A solid Sigma Force adventure that’s sure to please thriller fans.
Life on Earth may come to an end in this fast-moving Sigma Force novel.
In 1815, Mount Tambora exploded in the South Pacific, causing massive death and destruction. Its worldwide cloud cover caused the “year without a summer” in 1816. Two centuries later, Sigma Force explores the deepest parts of the Pacific with ultrasophisticated equipment such as the five-tiered Titan station. In the depths of the Coral Sea, they encounter giant coral forests containing highly aggressive and hostile giant coral trees. Deep in the crushing depths of the Tonga Trench lies a sunken nuclear submarine the Chinese don't want anyone to know about. Meanwhile, Asia is beset by earthquakes and tsunamis, perhaps caused by disturbances in the “massive slabs” of the planetoid Theia, speculated to have crashed into Earth billions of years ago. Said slabs are buried in Earth’s upper mantle, and “they may soon destroy us.” Of course, a thriller needs human villains too; enter a rogue Chinese team that thinks they may be able to use ELF—extremely low-frequency—transmissions to manipulate pieces of Theia and cause earthquakes and tsunamis at will. Thus, China would have a weapon to make nuclear arsenals obsolete and ensure its world dominance for centuries to come. (That sounds like an iffy proposition, but who knows?) Along with a number of helpful illustrations, the author mixes his considerable scientific knowledge with ancient myths, speculation, and imagination. A Chinese sailor’s body undergoes “biomineralization,” turning him to stone. The sound of bullroarers may appease the angry gods as some pin their hopes on lost Aboriginal mythology to quell the quakes. Scientists speculate on DNA based on silicon rather than carbon. And if you’ve ever wondered what would happen if your submersible springs a leak 11,000 meters below the ocean’s surface, well—no spoilers here—it’s not good. There’s plenty of brisk action in this undersea yarn, of both the people vs. people and coral vs. people variety. And don’t worry about the world really ending, because Rollins plans a sequel.
A solid Sigma Force adventure that’s sure to please thriller fans.Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2023
ISBN: 9780062893079
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
A standout in the series.
The sixth adventure of Harvard symbology professor Robert Langdon explores the mysteries of human consciousness, the demonic projects of the CIA, and the city of Prague.
“Ladies and gentlemen...we are about to experience a sea change in our understanding of how the brain works, the nature of consciousness, and in fact…the very nature of reality itself.” But first—Langdon’s in love! Brown’s devoted readers first met brilliant noetic scientist Katherine Solomon in The Lost Symbol (2009); she’s back as a serious girlfriend, engaging the committed bachelor in a way not seen before. The book opens with the pair in a luxurious suite at the Four Seasons in Prague. It’s the night after Katherine has delivered the lecture quoted above, setting the theme for the novel, which features a plethora of real-life cases and anomalies that seem to support the notion that human consciousness is not localized inside the human skull. Brown’s talent for assembling research is also evident in this novel’s alter ego as a guidebook to Prague, whose history and attractions are described in great and glowing detail. Whether you appreciate or skim past the innumerable info dumps on these and other topics (Jewish folklore fans—the Golem is in the house!), it goes without saying that concision is not a goal in the Dan Brown editing process. Speaking of editing, the nearly 700-page book is dedicated to Brown’s editor, who seems to appear as a character—to put it in the italicized form used for Brownian insight, Jason Kaufman must be Jonas Faukman! A major subplot involves the theft of Katherine’s manuscript from the secure servers of Penguin Random House; the delightful Faukman continues to spout witty wisecracks even when blindfolded and hogtied. There’s no shortage of action, derring-do, explosions, high-tech torture machines, attempted and successful murders, and opportunities for split-second, last-minute escapes; good thing Langdon, this aging symbology wonk, never misses swimming his morning laps. Readers who are not already dyed-in-the-wool Langdonites may find themselves echoing the prof’s own conclusion regarding the credibility of all this paranormal hoo-ha: At some point, skepticism itself becomes irrational.
A standout in the series.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780385546898
Page Count: 688
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Despite the stakes, the heroine’s second adventure is a generally lighthearted anti-caper.
Gabriela Rose, the recovery agent famed for being able to find almost anything, goes looking for the Rosetta Stone. And that’s only the beginning.
You didn’t know the Rosetta Stone was missing? That’s because the British Museum, wanting to keep its theft hush-hush, has been displaying a copy in its place. And Gabriela’s involvement is equally secretive. Her ex-husband, Rafer Jones, has pressed her to find it because his idiot cousin, Harley Patch, who improbably became president of the Searl and Junkett bank, has taken it upon himself to insure a slew of priceless artifacts—many of which have now gone missing. The stone, as it turns out, is surprisingly easy to find. Following the trail of Leon Blake, a new operations officer at the museum who quit two days after the theft, and John Mackey, a museum security guard who was shot to death that same day, Gabriela successfully beats out rival recovery agent Ahmed Ed Ghaly, who’s been tasked with bringing the stone back to Egypt, in the hunt. An altogether more elusive prize is the golden inner coffin of Tutankhamen’s half brother, unofficially dubbed “Brendan.” This search is more dangerous, too, because Ahmed kidnaps Harley to make sure that Gabriela turns the coffin over to him. Jim, the Cairo cabbie Gabriela hires to drive her around, takes to calling himself Jim Bond once he sees her in action; and he’s on to something—not because the fate of the free world hangs in the balance, but because “the heist to end all heists” gradually dissolves into an amusing, episodic travelogue whose climax feels like just one more picturesque tableau.
Despite the stakes, the heroine’s second adventure is a generally lighthearted anti-caper.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9781668027479
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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