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Ark Kindle Edition

by Charles McCarry (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.1 127 ratings

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Earth’s wealthiest man attempts to save humanity from an impending apocalypse The planet’s first and only trillionaire, Henry Peel, did not make his fortune by being a fool. A gifted inventor and scientist, he possesses an imagination on the scale of history’s greatest thinkers, and he has turned it to the problem of Earth’s core. Two decades ago, scientists learned that the core spins faster than the rest of the planet, storing up a cache of energy that, if released, could cause an earthquake that would obliterate human life. To begin mankind anew, Henry Peel is going to lead us to the stars. He gathers the world’s leading physicists and engineers and asks them to design a spaceship large enough to safeguard a sample of humanity and durable enough to survive a thousand-year voyage. Money is no object, but time is short. The apocalypse is on its way.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for Charles McCarry: “[McCarry] ranks up there with Le Carré in a select class of two.” —Daily Mail “Charles McCarry is the best modern writer on the subject of intrigue—by the breadth of Alan Furst, by the fathom of Eric Ambler, by any measure.”?—P. J. O’Rourke “McCarry’s thrillers really thrill, his political insight is praised by senior politicians and his erudition, experience and good writing turn spy stories into literature. McCarry and his dynamic alter-egos wipe the floor with the opposition.”?—The Daily Telegraph

About the Author

A former operative for the CIA, Charles McCarry (b. 1930) is America’s most revered author of espionage fiction. Born in Massachusetts, McCarry began his writing career in the army, as a correspondent for Stars and Stripes. In the 1950s he served as a speechwriter for President Eisenhower before taking a post with the CIA, for which he traveled the globe as a deep cover operative. He left the Agency in 1967, and set about converting his experiences into fiction. His first novel, The Miernik Dossier (1971), introduced Paul Christopher, an American spy who struggles to balance his family life with his work. McCarry has continued writing about Christopher and his family for decades, producing ten novels in the series to date. A former editor-at-large for National Geographic, McCarry has written extensive nonfiction, and continues to write essays and book reviews for various national publications. Ark (2011) is his most recent novel.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0064FY2XG
Publisher ‏ : ‎ MysteriousPress.com/Open Road (November 22, 2011)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 22, 2011
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1679 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 516 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #276,228 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,585 in Espionage Thrillers (Kindle Store)
- #1,963 in Espionage Thrillers (Books)
- #3,371 in Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.1 127 ratings

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Amccarryfan

A footnote on an as yet unwritten review

Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2011

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I had read pretty much all of McCarry's literary output prior to the recent electronic publications. Some I have read more than once. As my stage name offers, I am a real Charles McCarry "fan" -- much as I find the designation more than a bit unusual for me since I am not even a sports "fan". As such a "fan" I have read and re-read McCarry's novels both because I really enjoy the written style and because the content keeps me coming back to Paul Christopher's perspective on the value of the truth and Mallory's on-the-mark observations on the state of politics in America today.

In short, McCarry is a keen observer, very insightful, and reads with the sort of ease that has become a rarity in American fiction. The Ark is no exception -- and it has as an advantage that it doesn't require any familiarity with the rest of McCarry. The Ark is not only a great read, it is timely-smart with wonderful characters carrying the thoughts. Not surprisingly, it also has an air of the kind of prescience that McCarry often hits on -- as, for example, in his truly unique interpretation of the responsibility for the Kennedy assassination.

One footnote question about The Ark: why in a novel with just about no connections with any previous stories does McCarry turn up re-using the name O. Laster -- ostensibly one of the minor heroes of Shelly's Heart and the pen name of one of The Ark's genuine heroes? To say the least, it comes out of the proverbial left field and I am left wondering "What else have I missed?"

One final note to whomever can make the decision: Please permit all of McCarry's work to be Kindled -- soon! I own the hard copies, but it would be far more convenient to be able to carry the lot on one machine -- and to have them in searchable form.

14 people found this helpful

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Douglas F. Sainsbury

Not a spy novel, but entertaining

Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2019

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Ark is the second book I have read by McCarry, the first was Old Boys. Ark is written in the first person and from the point of view of a female author. The plot is a bit of a stretch as Henry is the only person on our planet who has aggregated scientific evidence that the world will end sooner than people think. He has money and a plan to save the human race and puts it into motion with the assistance of many people and a couple of other nations. McCarry's technical detail is excellent and the prose is smooth. I'm not really a sci-fi fan, but this book weaves an entertaining story that maintained my attention to the end.

