Matthew Reilly is an Australian author,
and he has written several novels which became international best
sellers. One of his most well known creations, is captain Jack West
Jr. Many people became fans to the Indiana Jones styled, treasure
hunting adventures in these books. Currently, there are 3 books in
this series; Seven Ancient Wonders, The Six Sacred Stones, and The
Five Greatest Warriors.
Until last week, I have never read
Reilly's books. The reason I picked up these series is because I
heard, these books are comparable to James Rollins' Sigma Force
series, and I love Sigma Force series. I devoured all 3 books in 6
days, and now I am going to share my review on these books.
Synopsis:
The great pyramid of Giza, stands as
one of the most wondrous constructions in the human history. But not
everyone knows, that 4500 years ago, a marvellous golden cap stone
once sat at the peak of this megalithic structure. Legend says the
golden cap stone possesses great power, and can bestow onto its owner
absolute power to rule over nations. The golden cap stone has since
disappeared, rumours has it, that the cap stone was divided into 7
parts by Alexander the Great, and each part was hidden away at the
seven wonders of the ancient world.
In 2006, the cap stone's hidden power
is once again required, to counter the disastrous effects of an
upcoming solar event. However, a powerful artifact of this calibre is
guaranteed to attract big nations to fighter for the ownership of the
cap stone, everyone wants it for its power.
It is time for captain Jack West Jr, a
former top ranking solider in the Australian army, to lead a team of
specialists representing a coalition of smaller nations, to rebuild
the stone and save the world from the pending disaster. Along the
way, Jack West and his team will encounter power hungry foes, while
their quest will take them to search for the seven wonders of the
ancient world, from the great pyramid to the fabled hanging garden of
Babylon, Jack and his team will risk their lives to save the world,
in a series of breath taking adventures that will determine the
future of mankind..
What I think about these books:
These books are good, they can be
categorised as “treasure hunt, action thriller” novels, akin to
Indiana Jones movies. These stories have heroes racing around the
globe, fighting villains, braving against dangers to search for
legendary artifacts and uncovering long lost historical sites.
The pace of storytelling is very fast,
at neck breaking pace. When I was reading them, it felt as if I was
buckled up for a thrilling roller coaster ride. This is the strength
of these books, Matthew Reilly successfully created the feeling of
ever present danger, a story that will truly give you a thrill.
I truly had fun reading these books,
and I like them. However, I do see some minor problems with these
books. First of all, the action sequences are at times, unbelievable,
they require you to suspend too much disbelief. Secondly, I felt the
story progressed in ways that was kind of like a video game, a
compilation of action driven missions, unfolding one after another.
Frankly, there were moments in these books when I felt exhausted from
reading the non-stop actions. I wish there were less actions but more
character development.
Having said this, Jack West Jr. series
is still a fun read, blending fast storytelling, explosive actions,
exotic locations, and interesting history. So if you like Indiana
Jones or James Rollins' Sigma Force books, you will probably like
this one too.
No comments:
Post a Comment