Just re-read this book for the third time (first time was in 1986 at the tender age of 11, then again in 2004). Hard-core, vintage Cussler, much more violent, profane, and sexually explicit than the newer, watered-down, PG-level Dirk Pitt books...and ergo much more entertaining. UPDATE AS OF 18SEP2023: I just finished reading “Vixen 03,” which I’ve never done with any other full-length novel. And since I let more than a decade elapse since the last reading, enough details and particulars had faded from my memory that there was a sufficient degree of freshness and surprise. What’s more, I now have an even greater appreciation for plots elements of the novel, thanks to some additional life experiences since the previous reading, namely: (1) touring the actual USS Iowa battleship a half-dozen times;(2) working closely with and befriending a ton of South Africans (blacks, whites, Coloreds, and Indians alike) in my overseas contracting stints; and (3) living and working in “The Beltway,” i.e. the Washington DC Metropolitan area.
