Reviews

58 Minutes by Walter Wager

shanep's review

3.0

It has been a while since I watched Die Hard 2. There are may differences (daughter on flight not wife), but I did enjoy the book in its own right.

qdb1994's review

1.0

An awful potboiler which was the basis for the film "Die Hard 2". I've never encountered a duller thriller with slower pacing. But the worse problem afflicting this novel is those Eight Deadly Words, "I don't care what happens to these people". Go watch "Die Hard 2" instead of reading this... or literally do anything else.
0.5/5

twomoon71's review against another edition

4.0

The basis of the film Die Hard 2: Die Harder. Though the film was pretty entertaining, it was not as gripping as it's influential predecesser. The book is a perfect summer beach-book, however. A slight little tome that can be read, left on the sand, then picked up again when you need a break from the sun - bookmark is optional.

theycallmemagui's review

adventurous fast-paced

3.5

tikitoka's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

cyn75's review

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

luminousluke's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.25

Sorry to say one of the most forgettable protagonists I've encountered in a long time (Frank Mallone) holds this thriller back from being decent. Not to mention how poorly a lot of the narrative choices have aged. Ultimately, NOTHING LASTS FOREVER by Roderick Thorp, despite a ton of flaws, is the better DIE HARD novel. Bring on John McClane!

My analysis on the Ink to Film podcast: https://youtu.be/YAgKKIJEuyY 

siili's review

3.0

A major snow storm has hit in the east coast and it affects the airports as well. JFK is still taking planes in when suddenly everything in the tower goes dark and the phone rings. Terrorist who simply calls himself "Number One" has taken control of the JFK airport and left nineteen planes circling around it's skies in a snow storm with very low fuel. If the U.S. Goverment doesn't do as he commands, the planes are doomed. But Number One hasn't taken account of a one police officer, who will try to stop him before it's too late. Can he do it in 58 minutes?

Straight-forward story with action. Lots of stuff cramped in a pretty short book, with quite a few characters in it, though you only need to remember the main ones in order to follow the story properly. Also if you've seen the movie Die Hard 2, you know what will happen, though the book has the story a bit different of course. The story itself isn't that special, but still the book was fast and entertaining enough to read. 3 stars.

grimamethyst's review against another edition

3.0

Eehhh, not as good as the first die hard book, but better than the movie

dalelane's review against another edition

3.0

The Die Hard 2 connection is a bit tenuous - the basic premise that "terrorists stop air traffic control talking to planes" is there, but apart from that it's completely different.

That's not a bad thing though as I'd got it because I like Walter Wager books, not because of the Die Hard branding.

It's not the smartest story ever, nothing will really surprise you, and all the loose ends are tied up incredibly quickly in the last dozen pages, but... it's a fun ride on the way. It's exactly what you want for a holiday read - exciting thriller with a big scary baddie and brave police hero.