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John Brynstone #2
The False Door
Five years ago, an elusive assassin came far too close to killing former government agent John Brynstone’s daughter. Using a legendary elixir called the White Chrism, Brynstone healed his daughter and in so doing, gave her an amazing power. Now, Brynstone has sworn to hunt down the assassin and avenge his family. His only chance is to find pieces of a centuries-old lost artifact that will lead him to discover the Black Chrism, which has the awful power both to give and to take life.
Brynstone sets off on a perilous quest to uncover and reassemble the valuable artifact, piece by bloodstained piece. Following a trail of historical clues, his journey takes him around the world, from a mysterious Parisian grave to an ancient Egyptian catacomb. Along the way, Brynstone is joined by a motley crew of allies, and hunted by formidable adversaries, until he’s no longer sure who to trust—only that he must succeed in order to save his daughter.
Brynstone sets off on a perilous quest to uncover and reassemble the valuable artifact, piece by bloodstained piece. Following a trail of historical clues, his journey takes him around the world, from a mysterious Parisian grave to an ancient Egyptian catacomb. Along the way, Brynstone is joined by a motley crew of allies, and hunted by formidable adversaries, until he’s no longer sure who to trust—only that he must succeed in order to save his daughter.
434 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
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53 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 4, 2015
I really liked “RADIX” which I read a few months back and was looking forward to reading this novel, but was ultimately disappointed. The story lacked originality and I found the writing formulaic and in some cases implausible. Perhaps the author was under pressure because of publishing deadline. ‘m not sure I I’ll read another book by this author.
2.5 STARS” **Receiving this book through Amazon's Vine Program did not influence my rating or review of this book.; all opinions are my own.**.
2.5 STARS” **Receiving this book through Amazon's Vine Program did not influence my rating or review of this book.; all opinions are my own.**.
September 12, 2018
Well researched!
Action packed and fast moving. I did not want to put it down. Now to see what develops as Shayna matures and John, Cori and Rashmi travel!
Action packed and fast moving. I did not want to put it down. Now to see what develops as Shayna matures and John, Cori and Rashmi travel!
July 5, 2023
1 star = I did not like it by GoodRead guidelines. Otherwise I would rate this as 2/5 for quality of writing.
Why I didn't like this book:
Firstly, I didn't like this being written from several points of view. It was annoying and unsatisfying, especially since several chapters ended in the amateurish "He fell", "She screamed." cliffhanger endings. That is not to say that books written from several POV's can't be good or that chapters that end in a cipher can't be exciting but in this book the alternating chapters weren't long enough or self-contained enough to hold my interest before switching to another POV. And cliffhanger endings can be exciting if written expertly enough that you want to know what happens next. But these cliffhanger cutoff endings were too artificial and the preceding action hadn't built up enough to make it worthwhile so basically the story cuts to another POV before you want to read more.
Secondly, the writing was awkward and not smooth flowing (just my opinion here) and that goes for the story as well.
Lastly, I didn't feel the author didn't do a good job of building up the characters. They were either too cliched or shallow. It didn't come across to me that they were real people or even characters that acted normally.
Overall, I didn't enjoy the book. I got this book free as a review copy.
Why I didn't like this book:
Firstly, I didn't like this being written from several points of view. It was annoying and unsatisfying, especially since several chapters ended in the amateurish "He fell", "She screamed." cliffhanger endings. That is not to say that books written from several POV's can't be good or that chapters that end in a cipher can't be exciting but in this book the alternating chapters weren't long enough or self-contained enough to hold my interest before switching to another POV. And cliffhanger endings can be exciting if written expertly enough that you want to know what happens next. But these cliffhanger cutoff endings were too artificial and the preceding action hadn't built up enough to make it worthwhile so basically the story cuts to another POV before you want to read more.
Secondly, the writing was awkward and not smooth flowing (just my opinion here) and that goes for the story as well.
Lastly, I didn't feel the author didn't do a good job of building up the characters. They were either too cliched or shallow. It didn't come across to me that they were real people or even characters that acted normally.
Overall, I didn't enjoy the book. I got this book free as a review copy.
April 9, 2014
Perhaps falling victim to the sequel curse, "The False Door" was a disappointment. While I continue to be impressed with the author's storytelling capabilities, some of the plot elements were very contrived, formulaic and cliche'd, lacking plausibility. "Radix" pushed the envelope on believabilty as well, but it was a better written story by a first time author and allowances are generally given in that regard.
