Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon (Burton & Swinburne, #3)

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Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon (Burton & Swinburne #3)

by Mark Hodder (Goodreads Author)

3.8 of 5 stars 3.80 · rating details · 400 ratings · 68 reviews

It is 1863, but not the one it should be. Time has veered wildly off course, and now the first moves are being made that will lead to a devastating world war and the fall of the British Empire. Caught in a tangled web of cause, effect, and inevitability, little does Burton realize that the stakes are far higher than even he suspects. A final confrontation comes in the mist...more

Paperback, 399 pages

Published January 24th 2012 by Pyr (first published January 10th 2012)

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Feb 11, 2013 Jimm Wetherbee rated it 2 of 5 stars

In Hodder's final installment of this steam punk trilogy, we again meet Sir Richard Burton near the conclusion of the tale, which in turn takes place about forty years prior to we left him off in the second book, The Clockwork Man. We (and Burton) are not given long to dwell in the past before Hodder spirits us away to 1914 and World War I. Unlike our Great War, this one has already gone one for considerable length of time and British are making a last stand in East Africa (Just forget about the...more In Hodder's final installment of this steam punk trilogy, we again meet Sir Richard Burton near the conclusion of the tale, which in turn takes place about forty years prior to we left him off in the second book, The Clockwork Man. We (and Burton) are not given long to dwell in the past before Hodder spirits us away to 1914 and World War I. Unlike our Great War, this one has already gone one for considerable length of time and British are making a last stand in East Africa (Just forget about the British Isles. Those had been long lost to the Germans and Kaiser Nietzsche).1 Burton should, and had been, long dead. Time travel is funny like that. This world war, if not more hellish, is certainly more unnatural than the one that almost no one now remembers. It certainly have nightmares of its own. If the reader may recall from The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack, two classes of innovations arose centuries before their time—some in defiance to the laws of nature. One followed a biological path (the geneticists) and the other a physical or engineering path (the technologists). By the conclusion of The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, Britain had abandoned genetic research in favor of technology and Germany, in a quest to arrive at the Superman that would transcend nature, worked exclusively in genetics. The range and scale, as depicted in Expedition, to which plants and animals can be made into weapons and engines of war is truly horrifying. One weapon in particular, in which the victim is transmogrified into a plant but where the properties of each are blurred, figures predominately. Fortunately Hodder's prose does not extend as far as his imagination, so that the reader who does not wish to be compelled to face the full force of these horrors need not do so.

There is a certain relief, then to return to the present of 1863 where Burton and Swinburne are sent to find the last undiscovered Nāga black diamonds, which as we learned from the Clockwork Man, allow for—among other things—time travel.2 The cover-story for this mission is that Burton is off once more to find the source of the Nile. Burton brings with him all our favorites from the past two books. No explanation is made about how a poet, a number of policemen, and a mechanical philosopher (just to name few) fit into the official story. The crew, however, would give the promise of excellent company and wit over what would prove an arduous expedition. It is a promise unfulfilled. Everyone is always repressively grim. Early on, Swinburne takes on the role of avenging angel. Burton is forever serious. Almost every member of the expedition dies off in one way are another, without the relief of gallows humor. One might of expected that when Burton's old love, Isabel, joins the team as the leader of a small army of Arab Amazons, that something interesting would happen. Yet too soon Isabel reverts to form, developing a stiff upper lip. Hodder even misses opportunities with the villains. As with the race to find the source of the Nile in our time, Burton is in a race to find the black diamond against John Speke. It is clear, almost from the moment we encounter Speke that he is not of nefarious material. Instead, the blame can be shifted to the Germans and the Babbage machine that occupies half of Speke's brain. Even George Lucas knew that we needed to be loathed and intrigued by Darth Vader until the Sith Lord redeems himself at the very end. The Germans, are easy to hate—if only because Hodder has uniformly made them such tedious monsters. One gets the impression that Burton's exhaustion in is quest is matched only by Hodder's single minded determination to finish the series. It is enough make one wish to return to the World War.

