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Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML:Cotton Malone retired from the high-risk world of elite operatives for the U.S. Justice Department to lead the low-key life of a rare-book dealer. But his quiet existence is shattered when he receives an anonymous e-mail: �??You have something I want. You�?? re the only person on earth who knows where to find it. Go get it. You have 72 hours. If I don�??t hear from you, you will be childless.�?� His horrified ex-wife confirms that the threat is real: Their teenage son has been kidnapped. When Malone�??s Copenhagen bookshop is burned to the ground, it becomes brutally clear that those responsible will stop at nothing to get what they want. And what they want is nothing less than the lost Library of Alexandria. A cradle of ideas�??historical, philosophical, literary, scientific, and religious�??the Library of Alexandria was unparalleled in the world. But fifteen hundred years ago, it vanished into the mists of myth and legend�??its vast bounty of wisdom coveted ever since by scholars, fortune hunters, and those who believe its untold secrets hold the key to ultimate power. Now a cartel of wealthy international moguls, bent on altering the course of history, is desperate to breach the library�??s hallowed halls�??and only Malone possesses the information they need to succeed. At stake is an explosive ancient document with the potential not only to change the destiny of the Middle East but to shake the world�??s three major religions to their very foundations. Pursued by a lethal mercenary, Malone crosses the globe in search of answers. His quest will lead him to England and Portugal, even to the highest levels of American government�??and the shattering outcome, deep in the Sinai desert, will have worldwide repercussions. BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Steve Berry�??s The Columbus Affai… (more)
User reviews
There are some problems, as noted by other reviewers that Berry seemed to be very one-sided in the whole Palestanian vs Israel debate and as someone who believes in Israel's right to exist and in fact longer history there, this seemed a bit preachy to me. However, that aside, fiction is fiction and I try to view it in that light.
If you’re a Steve Berry fan, you’ll probably enjoy this one. If you’re new to Berry, this may not be the best introduction.
Berry made it a point to flesh out the character of Cotton Malone in this novel. His ex-wife and her child (that the boy isn't his was a prime cause to their separation) both play prominent roles. However, at times, their inclusion seems forced, as does another "follow the clues" plot. I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as I did the first book in the series, and will take a break before reading the next. In an interview after the book, Berry says the next few books will focus on other featured characters in Malone's circle. Hopefully their stories prove a little more interesting.
That said, I wish the book was a little more compelling. The loss of the Library of Alexandria was one of the biggest travesties of mankind. Whether documents contained therein would be powerful enough to change the course of modern history (the premise of this book) I'm a bit skeptical...then again, Saudi Arabia raised towns and prohibits archeological expeditions in sensitive areas suggest Berry is not too far off base.
This is the fifth book by Steve Berry that I've read, and I think it's his best so far. I thought the plotting and pacing of the book was excellent - he kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the book. Characterizations weren't so great, but that's to be expected in this genre. The story itself is rather unbelievable, but personally I don't read these types of books for their believability - I read them as escape literature.
At the latest twist in the twist that twisted the twist, I decided that I really didn't care if the Vice President was undermining the
Yeah. That's about how much sense it made to me. The concept of finding the Library of Alexandria is something I could really sink my teeth into, but this book isn't the one that's going to get my imagination fired up.
The reader of this audio book was okay, though I think his talents could have been better used. There are a LOT of accents to be read. He does most of them fairly well, but sometimes has problems maintaining them. At one point or another, whether the character is from Georgia USA or from Denmark, they're going to end up sounding like a Kiwi - even if it's for just one sentence. It's hard to maintain that many accents. Add to that the reader's attempt to differentiate characters by giving them a nasal or otherwise recognizable speech style - he gave it a good shot, but I would have preferred that he let me do the accents/speech styles in my head, rather than be jarred when they weren't consistent.
There was in my mind a lot of cut and paste when it came to historical biblical personalities -- sort of like the author wanted to fit it in but really didn't want to write about it.
His ex-wife Pam shows up, frantic to find
Berry refers to the research that was done at the end of the book. The quest can be compared to the Da Vinci Code, which was merely average (although the book was FAR better than the movie). There is intrigue and fast action that results in a page turner. The story takes us from Denmark to England to Sinai. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Berry is an author whose books I can always recommend.
An example of what I’m talking about involves a car chase. The good guys are in a secret service car being pursued by the bad guys. Bullets are bouncing off the car because it is designed to withstand bullet impact. Nothing too amiss so far; these vehicles do exist. But wait: the bad guys shoot out the tires. I had trouble with the fact that the car would be bullet proof but not equipped with run-flat tires. These are available as an option on many civilian cars now. So much for story line credibility.
I also had trouble with some of the politics Berry used to drive the plot. I guess I now know how some people may have felt about the plot of the previous book, The Templar Legacy. I was able to divorce myself from the politics and yet, as cited above, I found the story had too many holes for an otherwise interesting premise.
I still like the character Steve Berry has created and I am looking forward to the next story in the series. This is one instance where reading the most current offering in a series from an author first has an advantage over just discovering a series and reading them in order: I know Steve Berry eventually gets better. Sadly, this offering, The Alexandria Link, comes in at just average.
While the characters do seem a bit stereotypical to me, the historical
On the plus side, I really liked learning about the Library of Alexandria and the roots of religions.
The main historical ideas of the book was very interesting and was the reason I bought it however and that's why I rate it at 3.5/5
A thrilling puzzle that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
The Alexandria Link is the second in
The Alexandria Link is the search for the lost library of Alexandria and the historical nuances are very compelling. Compounding this search with the political unrest of the Middle East, kept me intrigued.