Clive Cussler was an adventure novelist and marine explorer who was best known for his novels, 20 of which became New York Times best sellers.
Most of his works frequently feature the National Underwater Marine Agency (NUMA), which is a fictionalized version of a real-life organization that he founded. His books typically follow themes of high adventure and technology, megalomaniacal villains, lost treasure, and beautiful women.
If you loved Ian Fleming’s James Bond or George Lucas’ Indiana Jones, then you’ll definitely love Cussler’s most famous larger-than-life protagonist, Dirk Pitt.
8 Best Clive Cussler Books
Cussler wrote over 80 books throughout his career, so it can be daunting to pick out which ones you should start with. To help you out, we’ve assembled a list of some of the best books he’s ever written. Check them out below!
1. Sahara (Dirk Pitt Book #11)
North Africa is plagued by a disease that causes people to turn to madness and cannibalism, and UN scientist Eva Rojas is working on a cure. Dirk Pitt, on a nearby mission to investigate a growing problem in marine pollution, narrowly rescues her from assassination.
Working together, they must uncover ancient secrets while evading a marauding dictator and a ruthless industrialist out to get them.
2. Treasure (Dirk Pitt Book #9)
Dirk Pitt is on the trail of a priceless treasure—the most important treasures of the Library of Alexandria, which were secretly saved and buried away before the Library’s destruction.
But he’s pulled into an international conspiracy when he saves the life of the UN’s Secretary-General from a plane crash. He finds himself fighting the world’s most feared assassins while trying to prevent world domination.
3. The Chase (Isaac Bell Book #1)
It is 1906 and the western states of America are terrorized by a string of bank robberies that leaves every witness dead, while the culprit vanishes without a trace.
Now it’s up to Isaac Bell, detective-extraordinaire, to find the culprit and bring him to justice. But there are a few problems: the culprit is now out hunting Bell himself, and the chase leads them to a San Francisco that’s just been rocked by a disastrous earthquake.
4. The Kingdom (Fargo Book #3)
Professional treasure hunters Sam and Remi Fargo are on the trail of the “Theurang,” a sacred object said to be a life-sized statue of a man-like creature, or the creature’s skeleton itself.
But they’re not the only ones searching for it, and wealthy oil baron named Charles King will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Sam and Remi travel around the world, deciphering cryptic clues while evading King’s deadly subordinates.
5. Corsair (Oregon Files Book #6)
Juan Cabrillo heads the Corporation, a mysterious, private military company that is based on the Oregon, a high-tech ship masquerading as a dilapidated freighter.
They accept an assignment to locate U.S. Secretary of State Fiona Katamora, who has been abducted while en route to important peace talks in Libya. While searching for Katamora, they must also discover the location of an ancient ship that contains writings that can bring peace to the entire Mideast.
6. The Adventures of Vin Fiz (Lacey & Casey Book #1)
One of his lesser-known works, The Adventures of Vin Fiz is Cussler’s first attempt at a children’s book. It follows siblings Lacey and Casey Nicefolk, who have only one dream: to fly.
They are approached by Sucoh Sucop, a mysterious man with an enchanted box that can make toys come to life. The twins are soon soaring cross-country to New York, but there’s danger lurking everywhere, ready to test their courage many times over.
7. Serpent (Numa Files Book #1)
Cussler expands his line-up of the sturdy men and women of NUMA. This time, he focuses on the adventures of Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala, two young men worthy of inheriting Pitt’s derring-do legacy.
In the book, archeologists are being killed en masse, and no one knows why. When Austin and Zavala rescue one such archeologist from a massacre, they are sucked into a sinister plot to hide one historical error: Christopher Columbus didn’t discover the Americas.
8. The Sea Hunters: True Adventures with Famous Shipwrecks
In his first non-fiction book, Cussler explores the the world under the sea and describe his lifelong love of adventures, the sea, and ships in general—a love that clearly translates to his fiction books.
The book documents NUMA’s search for nine famous shipwrecks and offers speculations on why each sea vessel sunk. To date, their most famous recovery was the confederate submarine Hunley, which was dubbed by some as “probably the most important find of the century.”
Do You Need to Read Clive Cussler Books in Order?
When it comes to reading Clive Cussler books, you can really start anywhere. Each of his books, no matter which series they belong to, function as stand-alone novels. Sure, there may be some references here and there about events and characters from other books, but they won’t destroy your reading experience.
Personally, I’d go at it by publication date. Cussler’s got a lot of books and there’s also a lot of similarities between his series, so it feels like you’re reading one super long series instead of three or four. It’s just easier to keep track of his books if you read them by publication date.
Reading Books by Clive Cussler
Called by many as the “Grandmaster of Adventure,” Clive Cussler has definitely led a colorful life. He was a soldier, businessman, car collector, marine explorer, a wanderer, and writer—all roles that shine through n his books.
His books are definitely enjoyable reads. He’s got the finesse and imagination to think up situations that border on the absurd, tie them into historical events, and then concoct a story that lets his characters shine.
If you haven’t read any of his books yet, I highly recommend you do. Though they sometimes get repetitive, you’ll always get that sense of adventure that you should always find in these kinds of stories.
Do you have a favorite book by Clive Cussler? Share it in the comment section below!
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Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