That wish is granted, since most of the time one is bounced between 1863 and the years 1914-1917. At least the World War has the benefit of a fresh character, H. G. Wells, war correspondent. Wells (who goes by Bertie) is interesting enough, but can't hold a candle to the previous installments of Swineburne, drunk or sober. Swineburne, whose mission of vengeance was mercifully cut short by his presumed demise in 1863, does reappear in the World War, not a mere plant but an entire jungle. In the last few chapters, and all too briefly, we can at least hear the voice the delighted us in the past two books, if actually meeting him is not unlike discovering Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors.

Burton does make his way back 1840 to stop the assassination of Queen Victoria and the madness that Edward Oxford bequeathed to the past. Hodder does manage to pick up the pace here and Burton stands on the knife-edge of either resetting events back into balance, merely reinforcing the horrors Burton has witnessed, or adding a new voices to the cacophony. In the end, Burton (and apparently Hodder) make the mistake in concluding that is the assassination of the monarch is pivotal and not Oxford's retreat to 1837. In an attempt to work against the reader's anticipation, Hodder manages to dissolve his first and best effort in this trilogy in to roiling gray ether of his final entry.(less)

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Apr 12, 2012 Jason Pettus rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary, sci-fi, weird, alt-history, smart-nerdy

(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)

This is the third volume now of Mark Hodder's steampunk series, in which the real-life Victorian explorer Richard Francis Burton and libertine artist Algernon Swinburne fictionally team up for a series of adventures in an alt-history 19th century, and nicely illustrates the problem with missing the first t...more (Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)

This is the third volume now of Mark Hodder's steampunk series, in which the real-life Victorian explorer Richard Francis Burton and libertine artist Algernon Swinburne fictionally team up for a series of adventures in an alt-history 19th century, and nicely illustrates the problem with missing the first title in such a series when it comes to following along with the rest; for while I didn't seem to have much problem following along with the second volume, The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, mostly I suspect because it didn't contain much background material about the first volume, this third chapter contains just a huge infodump about the book that started it all (The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack, that is), a complicated backstory that involves time travel, multiple possible histories, and a sacred prehistoric meteorite that holds the key to the far-future quantum mechanics that are causing all the space-time-hopping messes in the first place (or, um, something like that), and I have to confess that I had a hard time simply trying to keep up with all the complex exposition. (Also, series fans, be aware that Hodder seems to have grown tired of the entire premise of Swinburne playing Dr. Watson to Burton's Sherlock Holmes, and that this third volume is mostly a Burton adventure with a few drunken wisecracks by Swinburne randomly thrown in here and there.) Granted, this universe is a much more original and creepy vision than most steampunk novels, the main reason to read the books in the first place -- in particular I really love the idea of genetic engineering being mastered long before electronics, so that the streets and skies are filled with giant dead bugs whose hollow exoskeletons are used as industrialized human vehicles -- but I also have to confess that by not getting hooked on this series from its start, I'm finding it increasingly difficult with each new volume to stay emotionally connected to the proceedings, the problem in a nutshell with all these endless so-so series that sci-fi publishers love putting out. It should be kept in mind when deciding for yourself whether or not to pick up a copy.

Out of 10: 8.2(less)

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Jan 24, 2012 Arabella rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, speculative-fiction, steampunk, read-2012

A striking conclusion to the Burton and Swinburn trilogy. I am still trying to process what I have read. The dramatic adventure portrayed in the novel was compelling and kept the pages turning but there is more to this book and it's predecessors than just a good story.
Blog link: http://genteelarsenal.blogspot.com/20...

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Sep 29, 2012 Martin rated it 5 of 5 stars

I pretty much said all I thought about this book in the review of the first one so I'm going to keep this short (plus I'm writing this while extremely, overly tired...)

This book is right back on form after the second one seemed a bit all over the place, with way too much trying to be crammed into one book.
This one is a lot more structured and linked in with the first book, creating a complete circle that I really didn't see coming.

I read from one book to the next without pause and in doing so...more

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Mar 18, 2012 Txkimmers rated it 4 of 5 stars

I had to go back in time (no easy task, let me assure you) to re-write this review. PLEASE NOTE SOME MILD SPOILERS. This series has for your reading enjoyment:

Sir Richard Francis Burton, re-made by a quirk of time into an Indiana Jones type action hero, a wonderful creation that you stick with until the bitter end because he is written so well. The end is bitter because (slight spoiler alert) Hodder turns him into a tragic hero, poor sap.

An entire raft of other characters taken from real life pe...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Benjamin Thomas rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction, steampunk, alternate-history

The concluding book in the "Burton and Swinburne" trilogy (although I understand a fourth book is on the horizon) is a complex and highly entertaining smorgasbord. It's part detective novel featuring an alternate history version of the famous African explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton in the role of the primary action/sleuth. Alongside him is the trusty sidekick: poet, drunkard, and worshiper of the Marquis de Sade, Algernon Swinburne. Together and along with many other famous and not-so-famous...more

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Apr 02, 2013 Cameo Worthy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Warning: This brief rant is spoiler-ish. If you haven't read the book, I wouldn't read this review. This book was amazingly beautiful, interesting, clever, and fun! It is far and away the best of the series, right up until the last chapter. It's clear the author intended to give us a shocking big finish, and it would have worked too if it hadn't been for that pesky "The Whole Rest of the Story." This was probably the most baffling internal consistency fail of my book reading life. I genuinely do...more

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Feb 10, 2012 James rated it 5 of 5 stars

The concluding volume to Mark Hodder's Burton & Swinburne trilogy (which began with The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack, and continued with The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man) is a veritable feast for the imagination.

It's 1863 - but not as we know it. History has been interfered with to such an extent that technology that should never have been available to the people of this era is now so prevalent in society that the world is practically cramped by the weight of its achievements. I...more

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Apr 21, 2013 Ambrosia rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of steampunk, gaslamp fantasy, time travel stories, Victoriana, or a good pulp adventure

Recommended to Ambrosia by: Found on the bookshelf while browisng at B&N

For much of its running time, this was verging on a four-star read for me. The editing has gotten much tighter since the first book, and the writing, while still not quite masterful (I think I counted eight separate times a character "revealed" something), is serviceable enough. Hodder does some nifty things with the world he's built, and we finally (finally!) get a proper female character who feels like she has her own agency. Admittedly, she gets very little actual screen time, and most of sai...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Rick rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book marks what I assume to be the final stage of Mark Hodder's excellent steampunk trilogy. I've thoroughly enjoyed all three books but this one is a real tour de force that takes the whole story full circle, with some very surprising developments on the way.

Richard Burton (the Victorian adventurer, not the Welsh actor)is a great hero of mine, so I was naturally intrigued when I saw Hodder's first book in the series, "The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack", and realised he was going to...more

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Sep 18, 2012 Kim Ryser rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012booksread, steampunk

This third book of the Burton and Swinburne series is a return to form after a disappointing second novel. The plot is much clearer and less cluttered than the second one, even though it shifts around in time without explaining itself. This book is set simultaneously in Africa in 1863 and in Africa in 1914 during a hellish alternate WWI. Time travel is handled excellently, and this series is such a must for time travel fans. I couldn't tell you if all the time travel paradoxes make sense, becaus...more This third book of the Burton and Swinburne series is a return to form after a disappointing second novel. The plot is much clearer and less cluttered than the second one, even though it shifts around in time without explaining itself. This book is set simultaneously in Africa in 1863 and in Africa in 1914 during a hellish alternate WWI. Time travel is handled excellently, and this series is such a must for time travel fans. I couldn't tell you if all the time travel paradoxes make sense, because they are so very difficult to follow, but it doesn't matter to me. The book does an excellent job of blending technology with the supernatural in such a way that it's difficult to tell the difference between the two.

The only criticism I can give this novel is that in parts it moves very slowly, as long portions recount people walking through Africa. It was a book that took me a while to get through because I kept putting it down and reading or doing something else. It wasn't because I wasn't enjoying it, but I felt I needed breaks from it at times. But ultimately, all that journeying contributes to feeling empathy of what the characters have been through by the end.

I'm not sure if this is a conclusion to the series or not, as it could go either way. All I can say is that the ending does not disappoint.

