Geza Tatrallyay is at it again with another fantastic read! Arctic Meltdown is an excellent book to pick up if you love history and mystery.

Let me be clear, I'm not a big fan of reading history in fiction. History is cool and I love learning the non-fiction side of it, but history in fiction normally turns me off. I'd rather watch a television show that shows history than read it. That's how I've always been. And then, Geza Tatrallyay stumbles into my reading sphere. Geza is one of the few authors that can write history and get me into it. He is able to grab my attention and keep it, all due to his writing style and prose. I always like to think it's that old saying, "You won't know unless you try it." Geza is that flavour of historical fiction that makes me go, "Yeah, this is good."

Anywho, this book needs an actual review, doesn't it?

This thriller sets us up in the melting polar icecaps. Hanne Kristensen, our lead, is a Danish geologist who wants to save the world (that's not a tall order or anything). This is pretty typical for Geza's books - a smart, intriguing lead who's going to set themselves up for one heck of a journey. They always welcome you into the story, fill you with curiosity, and then let you sat the world on fire with them. Well, not literally. Basically, they pull you in and take you down for one heck of a fun (reading) ride.

This book has a lot of political points throughout - Russian, Chinese, the works. The environmental concerns are also right up front and written all over. I honestly enjoyed seeing the different takes this book has! The initial introduction chapter didn't grab my attention at all, but once I got into the meat of the book I quite enjoyed it! Hanne was also far more interesting than what the initial meeting with her suggests.

But, what about the plot? I can hear you guys just screaming at me. Okay, okay.... With everything melting in the North Pole who has rights to what's underneath? There's so much down there - natural resources, potential creatures that could ruin humanity, extinct animals... You know, all the good stuff. Many countries are fighting to get what's underneath, but the conflict might bring up more bad than good...

This book might be fiction, but BOY does it make you think a lot. It felt like I was going down a dystopian rabbit hole. We're already kind of in it during my writing of this review in 2021... It's not too far off to see this happening tomorrow. Geza's imagination and creativity really wins you over with this book. Add in the true facts and historical moments that Geza throws in, and it's a wonder this book isn't more popular.

I did really like the reference to Canada laying claim to the Northwest Passage. Not that it adds much to the book other than I recently finished an English course that talked about Canada's history in fiction. The Northwest Passage was one of our talking points, so it made me smile to see a pinch of this in Arctic Meltdown.

Then there's my negative...A love triangle. If you know me, you know I am a SUCKER for romance. Unfortunately, this book didn't really need it. I didn't see the point in the romance and I thought the love triangle was kind of... bleh. That's what you get coming from a primarily romance reviewer. I definitely picked my side in it, but you can pick yours. There was definitely a clear winner and loser in my head. I'll leave it up to you to figure that out...

More key points about this book:
1. 100% an adult book. It has some R rated scenes, so I would highly recommend mature audiences pick it up.

2. This book is super smart and you can tell Geza did his research to make it. The intellectual nature of this book reminds me of Dan Brown's research when he writes his novels.

3. Top notch thrill ride. Yeah, that's all I'm adding for this line.

4. This book is long, but it moves fairly fast. There's constant plot movement and dialogue to keep you engaged.

5. There are endnotes for the historical events and true facts in this book. I absolutely ADORE a well researched book, so footnotes and endnotes get a bonus mark from me.

6. You'll learn a fair bit about Denmark (if you don't already know a lot). I never imagined I would learn so much, and I do appreciate it. I like learning a few new facts to throw out there.

7. It's about time we have an Oceanography led book. While this is sarcastic, I do like books that focus on your "not so typically read about" jobs. I definitely get tired of reading barista and authors getting the lime light since it's an "easy" job to throw on a character.

My biggest negatives:

1. The sex scenes are.... goofy. I come from the world of romance, so I tend to like my sex scenes to be written... well. Raunchy, romantic, however you want it there is a good way to write it. I just felt like these sex scenes didn't need to be there and felt very... forced. They felt awkward and unneeded, which isn't something you want out of a sex scene. Sex scenes can set the tone, so if this book was supposed to feel awkward... well, it did.

2. You need to pay attention to this book! It's not exactly a negative, but if you want a book to jump in and out of without much thought, this might not be it. Make sure you are prepared to pay attention and know what's going on. I sometimes read books just for fun and not to "pay much attention", and his book does not fit that mold. So, buyer beware!

Overall, if you like politics and environmental studies, with a pinch of mysteries and thrills... Pick up this book! It'a fantastic read!

Four out of five stars.

I received a free copy of this book fro the author, Geza Tatrallyay, in exchange of an honest review.
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