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From Publishers Weekly Cussler takes a breather from his several ongoing series with this historical thriller set in the western states, circa 1906. The U.S. government hires the renowned Van Dorn Detective Agency and its equally renowned lead agent, Isaac Bell, to capture the bank robber known as the Butcher Bandit. The Butcher has gunned down 38 men and women and two children, leaving behind neither witnesses nor clues. Bell heads the manhunt and finally figures out the Butcher's true identity, which is when the real chase begins. Unfortunately, Cussler's style is patterned on the clunky dialogue (I pray you catch the murdering scum) and improbable characters of the period's dime novels, and his in-depth research makes his descriptions sound like advertising. Once San Francisco gets hit by the 1906 earthquake and the principals climb aboard a pair of fire-breathing locomotives, the novel cranks up a head of steam and some high-speed thrills. (Nov.) Copyright В© Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist Cussler is the author or coauthor of 33 books, including 19 Dirk Pitt novels and 7 NUMA Files books. This latest adventure involves the hulk of a steam locomotive that comes to the surface of a lake in Montana in 1950. It contains the bodies of three men who died 44 years before. Flash back to 1906 and a two-year crime spree out west. There's a series of bank robberies by an evil person who murders any witnesses. The government brings in a detective to solve the case, but soon the hunter becomes the hunted. As always, Cussler ties everything together in the end. The author's many fans probably know that at the start, but they will want to read the novel anyway. Cohen, George