Oh, one final thought. I expressed a wish in my review of the first novel to have female characters take a larger role. I was somewhat given what I wanted when Burton's fiance led a group of oppressed Arabic women as an army of mounted guerrilla fighters. However, it continually bothered me that these women were killed off by the ten and twenty without so much as an eyeblink, but when one of the male characters of the group died, it was a major tragedy with tears and funerals. Same with the African porters. I appreciate that these attitudes are probably historically accurate, but if you're going to create an army of female warriors to do all the fighting for the men, you could go all the way and give them names and make them more than cannon fodder.(less)

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Oct 25, 2012 Alisa Russell rated it 5 of 5 stars

I just finished this book last night and was all excited to come here and review it today because I enjoyed it so much. Of course, once more I read out of order in a series as this book is number 3 in a series, the titles of the other two being The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack and The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man. I thought it was an excellent read despite being confused at the beginning with all of the jumping around in time. I've always been fascinated by alternate forms of histo...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Jane rated it 2 of 5 stars

What a disappointment! After really loving the first 2 and putting aside the other books I was reading to finish the trilogy I was really let down. Interminable descriptions of the trip across Africa to find the Naga diamonds that are one of the main characters of the story. I lost the thread of the plot even after scanning through pages and pages. There were 7 sentences just to describe Burton changing from one car to another. What a waste of my time but I finished it and then the disappointmen...more

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Apr 05, 2012 Suburbangardener rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: action-adventure, sci-fi

I found the third book in the series not as much fun as the previous two. It is a darker, more thought provoking book, and rather sad. The humorous moments were heavily outweighed by the tragic, as the author leads the reader on a journey to disaster. Sir Richard Burton is in two separate times, an 1863 trek through Africa, and in 1914 in the Great War as fought in Africa in an alternate future. The true tragedy isn't the Great War, but the awareness of how one's actions with the best of intenti...more

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Mar 21, 2013 D.A. Metrov rated it 5 of 5 stars

Reading this book is like being on opium in some hot, African jungle village. I would say Mark Hodder is a remarkable writer. This despite the fact he breaks so many "rules." For example, his tendency to write in passive sentences. This is, I believe, supposed to be mimicking the writing style of the Victorian Era, which is when the story takes place. Or rather, several alternate Victorian Eras. It's been a little confusing keeping track of the time jumps (or maybe my phone audio reader is just...more

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May 20, 2013 Claudiu rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: better-in-the-second-half, great-book-low-enjoyment, luke-i-am-your-father

Well...this was a bit of a slog. I've started reading this back in March and only now finally finished it. Something kept me back from reading it, again and again for some reason. I figured it out at the end.

So, Sir Richard Francis Burton goes on his final adventure in this trek across Africa and across time. He is joined by the entire cast of characters that we've come to appreciate since his first adventures and the journey is one of grief, troubles, true friendship, honor and sacrifice ultima...more Well...this was a bit of a slog. I've started reading this back in March and only now finally finished it. Something kept me back from reading it, again and again for some reason. I figured it out at the end.

So, Sir Richard Francis Burton goes on his final adventure in this trek across Africa and across time. He is joined by the entire cast of characters that we've come to appreciate since his first adventures and the journey is one of grief, troubles, true friendship, honor and sacrifice ultimately.
Unfortunately, it is also a story that spills some beans a bit too soon and the entire ending of the story can be easily divine this way. It's what has plagued me the entire time, the thing that kept the story in check for myself. I desperately wanted the ending to be different, but everything pointed towards the same thing and it was bothersome.

But aside from that easy to guess outcome, this is truly a great book that's only marred by weird pacing and some portions that are rather boring. The fact that the narrative switches back and forth only helps to aggravate the pacing issues. Two separate storylines CAN coexist without worry, but the moment when one is a LOT more interesting than the other, the parts that do not concern that certain part of the story will feel cumbersome.

This is a universe that feels like it has spiraled out of control hazardously, far enough to be out of the grasp of the author himself. But mister Mark Hodder keeps a tight grip on these world building moments and the whole chaos turns into a central theme of the book, which is really for the best. To see these characters react to their world going further and further into madness was delicious, especially as we can share their disbelief and we wonder how far will it go until something breaks terribly.