Unfortunately, the characters moved from heroic to overwhelmingly stereotypical, allowing this novel to devolve into the "potboiler" category. The action sequences were generally well executed, however.
In general, it seemed that this novel was written by a teenager for young adults. The writing suffered as a result.
Unfortunately, the characters moved from heroic to overwhelmingly stereotypical, allowing this novel to devolve into the "potboiler" category. The action sequences were generally well executed, however.
In general, it seemed that this novel was written by a teenager for young adults. The writing suffered as a result.
April 5, 2015
This is the second book in a series. I never read the first book. While you don't need to read the first book to enjoy this one, I would recommend reading it since they refer so many times to the past that I think it would add more enjoyment if you read it in continuity. It is fast moving thriller/mystery that has the characters flying across the world looking for pieces of an ancient helmet that contains a secret code that will lead to a formula that gives people the power of life and death. Fans of the Da Vinci code will like this book.
January 15, 2014
I enjoyed this book.
April 12, 2017
"The False Door" takes us from the United States, to England, to Paris, to Crete and, finally, to Egypt as paleopathologist John Brynstone chases down an artifact called the Scintilla. This document is purported to have the instructions for creating something called the Black Chrism, a dangerous elixir that has caused the deaths of several people throughout history.
It takes a while for this book to get going, and for the reader to figure out why this document matters to Brynstone at all. The author seems to rely on people having read the previous book ("The Radix") for background, so it also takes time to piece together who the major players are in relation to one another.
I admire the author's use of history and legend alike, and it's clear that a great deal of research went into the tale. King's understanding of antiquities, funerary practices across cultures, etc., is outstanding. His writing is engaging and, once the book gets going, is full of more twists and turns than a Minoan labyrinth.
I enjoyed it.
It takes a while for this book to get going, and for the reader to figure out why this document matters to Brynstone at all. The author seems to rely on people having read the previous book ("The Radix") for background, so it also takes time to piece together who the major players are in relation to one another.
I admire the author's use of history and legend alike, and it's clear that a great deal of research went into the tale. King's understanding of antiquities, funerary practices across cultures, etc., is outstanding. His writing is engaging and, once the book gets going, is full of more twists and turns than a Minoan labyrinth.
I enjoyed it.
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April 12, 20183.5 Stars
Although there's enough information to get the basic idea of what happened in Radix, I feel I would`ve enjoyed this sequel more had I read them in order. That said, this is a DaVinci'esk story, with the main character, John Brynstone searching for pieces of an ancient helmet, that when reassembled form a map, that leads to the black chrism. Five years ago assassin Erich Metzger tried to kill John's daughter, it was only with the power of the White Chrism was he able to save her. Now with a host of characters searching for this mysterious artifiact, which has the power to give AND take life, John is determined to find it, then find Metzger and avenge his family.
There's lots of action sequences, which reminded me of Nicholas Cage in National Treasure. The dialogue reads easy and swift, with short chapters. (James Patterson style) I wish the characters had been further developed, focusing more on quailty than quantity. The False Door is definitely worth reading, but I strongly suggest reading Radix first. I intend to read it before the third installment is released, so that I will be well versed on all the elements thus far.
Happy Reading,
RJ
Although there's enough information to get the basic idea of what happened in Radix, I feel I would`ve enjoyed this sequel more had I read them in order. That said, this is a DaVinci'esk story, with the main character, John Brynstone searching for pieces of an ancient helmet, that when reassembled form a map, that leads to the black chrism. Five years ago assassin Erich Metzger tried to kill John's daughter, it was only with the power of the White Chrism was he able to save her. Now with a host of characters searching for this mysterious artifiact, which has the power to give AND take life, John is determined to find it, then find Metzger and avenge his family.
There's lots of action sequences, which reminded me of Nicholas Cage in National Treasure. The dialogue reads easy and swift, with short chapters. (James Patterson style) I wish the characters had been further developed, focusing more on quailty than quantity. The False Door is definitely worth reading, but I strongly suggest reading Radix first. I intend to read it before the third installment is released, so that I will be well versed on all the elements thus far.
Happy Reading,
RJ
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews