The Emperor's Tomb: Book 6

"The Emperor's Tomb" by Steve Berry was fascinating in that I had no idea how many thousands of years ago China had made inventions that we have to this day, albeit in a different form, but nevertheless they invented them. One of the best features of a Steve Berry novel is that he identifies what was actual and what he used as a prop to move the story along. His background is history and he does his homework. The characters are multifaceted and not one dimensional. Berry also adds a love interest, although it never becomes the focus of his novels, the encounters merely add a little spice to a history mystery. I have read many of his books and have always felt like I learned something as well as enjoyed the mystery aspect. China is a complicated country and has had a long history of change and ideologies. It seems like all regimes have either followed the Legality or Confucian doctrines and currently they are following the Legality, although the author readily admits that China is fully on the Capitalist path though not necessarily Democratic. It's a good read from start to finish and you will see how the different periods have tried to influence the present regime by erasing the past. A curious thought of erasing rather than building on the past and how Europeans caught up with Chinese inventions by the 14th Century because China had no written language at the time.

Steve Berry has an incredible ability to interweave dramatic fiction with detailed historical facts that result in provocative political/action thrillers. The history of China is a fascinating backdrop for this spellbinding story of political intrigue and action. Cotton Malone is a fun heroic figure, smart, attractive, physically strong and agile, with a unique morale compass that always chooses good over evil in a rationalized way.Great characters and frequent plot twists leave you wondering right up until the end who are the good guys and bad guys. If you aren’t a careful reader it can make you dizzy.I love Steve Berry. Another great story from the Cotton Malone library!

The rise of China and the details of its deep history - especially its first emperor and his still-unopened tomb, make for the foundation of a great story. Berry adds to that the suppressed truth that oil is not a "fossil fuel" - oil has been detected on other planets according to astronomers - and seems to be self-generating and not animal/plant based.In the author's notes at the end he says that he could not visit China because of the pressures of writing a book a year. Might all of his books be a bit better if he broke from this schedule and slowed down enough to do this kind of basic research.

Cotton Malone is, well, Cotton Malone. And if he hasn’t clearly established his bonafides in the first seven episodes of Steve Berry’s incredibly successful series, then this eighth one should convince any doubters left. In “The Emperor’s Tomb,” Berry puts our former Justice Department agent and now soldier of fortune and bookstore owner in Copenhagen into another of his successful (and usually easy to accept) conspiracies. Like Dan Brown, almost every episode is “the survival of the free world (sometimes just the whole world)” is dependent upon Malone rushing to sane judgment before the Apocalypse. Here we find him in an early dilemma. He has received a video of Cassiopeia Vitt (fans certainly her from previous episodes) showing her being waterboarded, with a “we’ll stop if you follow our instructions.” Alas, he doesn’t have what it is her captors want—an artifact she supposedly has given Malone to keep—does that stop Malone? Of course not, for, after all, he is Cotton Malone. Once more Berry gives us intriguing (and educational) lessons in history, art, geography, and politics. This installment takes him from Copenhagen and on in to the People’s Republic of China and into the tombs of China’s first emperor. He has a feeling that there is a secret here—and here comes the exciting part—that could (or could not) save the modern world. Levity aside, though, despite the suspense Berry always creates, his sense of historical appreciation is supreme. And, clever novelist he is, it doesn’t come across as a history lesson in school.Violence, intrigue, narrow escapes, archeological adventures, and good characterization propel this—and the other Berry books—to a solid (if not always soothing) conclusion. As Sue Potter, one of the critics of the Texas “Literary Gazette,” has pointed out, “Steve Berry’s books—and I’ve read them all—are always filled with so much suspense that it is difficult to put them down. I’ve read some of his more than once and each time he holds my interest completely.” My Steve Berry reading coincides with Ms Potter’s.