The characters themselves were compelling, the safari feel of the Africa part of the story was in itself rather enjoyable - although much too late did it start to be engaging -, the atmosphere was still kept thoroughly British. All in all, it was a very pleasant, very fun book, held back by its own pacing and its own narrative structure. The ending may leave some unsatisfied - myself among those- but it was to be expected.

If you're a fan of the previous books you owe it to yourself to see the whole story to the end.
If you're not, this will not change your mind.

Good reading. (less)

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May 30, 2012 Eric rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Readers of the first two books that needed a sense of closure

Shelves: steam-punk, science-fiction

The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack was a fun steam-punk romp with a sci-fi time-travel twist. The pace was break-neck, even if the plot was a bit incoherent at times. The interplay between the colorful cast of characters, most of which were stolen from real-life historical figures, made the book. This same winning recipe continued in The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, which left me excited to read this third and final volume of the Burton & Swinburne trilogy.

Sadly, that excitement...more The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack was a fun steam-punk romp with a sci-fi time-travel twist. The pace was break-neck, even if the plot was a bit incoherent at times. The interplay between the colorful cast of characters, most of which were stolen from real-life historical figures, made the book. This same winning recipe continued in The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man, which left me excited to read this third and final volume of the Burton & Swinburne trilogy.

Sadly, that excitement died the moment I opened Expeditions to the Mountains of the Moon. The lightness in tone was gone, replaced by a bleak fatalism. The banter between the cast also disappeared, as each of the supporting casts' moment was relegated to their swan song. The Burton & Swinburne moniker doesn't even really apply to this book, as it is mostly Burton, and Swinburne's final appearance is an absurd scene (view spoiler). This book also abandoned its steam-punk origins; it is a full-fledged time-travel book, with rules more convoluted than quantum mechanics, and multiple alternate versions of history.

The book actually jumps back and forth between two time-lines so often that every time I even became mildly interested in where the plot was going, I became stymied by the other time-line being forced back upon me. The latter of the two time-lines was mostly to blame, as it featured Burton alone in a alternate future that the reader has no vested interest in, and the explanation for his purpose there is not given until the story's climax.

I almost lemmed this book more times than I can count. The only thing that kept me going was that I'd already read the two books that preceded it, and wanted to know how the trilogy ended. The conclusion wound up being the final nail in the coffin. I could have forgiven a lot of this book's many faults if the ending were a satisfying one. But instead, the ending is unsatisfying on every level, and also more opaque than the ending of Twelve Monkeys, thanks to the book's convoluted time-travel elements.

I'm so disappointed with this concluding volume that I'd seriously reconsider recommending even the first two books in the trilogy to others.(less)

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Jan 12, 2012 Viccy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction

This is the third outing for Sir Richard Francis Burton, King's agent and Algernon Swinburne, poet and side-kick. Burton is making his way to Africa, again, to try and find the origin of the Nile River and uncover the remaining Stone of Naga, that Lord Palmerston wants to protect England in these dire times. Prussia has arisen in the East and their mediums are fighting with the British mediums and the Eugenicists are determined to create havoc with all the flora and fauna of the African continen...more

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Feb 10, 2013 Paul rated it 4 of 5 stars

More gripping and entertaining alternate history hi-jinks, which I enjoyed every bit as much as the previous two. I was expecting a clear resolution at the end of this one, but the author kept me guessing to the last page and now I don't know whether to expect another book in the series or not - nor whether I'd welcome another. Felt like a natural conclusion to the story. Still a rip-snorting good read though, and Hodder has so much fun with his characters that you can't help but be carried alon...more

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Apr 14, 2012 Nigel rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book is the last of a very good trilogy. However I found this one to be the least satisfying of the three.To use an oft used cliche it felt like the author was juggling too many balls in the air for at least half of of the book.It also made me think of Lonesome Dove in that any character you may have grown to like, had a high probability of meeting an untimely end.That said the alternate time lines of history stocked with historical figures does enough for this book to merit a read.

