One of
Michael Crichton's best
novels. The
U.S. Navy finds a wrecked
spaceship at the bottom of the
Pacific Ocean and assembles a
team of
scientists (and a
psychologist, plus a few
military types) to investigate. The team heads down to the depths to live in an
underwater habitat for the duration of the investigation. Meanwhile, a nasty
storm is brewing topside, and the surface ships are forced to leave while the storm passes.
Several members of the team have a history with each other, and this psychological aspect makes the book interesting throughout. As the investigation of the spaceship progresses, things get more and more interesting. The team finds an enormous, perfectly spherical object in a cargo hold of the ship, and are unable to figure out its purpose, its origin, or what's inside.
In no time at all, an alien presence makes an appearance, able to communicate only through words on a computer screen. As one might expect, stuff gets very exciting from here.
This is not only one of Michael Crichton's best novels, it's also one of the best science fiction novels of all time. Incredibly suspenseful, filled to the brim with plot twists and craziness that'll have you going nuts by the end, and with very cinematic chapters that wonderfully exhibit Crichton's ability to bring suspense to previously unimaginable levels.
Oh, there was a movie, too, with Dustin Hoffman and Samuel L. Jackson and Sharon Stone, but it really sucked and, as is usually the case with movies, didn't do the book a bit of justice. Don't see the movie, even if you've read the book. It'll ruin it for you.