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Timothy E. Landon

It's not a spy novel, but I enjoyed it for what it is.

Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2016

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Intriguing concept - sending a ship out for several generations until the earth can once again support life. I've read almost all of McCarry's other novels, and regard him as a top writer of spy books. Some other reviewer's rated this book lower because it was NOT primarily a spy book. But, if you can move past that, you may enjoy the technology, political, and management themes involved in accomplishing an enormously complex and expensive project that has no scientific precedent. I did.

One person found this helpful

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Edwin Stuart

The Fate of the Earth and the Future of Books

Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2012

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I just finished this book on my Kindle last night. How would I rate it? Well, compared to what? Compared to other novels by 82-year-old Charles McCarry, it's definitely inferior. Now that I've finished it, I'll certainly never read any part again, which is totally unlike "The Tears of Autumn" or "The Better Angels". I can see the latter title on my bookcase from where I sit at my desk.

I'm not sure I can make sense of the story in "Ark" without thinking of it as a metaphor. The little enclaves of human beings left behind after the cataclysmic shifting of the Earth's crust are like the remnants of the traditional book publishing industry that currently struggles to survive. Then there are the space ships headed for some distant planet, carrying the embryos of genetically engineered superior human beings. This to me symbolizes the unknowable future we are headed towards, of which eBooks are one little example.

Of course this analogy suggests a choice between leaving or staying behind that we are not really forced to make. Many of us welcome and look forward to certain things about the future, but for me, at this point in time, eBooks are not one of them.

One person found this helpful

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Anne French

McCarry's first apocalyptic novel

Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2012

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Charles McCarry has a reputation as North America's answer to John le Carre, and while le Carre fans would find this assessment somewhat wide of the mark, it is certainly true that he is a master of the spy genre. Ark, then, is something of a departure from his usual formula. The protagonist is a young woman who is hired as an adviser to a trillionnaire who thinks the world is about to end (perturbations in the Earth's magnetic field that will cause widespread and devastating earthquakes... a pleasant change from global warming, you might say). There's a sub-plot concerning the man who raped her as a teenager, to provide a sense of immediate danger, and a small cast of slightly unusual trillionaire helpers.
I read the book on a long-haul plane flight, and found it an excellent travel companion. It's not serious literature, but an interesting read - and the trillionnaire is unusually likeable. Recommended for McCarry fans and anyone with a long plane ride ahead of them.

2 people found this helpful

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Dr. Robert

Another thought provoking book from Charles McCarry

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2016

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Well done Mr. McCarry . Another great tale. Very interesting premise and a compelling plot. The politics of global warming create a scenario where this kind of cataclysm could happen. Hopefully, scientists will be listened to and governments will act.

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Keith C.

Good writing and an interesting science fiction story

Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2015

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I was introduced to McCarry's work through his book Shanghai Factor and enjoyed his writing so much that I picked up Ark. At face value it is a story of the Earth facing an extinction event, and without giving away the plot, the story is very interesting in both its scientific and science-fiction details. Some elements are less convincing, such as the narrator repeating that no one is panicking as the event approaches, and the lack of interest in the human soul in the discussions of eugenics or death itself. The end of the book reads very much like Nevil Shute's " On The Beach" with humanity simply waiting for the end, with an added final message of renewal that is perhaps a bit too optimistic and simplistic in the circumstances presented.

One person found this helpful

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Malcolm K. Miller

Very interesting plot

Reviewed in Canada on July 18, 2021

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I have read a number of McCarry's books and quite liked them. On the basis of a short review of this book, I decided I would buy it--I am one of those who prefers to take advantage of the publisher's loss leaders. This is a dystopian view of Earth, however, McCarry invents the processes that will eventually make reemergence possible. I would have given it a 5 but I found the ending unsatisfying.

JMP

Bought as a gift.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 23, 2014

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Difficult to write a review about something you have not read. Bought it as a gift and have no complaints. Arrived on time and in good condition.

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