localboss's review against another edition
3.0
Lo empecé varias veces y varías veces lo retomé.
El comienzo es muy bueno, fantástica premisa y desarrollo inicial de la novela. A su favor también la ambientación, los hechos, nos lleva a lugares desconocidos y los describe con gran realismo. Además la historia detrás de los hechos llega a resultar bastante verosímil.
Sin embargo, me quedo a medias en la forma de resolver la novela, con algo que tengo la sensación de "haber leído ya muchas veces".
En cualquier caso, es un libro entretenido y merece la pena darle la oportunidad, no defrauda.
El comienzo es muy bueno, fantástica premisa y desarrollo inicial de la novela. A su favor también la ambientación, los hechos, nos lleva a lugares desconocidos y los describe con gran realismo. Además la historia detrás de los hechos llega a resultar bastante verosímil.
Sin embargo, me quedo a medias en la forma de resolver la novela, con algo que tengo la sensación de "haber leído ya muchas veces".
En cualquier caso, es un libro entretenido y merece la pena darle la oportunidad, no defrauda.
bev_reads_mysteries's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, Torture, Antisemitism, Murder, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Violence and Blood
andie_elizabeth13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
booknerd_therapist's review against another edition
2.0
Let's start with the positive. Tom Knox writes well. He knows how to move a story and how to leave a reader in suspense. I was indeed turning pages.
That's kind of it, in my opinion. First of all, the summary on the dust jacket does NOT prepare the reader for the grotesque and gory scenes in the book. As someone very prone to nightmares, I tend to avoid books (and movies) that involve setting cats on fire and boiling senior citizens alive. And yes, it does get much worse than that.
Secondly, this book is similar to Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code, in that it attempts to use some mysterious ancient secret to debunk all of the monotheistic religions. And, like Dan Brown's books, it fails on philosophical and theological levels. Knox's version describes religion as a way for people to cope with "the Genensis Secret" (which I won't reveal in case you actually want to read it), but he describes all religions as "savage" and "violent." It's man's way of coping with his "violence gene" (especially where human sacrifice and ritual killings are concerned). But that fails to provide a reason for why a religion such as Christianity abhors ritual killings and animal/human sacrifice, and seeks instead to uplift the weak, the poor, and the oppressed.
And finally... my complaint with all of these types of books is the same: If there is some horrible secret that has to be destroyed, why the heck do people preserve it in the first place, only to destroy it "when the time comes?" Why not just destroy it in the first place and let the memory die out? Is that an exercise in futility, or what?
In all, not my cup of tea, won't be reading it again.
That's kind of it, in my opinion. First of all, the summary on the dust jacket does NOT prepare the reader for the grotesque and gory scenes in the book. As someone very prone to nightmares, I tend to avoid books (and movies) that involve setting cats on fire and boiling senior citizens alive. And yes, it does get much worse than that.
Secondly, this book is similar to Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code, in that it attempts to use some mysterious ancient secret to debunk all of the monotheistic religions. And, like Dan Brown's books, it fails on philosophical and theological levels. Knox's version describes religion as a way for people to cope with "the Genensis Secret" (which I won't reveal in case you actually want to read it), but he describes all religions as "savage" and "violent." It's man's way of coping with his "violence gene" (especially where human sacrifice and ritual killings are concerned). But that fails to provide a reason for why a religion such as Christianity abhors ritual killings and animal/human sacrifice, and seeks instead to uplift the weak, the poor, and the oppressed.
And finally... my complaint with all of these types of books is the same: If there is some horrible secret that has to be destroyed, why the heck do people preserve it in the first place, only to destroy it "when the time comes?" Why not just destroy it in the first place and let the memory die out? Is that an exercise in futility, or what?
In all, not my cup of tea, won't be reading it again.
cydewayzraven's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Worth reading!
daisys_library's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
jbays's review against another edition
1.0
If I could give this zero stars, I would. This book was a great suspenseful thriller until the very end, when it turned to complete crap. The big "secret" or the great revelation is so clear and obvious to any reader who has ever studied either history or biology. Really?! Don't bother. I won't ruin it for anyone who still wants to read it it. It's massively underwhelming and a waste of valuable reading time.
willowfae's review against another edition
4.0
This was a good book, although it started to lose its way towards the end. The 'Genesis secret' wasn't really as a big a deal as the book was making out. I kind of found myself thinking 'oh, is that it?'.
Be warned, the book has some VERY gory descriptions of human sacrifice.
All in all though, if you want a good page turner then this is definitely one to read. I couldn't believe it was over 500 pages!
Be warned, the book has some VERY gory descriptions of human sacrifice.
All in all though, if you want a good page turner then this is definitely one to read. I couldn't believe it was over 500 pages!
rajigo's review
Fascinating historical topic, but the story wasn't picking up. A far cry from the fast pacing of the Da Vinci Code or others from this genre
alexblackmon's review against another edition
2.0
I liked the story line, but the murder scenes and the very in depth descriptions of ancient human sacrifice rituals were way too much for me. I'm all for providing good detail, but seriously. They made me nauseous.