A
– 'Gold Mine' is about a stock market manipulation scheme affecting the stocks of South African gold mining companies by sabotaging the mines. Much of the action of the novel is set in a gold mine. The extensive descriptions of the mine, mining methods, and processing methods are clear and accurate-with one possible exception. Mr. Smith's use of the term "heavy media separation" seems to conflict with standard usage. I found the characters to be shallow-which really means that I could not identify nor empathize well with them. But this is, after all, an action novel, and it is quite entertaining as such. The plot is predictable, but not plodding.