A review by bookish_leslie
Seven Deadly Wonders by Matthew Reilly

adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

My rating scale, for reference:

  • 1 Star: Hated it
  • 2 Stars: Didn't like it
  • 3 Stars: Meh
  • 4 Stars: Liked it
  • 5 Stars: Loved it
 
If I had to rate this book on the writing or characters alone, it probably would have been closer to 1 or 2 stars, but because I was so engaged with all of the action and adventure, I rated it a bit higher. But just know that to be able to enjoy this book, I think you have to go into it knowing what it is and what it is not. 

  • It is: a fast-paced, testosterone-fueled, shoot-em-up action adventure - basically like if Indiana Jones and Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” had a baby (heavy on the Indiana Jones).

  • It is not: well-written, nor does it have any depth or character development. Don’t expect it to be credible or believable. So long as you set your expectations appropriately and keep an open mind, I think you’ll be fine (ish). 

Why an open mind? Well, it requires some serious suspension of disbelief. Like, for starters, the fact that this hodge-podge group of military baddies is bringing a 10-year-old CHILD with them into the most dangerous situations imaginable - guns blazing, military-trained killers, ancient Egyptian trap systems, crocodile infested waters, quicksand lakes, etc. Maybe it’s a case of extreme measures being taken in a potential end-of-the-world scenario, but you definitely have to just shrug it off and move on. I could give sooooo many more examples of "it makes no sense," but let's just leave it at suspension of disbelief required and move on.

Things I Liked:

  • It was adventurous and fast-paced
  • The Americans were cast as the villains for once (a refreshing change from the usual hero worship treatment they receive)
  • There was wide diversity in the characters' ethnicities (though they were generically and stereotypically written, so the diversity rep was essentially negated)
  • It was reasonably entertaining and enjoyable

Things I Didn't Like:

  • The action sequences often weren't as exciting or as challenging as they could have been, as (spoiler)
    most of the traps were easily overcome
    .
  • The sexism. The only woman on the active team was constantly interrupted every time she opened her mouth in a way that did not happen to any of the men. 
  • I obviously expected violence in a book like this,  but it was a bit much for my sensitive soul, especially during the climax.
  • The cavalier attitude some characters had about other people's lives was just no.
  • Lily's (spoiler)
    180 flip in how she related to Jack - suddenly calling him "daddy" when the plot required it when she had previously been calling him "sir"
    .
  • And, le sigh, the writing. Don't even get me started on All! The! Exclamation! Points! Or the unnecessary italics. Or the weird line breaks where there would be a dash or an ellipses that cut a sentence in half...
              ...only for the sentence to be continued on the next line (like I've just done here).
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