TERMINAL FREEZE (Lincoln Child) - April 10/09

I was trying to figure out why I wasn't thoroughly enjoying Terminal Freeze - especially since it boasts an absolutely irresistible premise (a prehistoric "killing machine" goes on a murderous rampage after being inadvertently thawed out by a group of scientists) - until it finally dawned on me that the book is almost entirely lacking in compelling figures, which makes it awfully difficult to care about the dwindling survivors' efforts at battling the monster. There are some good death scenes, sure, but the last 100 pages or so become awfully repetitive, with the creature stalking the remaining characters through overly-descriptive hallways. I think Child is better off collaborating with Douglas Preston when it comes to these kinds of stories. **1/2 out of ****