Евангелието на Луцифер

Finn Ryan #2

by Paul Christopher, Теодора Божилчева (Translator)

From the national bestselling author of Michelangelo's Notebook...

Evil lives forever.

Archaeologist Finn Ryan and pilot Virgil Hilts are scouring the Sahara for the long-lost tomb of an Apostle when they stumble upon signs of a decades-old murder, along with an ancient Roman medallion bearing the infamous name of a fallen archangel.

But this relic is only the first piece of an enigmatic puzzle that will take Finn and Virgil across the globe from the sinister ruins of an ancient monastery to the wreck of a sunken ship in the Caribbean, to find a truth that might shake the foundations of history-or see them dead.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Mystery, Adventure, Suspense, Historical Fiction, Historical

300 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2006

About the author

Paul Christopher is a pseudonym used by the author Christopher Hyde.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Heidi · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book looked so promising and I enjoyed the first 3 pages of it. It's just a shame that it went on for another 354 pages after that.
The story is not only far fetched, it's also full of political crap, has too many macho-like statements and damsel in distress stupidness all on top of the America's-the-promised-land undertone.
Truly a waste of time!

[Raven · Rating 1 out of 5]

What on Earth did I just read!
For anyone hoping for a storyline similar to Angels and Demons by Dan Brown you will be sorely disappointed. Whilst this was also my hope going into it and clearly the intention of the author with government conspiracies, cover-ups and the Bible not being true, it badly missed the mark.
This book is a mess. The two main characters Finn and Hilts were repeatedly almost killed with assassination attempts which were left unexplained as to why they were attempted. They seemed to spend the entire book looking for 'Lucifer's gospel' and what this was, was never really explained. Their hunt saw them meeting up with random people that had the exact information they needed to point them in the right direction and they all listed a load of random names with no context which either ended up being referenced to later on or never spoken of again and with the lack of information given made the names easily forgotten.
There was also some issues with the authors writing style. When it got to an action scene the characters almost start to dissociate and it's like the action is occurring in a dream or being watched from far away leaving me very confused and having to reread it to try and figure out what actually happened. Also, Paul Christopher seemed to reference other popular books, movies and other such media in what I assume was an attempt to increase the reader's enjoyment of this book by making them associate it with better things (this is becoming a more frequent occurrence with many authors) but it just seemed to random especially when he is writing about The Da Vinci Code which he was clearly trying to mimic in the first place.
Sorry if this review is a bit of a rant but I had a lot of negative thoughts about this book.
Overall this seemed to be a boring and very confusing history lesson that was worthless in the end.

[Speesh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Close, but no cigar.
The Lucifer Gospel really could have been good, but wasn't. It was like a Dan Brown wannabe-lite. I gave it every chance, but it failed to deliver and finally, I couldn't get Clive-bloody-Cussler out of my mind.
(A Clive Cussler book has got to be one of the worst things ever to have wasted ink and paper and, more importantly, my time).
The majority of the plot actually seems to do its best to avoid the front and back cover's set-up entirely and involves a race across the world to find something, we're not really sure of. Even the title, or the actual item the title seems to describe, turns out not to be what you think it 'should' be, it's almost a play on words and I couldn't help but feel a little cheated.
It all starts out alright, ticking all the right boxes for the historical/biblical mystery, thriller-genre (if there is one); there's a possibly world-changing lost treasure, a desert, a sympathetic heroine, a helpful, knowledgeable male co-lead character who can do just about everything, a mad millionaire...oh yeah, see; all going wrong, all going Clive Cussler on us already.
The story then takes us from Egypt to Libya, across half of Europe, to the Caribbean and finally, the USA. Luckily, for each tricky situation they find themselves in, or faced with, they have the necessary experience required. The most eyebrow-raising point for me, came when they were trying to figure out how long somewhere had been deserted. They found a Coca-Cola bottle without a ring-pull opening. Fortunately, the heroine's mother had been to school with the man who invented the ring-pull system and the heroine had written a thesis on it and was thus able to estimate how old the place was...I think I finally lost touch completely with the book at that point, just as well it was towards the end or I might not have persisted.
The Lucifer Gospel actually has some reasonably interesting characters and situations, problem is, they're mostly the supporting characters and situations that aren't the big set-pieces. It's nicely written, decently put together and generally a pleasant read. But that's the problem, it's all too slight, too inoffensive and too far from being one I can recommend.

