Entry 36: The Dinosaur Eggs

Indy Timeline: 1933

"Indiana Jones and the Dinosaur Eggs" marks the second effort by Max McCoy into the world of Indiana Jones novels.  Following his strong output in "the Philosopher's Stone," can he deliver an exciting adventure once again?

Fortunately, the answer is yes.  The premise- Indiana Jones hunting for live dinosaurs in Mongolia - could have easily gone off the rails and into complete absurdity.  Fortunately, McCoy is able to skillfully navigate this material and spin it into a gritty Indy adventure story. 

He follows the classic Indy format, opening the story with the conclusion of Indy's previous adventure.  This time, Indy is continuing his quest for the Crystal Skull (which he began in the previous book).  However, he is captured by Renee Belloq and his goons.  After a nasty encounter with a Nazi U-boat, Indy barely escapes with his life.  Belloq's appearance is welcome here, and his dialogue is well written.  This fills in some back story that works with the Belloq we know from "Raiders." 

McCoy continues to model most of Indy's character traits from Raiders - for example, he gets drunk and depressed in his office after he and Alecia break up, much as he does following Marion's "death" in Raiders.  This said, the story itself seems to have more in common with "Temple of Doom."  As was the case in ToD, most of the story takes place in the Far East, including an exciting sequence in Shanghai and an encounter with Lao Che.  We also get the back story on Wu Han, Indy's sidekick (albeit briefly) for the opening sequence in Temple.  Indy also encounters and must defeat a sinister cult and kill its demonic leader ("the false lama"). 

This said, what carries "the Dinosaur Eggs" is McCoy's steady mix of memorable characters, clean storytelling, and action.  There are a number of strong sequences here- the fight in the museum, an epic fight on a train, and Indy's dark psychological trip in the cult of the false lama, to name a few.  These sequences are complimented by characters like Granger, a "rough around the edges" adventurer with even more experience than Indy.  Joan Starbuck first brings Indy's attention to possible dinosaurs in Mongolia, but is keeping a secret and is more than what she seems.  General Tzi is an evil warlord who uses packs of angry dogs to feed on his victims. 

If all of this seems campy, it is.  It is a story about Indiana Jones hunting for dinosaur eggs and trying to hatch live triceratops in Mongolia.  This said, it is also a lot of fun and has more grit than one might expect.  While it might not be quite as strong as its predecessor, McCoy has shown once again that he understands the "spirit" of the franchise and the character.  He has delivered another page turner worthy of the Indy name.

Indy Rating: 9/10