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A review by courtneylee87
The Atlantis Code by Charles Brokaw
4.0
Brokaw’s book goes from 0-60 in the first chapter and doesn’t let up until the final page. The plot continually builds tension and moves forward at a page-turning pace. As each new clue is revealed, twists and turns keep the reader guessing even though the title is a giveaway for the general plot.
Lourdes is a character you either love or hate. I loved his blasé attitude, his ability to not let romance cloud his judgement for the most part, and his realistic reactions to each character that crosses his path. He’s an adrenaline junkie, and the author mixes that well with his logical academic side. Natashya’s character, the Russian detective, takes no prisoners and makes no apologies. Her focus — avenging her sister’s death — remains strong throughout the book, though she is not totally averse to having some late-night fun with Lourds.
However, there were a few things that were a bit tough to swallow. Leslie, the TV reporter, was such a cliché character. There were chapters that were hard to read because she was acting like a childish YA high schooler. I understood she was an easy conquest for Lourds, even though she initiated all their romantic encounters, but I found myself rolling my eyes every time she was spilling secrets trying to advance her career or attempting to seduce Lourds. The villains, mainly the Cardinal and his hired hitmen, were also cliché. Kill anyone who gets in the way, trying to control the world, destroying history instead of learning from it.
While I could overlook these character flaws — no one sees an action movie for character development — I cannot let go of the information dumps Brokaw consistently used throughout the book. Having a character explain a concept or a piece of history is fine, but to have chapters of explanation and the same characters droning on all the time is a bit much.
I gave this book a 4 star rating. It was fun and entertaining, and I could see it being adapted for the movie screen. It is very reminiscent of Dan Brown, but then again, any thriller involving the Catholic Church published after his first novel will read that way.
Lourdes is a character you either love or hate. I loved his blasé attitude, his ability to not let romance cloud his judgement for the most part, and his realistic reactions to each character that crosses his path. He’s an adrenaline junkie, and the author mixes that well with his logical academic side. Natashya’s character, the Russian detective, takes no prisoners and makes no apologies. Her focus — avenging her sister’s death — remains strong throughout the book, though she is not totally averse to having some late-night fun with Lourds.
However, there were a few things that were a bit tough to swallow. Leslie, the TV reporter, was such a cliché character. There were chapters that were hard to read because she was acting like a childish YA high schooler. I understood she was an easy conquest for Lourds, even though she initiated all their romantic encounters, but I found myself rolling my eyes every time she was spilling secrets trying to advance her career or attempting to seduce Lourds. The villains, mainly the Cardinal and his hired hitmen, were also cliché. Kill anyone who gets in the way, trying to control the world, destroying history instead of learning from it.
While I could overlook these character flaws — no one sees an action movie for character development — I cannot let go of the information dumps Brokaw consistently used throughout the book. Having a character explain a concept or a piece of history is fine, but to have chapters of explanation and the same characters droning on all the time is a bit much.
I gave this book a 4 star rating. It was fun and entertaining, and I could see it being adapted for the movie screen. It is very reminiscent of Dan Brown, but then again, any thriller involving the Catholic Church published after his first novel will read that way.