Peril At Delphi

Rococo

New member
In the middle of reading it now- it's my first Indy novel (besides the film novelizations) so I don't have really anything to compare, but I'm liking it more than I expected to, given the lack of "familiar" peripheral characters. I'm looking forward to reading some of the other, recommended books as well- thank goodness for slow nights at work with nothing to do :D
 

TrailBlazer

New member
I think McCoy does a slightly better job of capturing the character and keeping the story moving quickly. McGregor's novels, starting with "Peril", are worthy adventures that get bogged down here and there. Sometimes clunky dialogue and a hesitancy to keep the foot on the gas during the action sequences with McGregor.
 

Indy-Anna

New member
I read "The Peril at Delphi" a little while ago and finished it in about 2 days, which is really unusual for me, because I'm not a fast reader. I couldn't put it down though. Overall, I thought it was pretty good. I can't give too many details on what I liked and disliked about it because it was about a year ago when I read it, but I liked it. :)

I'm working on "Dance of the Giants" now.
 

IndyNovelsFan

New member
Just finished reading this one, and I give it a solid 8 out of 10. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Characterizations were very good. Young Indy is driven by his desire to become an archeologist. In addition, we see his interact with an influential woman in his life. He learns from her to be true to himself, to go after his goal, and do what is right for him.

I thought the background information was solid. I did a little online research on the true Oracle at delphi, and MacGregor does a great job weaving this mythical legend into a believable Indy adventure. Indy is not traipsing through the jungle, searching for an artifact. Instead he is truly "coming of age" discovering himself and becoming comfortable in his own skin.

I liked the depth of character that MacGregor gives Indy. And I liked the comraderies of Jack Shannon and Conrad. And I enjoyed the hero worship that Nikos brought to the story. All in all, this is a very satisfying read. I see it fitting well into the Indy timeline, and it helps us understand the development of the character.

Why not a 10? I got the feeling the author was holding back a little, maybe hesitant to make the character more his own. I think this will improve in the future volumes.

I remember starting this one, and reading to a certain point. However, I think this was my first trip all the way through. It was a glorious ride, and I'm looking forward to starting "Dance of the Giants".

Get this book... It's fun, good story telling, and another peek into the archeologist's history.

:)
 

bennihana123

New member
This.... was disappointing to say the least. Of the four Indy novels I've read (Hollow Earth, Philosopher's Stone, Genesis Deluge, and this), the two by MacGregor haven't really felt like an Indy adventure. I'm still trying to collect and read them all, though, so maybe they'll get better. Looking forward to the other two by Max McCoy :whip:
 

dr.jones1986

Active member
bennihana123 said:
This.... was disappointing to say the least. Of the four Indy novels I've read (Hollow Earth, Philosopher's Stone, Genesis Deluge, and this), the two by MacGregor haven't really felt like an Indy adventure. I'm still trying to collect and read them all, though, so maybe they'll get better. Looking forward to the other two by Max McCoy :whip:

It isn't the best of MacGregor's Indy novels, I liked "Dance of the Giants" better as well as "the Seven Veils" although that one got a little too wacky by the second half of the book.

You are correct though, Max Mccoy was the best Indy author. Some of MacGregor's books were pretty good but on the whole Mccoy's felt the most like the movies, and they were set closer in time period to the movies as well so that helped.
 

AndyLGR

Active member
I havent read this book since it first came out, 92maybe? I think I need to dig these books out and give them another read, its been so long that I've forgotten what they were like.
 

Crack that whip

New member
It appears a lot of people here are randomly jumping around from one to another. I definitely recommend that if one's going to read any of these at all, one do so in order, since there are threads of continuity and character progressions and so on that go from one book to the next (even between authors, though mostly within any given author's run). They're more interconnected than the movies.

For those unaware, the order goes like this:

Indiana Jones and the Peril at Delphi
Indiana Jones and the Dance of the Giants
Indiana Jones and the Seven Veils
Indiana Jones and the Genesis Deluge
Indiana Jones and the Unicorn's Legacy
Indiana Jones and the Interior World
Indiana Jones and the Sky Pirates
Indiana Jones and the White Witch
Indiana Jones and the Philosopher's Stone
Indiana Jones and the Dinosaur Eggs
Indiana Jones and the Hollow Earth
Indiana Jones and the Secret of the Sphinx
 

bennihana123

New member
Is Sky Pirates and White Witch generally considered the two worst? They sound pretty ridiculous. And I have been reading them out of order, but I think they wrote them so they could stand alone and one could still understand what was happening.
 

dr.jones1986

Active member
bennihana123 said:
Is Sky Pirates and White Witch generally considered the two worst? They sound pretty ridiculous. And I have been reading them out of order, but I think they wrote them so they could stand alone and one could still understand what was happening.