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Sep 13, 2012 Jonathan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As with the previous books in the Burton and Swinburne series, this is an action packed adventure set in an alternative Steampunk, Victorian London. Mark Hodder cleverly uses real people from Victorian history and casts them in a fantastical fictional setting. Though more epic in scale than the previous books it is still very exciting from start to finish with more than one clever twist as the adventure unfolds. Personally I think that with each book the series gets stronger and stronger. I hope...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Fred Hughes rated it 4 of 5 stars

Mark Hoder always gives you your moneys worth. A splendid story teller with a more than a vivid imagination he blends both in this tale that spans multiple continents and time lines. While the steampunk genre is the pallete he paints the story on he also takes on world politics, religious and spiritual dogma.

The Kings agent Burton has been given the assignment to secure the last Naga black diamond to ensure England's grip on the world remains in tact. However the Germans and the Prussians have o...more

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Apr 07, 2012 Stacy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Loved this series, but I'm still not sure about the ending. It was definitely a twist and I didn't see it coming until just before it happened, but (to me at least) it made much of the series seem wasted. I'll have to think more on it to see if I change my mind. The series was fabulous even if the ending wasn't the way I would have like to see things end up.

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Jan 20, 2012 David Marshall rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is an eminently satisfying ending to the trilogy, trying up all the loose ends admirably but I feel the section describing the expeditions trek through Africa goes on too long. Nevertheless, the trilogy remains one of the best over the last decade.

http://opionator.wordpress.com/2012/0...

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Feb 03, 2012 Liviu rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012_release_read, genre-sf, review_fbc, read_2012, series_read, t2_recommended_2012

I finished this (maybe last) Burton and Swinburne novel and while I plan to talk more a bit later on further thought, for now i will say that overall I thought it a very good book despite that it almost fell in the solipsistic (the action of one or more characters can erase/change timelines ie have God powers ie solipsism) trap that tends to afflict time travel/timeline changes novels. Very good writing and in the "local" - chapter by chapter, adventure by adventure, scene by scene the book is e...more

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Jan 18, 2013 Mickey Schulz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sf-fantasy, alt-history

The 3rd book in the Burton and Swinburne series, it is every bit as well written, but more dense. This book requires more thinking. You really need to pay attention to the simultaneous timelines. But it's well worth it. It isn't as quick a read as the other two, but definitely just as good. You just have to work a bit harder at it.

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Jun 08, 2012 Patrick Cauldwell rated it 3 of 5 stars

While I'm a huge Richard Burton fan, and I've enjoyed the first couple books, which one just didn't quite do it for me. I felt like it was just too much. Too complicated, too contrived, too much of a stretch to make everything fit. It was definitely worth a read, but I would have gone in a much simpler direction with this, myself.

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Apr 08, 2012 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: steampunk

This was a good book and is perpetually tied in with the first two books.

I really liked how the author started out with one incident and then wove it into an insane blowup in the end. It was impossible to guess where the story was going at any particular time which kept me reading. The inventions were outrageously ingenious and I really liked how he worked H. G. Wells into the story. The trek across Africa was a bit long and maybe could have been shortened a little, but it was a very good book a...more

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Jul 25, 2012 Doug Babin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Last book of the story arc :(
Finishing was like saying good bye to old friends.
Oh Swinburne! At least you're happy...
It'll be interesting to see if Hollywood has the cajones to
attempt putting this story onto the big screen.

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Apr 19, 2012 Kate rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really liked all of the plot twists and the concept of time and fate being intrinsically connected. A main chunk of the book was just spent detailing the horrors of the African trip and it was unnecessary. The book could easily have chopped off a good 50-75 pages. I also hated the ending.

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About Mark Hodder

British writer living in Valencia, Spain.

Mark Hodder is the creator and caretaker of the Blakiana: The Sexton Blake Resource web site, which he designed to celebrate, record, and revive Sexton Blake, the most written about fictional detective in English publishing history.

A former BBC writer, editor, journalist, and Web producer, Mark has worked in all the new and traditional medias and was based...more

More about Mark Hodder...

Books by Mark Hodder

The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack (Burton & Swinburne, #1)

The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man (Burton & Swinburne, #2)

Great Great Great (And So Forth) Uncle Dragoslav

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11225502-expedition-to-the-mountains-of-the-moon?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320519474l/11225502.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11225502-expedition-to-the-mountains-of-the-moon?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon by Mark Hodder[/url]

Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon (Burton & Swinburne #3)

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