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A review by shu_long
The Blood Gospel by James Rollins
3.0
The premise of this book is very good, an excellent hook and one I found myself drawn into discovering more bits and pieces about. I love history and archeological puzzles. Anyone who can convincingly use history to tangle in a story on two times lines usually gets my attention automatically. On that note, I'd give Blood Gospel four stars. I'd place it in the same subgenre as Da Vinci's Code and an excellent addition to that vein of books.
However, it was difficult for me to get past the one dimensional characters. The authors took pains to create a lot of sexual tension in situations that I simple did not find realistic. I wanted to like them, but I often found the dialog between the three principle characters had a jarring note and I found the suggestive scenes trite. The supporting characters definitely demonstrated that the authors had the ability to create more credulous personalities. I wish they had dropped the blockbuster sex selling story line for something more realistic and believable. I could believe two people being drawn physically together as an affirmation of being alive after everything they went through, but hint after hint about how gorgeousness of the other person is not exactly believable. Those scenes got in the way of the rest of the character attributes.
That being said, it was a rip-roaring, hard paced thriller with lots of questions, answered and somewhat unanswered, leaving plenty of room for a sequel. An entertaining read and anyone who enjoys stories that twist history and take a dark gothic style look at religion will probably enjoy it on some level, especially if you also like Dan Brown. This is a plot driven, not character driven book. Read it for that an enjoy.
However, it was difficult for me to get past the one dimensional characters. The authors took pains to create a lot of sexual tension in situations that I simple did not find realistic. I wanted to like them, but I often found the dialog between the three principle characters had a jarring note and I found the suggestive scenes trite. The supporting characters definitely demonstrated that the authors had the ability to create more credulous personalities. I wish they had dropped the blockbuster sex selling story line for something more realistic and believable. I could believe two people being drawn physically together as an affirmation of being alive after everything they went through, but hint after hint about how gorgeousness of the other person is not exactly believable. Those scenes got in the way of the rest of the character attributes.
That being said, it was a rip-roaring, hard paced thriller with lots of questions, answered and somewhat unanswered, leaving plenty of room for a sequel. An entertaining read and anyone who enjoys stories that twist history and take a dark gothic style look at religion will probably enjoy it on some level, especially if you also like Dan Brown. This is a plot driven, not character driven book. Read it for that an enjoy.