Just wait till you read Caidin's two books, it will make the refridgerator and tarzan scene from KotKS seem less ridiculous.
 

AndyLGR

Active member
dr.jones1986 said:
Just wait till you read Caidin's two books, it will make the refridgerator and tarzan scene from KotKS seem less ridiculous.
I struggled with the novel that had a parallel world you could enter, I think it was the Interior World?
 

Crack that whip

New member
Yes, I think Sky Pirates and White Witch (the two by Martin Caidin) are widely regarded as the least good of the novels; most Indy fans familiar with the novels in general are probably glad Caidin did only two of them.

I must say, it's been an awfully long time since I read any of the '90s Bantam novels. I should reread them soon...
 

VP

Moderator Emeritus
The good ones:

  • Peril at Delphi
  • Dance of the Giants
  • Seven Veils
  • Genesis Deluge
  • Philosopher's Stone
  • Dinosaur Eggs
  • Hollow Earth
  • Secret of the Sphinx
The bad ones:

  • Unicorn's Legacy
  • Interior World
  • Sky Pirates
  • White Witch
  • Army of the Dead
The upcoming Fate of Atlantis is great so far, check it out at http://newsradiofanfic.angelfire.com/Atlantis.html
 

dr.jones1986

Active member
VP said:
The good ones:

  • Peril at Delphi
  • Dance of the Giants
  • Seven Veils
  • Genesis Deluge
  • Philosopher's Stone
  • Dinosaur Eggs
  • Hollow Earth
  • Secret of the Sphinx
The bad ones:

  • Unicorn's Legacy
  • Interior World
  • Sky Pirates
  • White Witch
  • Army of the Dead
The upcoming Fate of Atlantis is great so far, check it out at http://newsradiofanfic.angelfire.com/Atlantis.html

I would agree with your take on the Indy novels. Seven Veils I would sort of put in the middle. Awsome first half, weak second half. Got way to over the top as well.
 

jeff2178

New member
I just finished reading Peril at Delphi..

For my first Indy novel it wasn't bad....

See, I always pictured Sean Patrick Flannery in this book, because it takes place in 1922, two years after the YIJ show, so that was easy for me. I can't see this as a show or movie, but it was a good start for him.

I also didn't like how it was switching to different POVs, it should have stayed with Indy. I just go into the Dance of the Giants and it's pretty good so far...

I give Indiana Jones and the Peril at Delphi

(y) (y) (y) out of 5
 

The Drifter

New member
I've recently started reading through the whole 'series'. I'm on Genesis Deluge now.
I enjoyed Peril at Delphi. We see Indy young and naive regarding his own professor. I think the book done a great job showing his inexperience with love and lust.
The adventure itself was okay. I think the book played out more like a sleuth novel instead of an action/adventure one.

I'd give it a 8/10
 
MacGregor and Indy

You know, I am going to get a lot of slack for this, but I always thought MacGregor's books never lived up to their potential. I always felt they were decent, but just not quite good enough. Then Caiden almost destroyed the series with his two novels. When McCoy took over, I finally felt like someone had captured the feel of Indy and written some pretty good adventures as well. McCoy's weren't perfect, but IMO they were the best of the Indy novels and came pretty close. the only gripe I have about his was a rather forced sequence in Philosopher's Stone where Indy bullwhipped a balloon to catch a ride, and Secret of the Sphinx, which had some major editing problems due to a last minute removal of a time travel plotline. Other than that, Great series. I wish McCoy would return to Indy, but I would be happy with a new MacGregor Indy novel set in the 30s or 40s. I won't even mention the dreck that was Army of the Dead, which I could not even finish.
 

The Drifter

New member
I have never even read the Max McCoy titles yet. I have read that his books are some of the best, but I can't cast my opinion yet (even though I have had them for a few years). I hope that I am in for some good adventures that span beyond the movies?
 

Lao_Che

Active member
Lonsome_Drifter said:
I have never even read the Max McCoy titles yet. I have read that his books are some of the best, but I can't cast my opinion yet (even though I have had them for a few years). I hope that I am in for some good adventures that span beyond the movies?

In what way? McCoy's novels can be said to be the ones that lean on the movies' conventions the most, but MacGregor's the guy for Indy's character development.
 
MacGragor/McCoy

Lao Che is correct. MacGregor's books did develop the character, sort of in tandem with the Young Indiana Jones series (although I don't recall one ever really borrowing from the other). I was disappointed MacGs were set in the 20s vs 30s like McCoys. I figured Lucasfilm wanted to keep the Indy Expanded Universe grounded in Young Indy era at the time. MacG did a good job of introducing us to some memorable characters, although I felt like the whole Deidre/marriage thing was forced and never really went anywhere.
 
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