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I've read most of the early Dirk Pitt, from Mediterranean Caper onward, including Pacific Vortex, Vixen, Raise the Titanic! (don't forget the !) Cyclops, Iceberg, and so on. Okay light reading, but Cussler is not a particularly good writer, and the early Dirk Pitt is an arrogant and sexist guy with a tendency to bullying lesser beings such as receptionists.
One of Cussler's weaknesses as a writer is that his characters all sound the same, and when they explain some development to each other they tend to go into lecture room mode. He is no master of dialogue.
On the other hand, he is capable of some seriously wild eyed plotting and improbable action, which can keep you engaged. In Cyclops, Pitt escapes from Cuba in an outboard motor powered bath tub. In another story there is a car chase down a ski run. I rate Vixen 03 as okay, probably the best of the bunch. Opens with a complicated mystery from the past (Cussler's favourite device) and ends with the solution to a murder.
Still, millions of readers don't agree with me!
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