Reviews

Altar Of Eden by James Rollins

hirvimaki's review against another edition

2.0

I'm a fan of Rollins. I very much enjoy his Sigma Force novels and the adjacent novels such as Excavation, Subterranean, and Amazonia. I figured this would fall into the latter, novels not focused on Sigma Force but with the same pacing and a looming weird science catastrophe. And in a way it was kind of that. And yet it was different. Sure, there was a looming weird science catastrophe. But the pacing? Not his best. And although I'd never call his characters deep, in this one they were cartoonish. Similarly, the plots of his novels are always out there on the fringe, a couple of toes still rooted in the real world but blown up and exaggerated to make things exciting, yet this one was...outlandish? Oh, not the pieces of science, perhaps, but the assemblage of said science. It is a mashup of The Island of Doctor Moreau, Frankenstein, and The Terminal Man that at times is silly and at others confusing. This rather bizarre plot is stretched between frantic actions scenes that smack of the 80s Airwolf. Not a bad book, but not one of Rolllins' best efforts.

readingqueen83's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

4.0

the_wanlorn's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

What an enjoyable ride!

agentnk_'s review against another edition

5.0

entertaining adventure/mystery about scientific experimentation with animal and the results.

leirben's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

mialeyden's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

ayaktruk's review against another edition

3.0

Picked this up in the Burbank Airport news shop to read on a flight home from LA - my last trip to pack up the remainder of my Mom's belongings.

I know I had read several previous works by Rollins -- turns out three of them (Black Order, Ice Hunt, and Deep Fathom) and I recalled enjoying them, so it was a safe bet I'd enjoy Alter of Eden as well.

I did, finished it a few days after my flight, and it's on the shelf with the other Rollin's paperbacks. In fact, I believe it all three of his previous works that I have were hand-me-downs from my Mom.

naomistrange's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

5.0

zare_i's review against another edition

3.0

Interesting but rather short read. I like novels in which good guys [again who does not :)] win but this one seems a little bit rushed which is a shame because story is very interesting.

There is no .... no tension for the lead characters. You know from the first page how the story will unfold, moment something unexpected happens you can pretty well predict how that problem will be solved .... But I was stunned how efficient is the border patrol from the south of the USA :) man, either they have some pretty bad neighbors or armed forces need to look into the law enforcement community for the recruits :)

Entertaining read.

johnbreeden's review against another edition

4.0

I've been going through James Rollins' stand alone novels recently. I will admit I had difficulty staying with some of the earlier works, but with Altar of Eden, I fell right into the flow. Generally, one might think much of the scientific elements are far fetched, but I can see that Rollins has invested a great deal of time in research. The threads tying the various elements together may be fictional, but the individual points have scientific merit.