The Lost Empire by Clive Cussler

Normally I love Clive Cussler's books. They're great beach books--or ideal for reading on the bus. But The Lost Empire was not his best. I liked the main characters--married couple Sam and Remi--but didn't like the very convoluted plot, which had to do with where the Aztecs really came from. Clive and his co-author were trying too hard to create a DaVinci Code-type story (complete with visual clues interspersed throughout) and it just became too complicated. Plus, I guess I just didn't really care where the Aztecs came from. Toward the end, I started skimming, which is never a good sign.

Part of the problem may be that Clive, like James Patterson, is working with several co-authors and churning out books at a rapid clip. Both Cussler and Patterson might do well to slow down a little and spend more time developing each book.