From Product Description:

Map on lining papers.

worst book I have read this year. Looks like it has been written by12 year kid. All the grotesque pirate clichés are present...

Other reviewers have noted that Crichton's latest novel, published posthumously, was found in his files as a completed manuscript. No date was attached and speculation insists it was an early work. Certainly not so didactic as most of his novels, it still shows his skill in manipulating plot and making events come alive, even if his characters are fleshed out no more than cardboard cutouts. <br /> <br />It's a quick and easy read, perfect for the hammock or lounge chair in summer. Events move rapidly and are fittingly enormous --- the sudden storm as the tiny group climbs the cliff, the later hurricane, the conflict of the few against the many. Set in the Caribbean, in pirate days, the story details the swashbuckling life of a privateer, yes, a privateer, not a pirate. Go to your dictionary if you're confused. <br /> <br />As someone who's read every novel Crichton produced, I wasn't disappointed. Don't think you will be either. Enjoy

I have two versions of who wrote this book: <br /> <br />1) That Michael Crichton did it but he didn't want to publish it. So his family did after he died. <br /> <br />2) Some family or friends wrote it in his name to make an accolade for him. <br /> <br /> <br />In both cases the friends and/or family blundered Michael Crichton's work because -of course this will be the last book from him that I'd ever read- and I really have a distaste for this book and maybe that is what I'll remember from him.

I read the sample for this about 2 months ago and the went to buy it while on holiday and found that it had been removed from the uk store!! <br /> <br />Im glad it's back :)

I noticed several other people already put a quick plot summary in their reviews and it is stated in the product description so I'll cut right to the chase. This book is a new favorite for me. Micheal Crichton has been my favorite author since I first read Prey and Timeline. Pirate Latitudes is a book that would be geared more towards a person who likes a good intense story rather Crichton's usual, very scientific and well researched book. As others have said it seemed like a book that he may not have necessarily intended to be published and that may be why it lacks some of his usual in depth research, however it still has enough to make the book a Crichton classic for me. I am also 19 years old and this book did seem like a quick, young adult read, rather than a longer, more descriptive book that Crichton usually writes, so that's part of the reason I may have found this book more interesting than others. If you want a book that has an excellent story that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and that you can finish in a day or two, this is a must buy. If your sceptical this book isn't the usual Micheal Crichton book and your unsure, I would still borrow it from a friend or rent it because it doesn't take long and it's something a little different to try.