs the question: How much of Eruption is Crichton and how much is Patterson? It’s clear that the science-based information is Crichton’s significant contribution to this novel, and I’m going to guess that many of the characters, including our hero, John MacGregor, are a creation of the late author as well. If you’ve read any of Crichton’s works like Jurassic Park, State of Fear, or The Andromeda Strain, you know that he loves to provide a healthy dose of real-world science mixed in with the sci-fi aspects of his stories.
On the Patterson side, I would assume attempting to pick up where another author left off on a manuscript would be a daunting task, so I would guess Patterson tossed any drafts Crichton had started and started from chapter one in his style, making sure to insert plenty of Crichton’s research and information about volcanoes and the Hawaiian Islands throughout the story.
Crichton’s spirit is present, but the book is written in Patterson’s fast-paced, short-chaptered, easy-to-read prose, which does make it an enjoyable read.
I would love, however, to read what Crichton had written for Eruption before he passed, to see how the Jurassic Park author would have presented the material.
If you’re in the mood for a disaster movie popcorn flick in book form, I recommend Eruption by Michael Crichton and James Patterson.
Now, which unfinished Crichton manuscript will Stephen King help complete? That’s what I want to know!