Deepsix

The Blurbs compare McDevitt to authors like Clarke or Asimov. Maybe in contrast to bulk-produced starwars/trek novels. Deepsix has hard sci-fi elements, but action receives an equal or greater emphasis. People will make uncharacteristically stupid decisions, and horribly improbably disasters will strike to keep keep the tension on, though it is not a book of non-stop action.

It's a somewhat awkward fusion between action/adventure and sci-fi-- enjoyable as long as you don't have the wrong expectations, or only like one of the genres.

Compared to the previous book in the series, the archaeological aspect is downplayed, in favor of survival, though the confusing mismatched clues about the secret of the planet do come together nicely at the end.

Xenoarchaology is a relatively ignored, but interesting branch of sci-fi, and so for that i'm willing to forgive some of it's faults.

Still i probably pick up the third book in the series sometime, since later books received nominations from Locus, Nebula, and a Campbell win.