Book info

• Title Ice Station Zebra
• Author Alistair MacLean
• Year 1963
• Genre Thriller

The atomic submarine Dolphin has impossible orders: to sail beneath the ice floes of the Arctic Ocean, and somehow locate and rescue the men of weather-station Zebra, gutted by fire and drifting with the ice-pack somewhere north of the Arctic Circle. But the orders do not say what the Dolphin will find if she succeeds – that the fire at Ice Station Zebra was sabotage, and that one of the survivors is a killer.

Thoughts

I started this when we had a bit of a cold snap, thinking listening to people in slightly colder conditions than me would make me feel a bit better. This is one of those adventure thrillers that has a deep underlying mystery about it but you’re so busy going through the rollercoaster of dangerous situations you don’t have much time to think about whodunit. This has many elements I love, most being the perils of travelling on a submarine, but also the survivalist aspects of being near the poles. And ultimately it’s a great thriller ride right to the end.

Rating: 4 / 5