Ice Master A Novel of the Arctic

"A screenwriter by trade, Niven moves the story along with copious chunks of direct speech culled from diary entries. She interleaves the adventures of the various parties using a cinematic technique that is effective enough, though in the absence of sustained visual images a more artful writer would have worked harder at building characterization. Besides a sloppy use of language ('Templeman's sharp and insulting tongue clashing with Malloch's violent temper'), Niven has an unfortunate weakness for cliché, with fateful tales, narrow escapes, hearts sinking and a sun 'lifting its burning head over the earth.' A little more description of the polar landscape might have leavened the prose.Houston, James is the author of 'Ice Master A Novel of the Arctic' with ISBN 9780771042096 and ISBN 0771042094.