[Dean Kutzler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first Paul Christopher book, and just may be the last. The writing is spotty at times and by spotty I mean sometimes good sometimes poor. The book drones on with complication after complication, yet the complications are only chases. And unrealistic ones at times. As a writer, it pains me to give poor reviews: hence the three stars. In my opinion 3 stars is not a bad book. But, as another reviewer has said, maybe think about borrowing this from the library first. The end, which had the potential of being great, was merely lackluster. Also, towards the end, it's starting to get interesting and I was really excited for the ending, only to be letdown. That is the worst kind of let down. And also, there was way too much telling and not showing and way too much information dropping. I know the difficulties of writing a book, but I feel that you should not write a book for mere profits or potential profits only to let your readers down. That is such a disservice to the customer and a great way to ruin your career. Maybe I am being a little too harsh, and if I'm to be honest, I think I will try his best book which I am told is Michelangelo's Notebook. But in the bane of honesty I have to keep it real.

[Shott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out good, well written, interesting. The end, no good at all. I was actually angry when they *spoiler* tossed the gospel out after everything that happened without study because maybe the world is not ready. Maybe not ready because they didn't read it so who even knows! Really!? I hated it. Pollyanna ending and not one bit believable.

[Adi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely better than Michelangelo's Notebook. This really felt like an action novel. It was full of excitement, danger and drama. Of course it has flaws (especially the way the main characters tackled perilous situations), however it was a nice disengaging read.

[Nemo Erehwon · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Lucifer Gospel by Paul Christopher

An archeological dig in the sands of Libya has unearthed a lost text, allegedly written at the time of Christ's death. A recently graduated archeological illustrtor is forced to team up with a photographer/pilot to delve the mystery, which includes a secretive millionaire who seems to have ulterior motives. Their quest will take them to Italy, France, the Bahamas, and East Butt-Rutt America.

I really wanted to like this book. It has all the elements I like;
Quest for an ancient, forbidden tome? Check
Historical oddball anecdotes? Check.
Exotic, well-described locales I'll never visit? Check.
Writing that displays a poetic flare? Check.

But it just did not hang together.

For instance, the motivations for the various characters are murky:
Why is the attractive dig illustrator chosen for this job straight out of college?
Why does the American millionaire want to uncover this Lucifer Gospel?
Does he even have a master plan?
What is the Lucifer Gospel? These questions are never fully answered. (Although, given the ending, I guess the Gospel is like the Maltese Falcon, "The stuff dreams are made of."

That said, Christopher has some nice poetic turns of phrase. His descriptions of locales are vivid. Unfortunately his pacing is a little off due to occasional gaps in the narrative. For instance, the how the duo escaped from Libya is never mentioned, and their rationale for visiting "the guy who knows the answers" (all such conspiracy/adventures have them) is a little under-described.

Then there is the plot. Just having a guy show up is a convenient way of moving the plot forward, rescuing it from the cliff upon which it was hanging, but it gets tedious.

Then there is the ending. It was a bit of a let down. Nor horrible, just... meh.

This book is almost like "The Da Vinci" code meets "Foucault's Pendulum", but not in a good way.

I guess you could consider this an homage to the old international thriller/travel guide style adventures made popular by Robert Ludlum, and repopularized with additional new age conspiracy leanings by Dan Brown

This book is a somewhat interesting ride, but I suspect Paul Christopher can do better.

[allother · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book should not have been titled "The Lucifer Gospel". It should have been titled "Why Are We Running, Again?" Ryan and Hilts, start off in Egypt, they are running from someone trying to kill them. They go to the desert, someone is chasing them and trying to kill them, they go to Italy (I think, it was too many places of running), someone is chasing them and trying to kill them. They go to the Caribbean, someone is chasing them and trying to kill them. They end up in a cave, someone is chasing them and trying to kill them. Who was chasing them? Why? What were they looking for? Why?
Most importantly Why did I finish this mess?

[Rosalyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed this but was left wanting to know just what the lucifer gospel said. I appreciate that you can speculate and put your own twist on it but really to leave the main bit to your own imagination I was a tad disappointed but can see that others would love this

[John Wilkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good, and she got through it without falling into bed with anyone, too.

[Wesley B · Rating 1 out of 5]

This might be the BIGGEST letdown I have ever read in a novel; certainly it's the worst one I've read this century. After weaving an interesting narrative peppered with historical facts and breakneck action it ends in what can only be described as a deafening whoopee cushion. And unfortunately, the ending is SO BAD it completely disrails the story and just left me rolling my eyes and saying "you can keep the money ...I just want my time back".

Heres where the spoilers come in.

You're bounced all over the place in the book to end in a cave in Southern Illinois in a scene that can only be described as a ripoff of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. SURPRISE Devereaux is alive! He's the last watcher and then the river changes course and Finn and Hilts barely get out. Adamson and his goons get swept away and all is destroyed.

Epilogue: Nice and tidy! Adamson is dead Simpson is dead and suddenly Finn and Hilts aren't wanted for murder anymore. And then? Then? FINN AND I QUOTE SAYS "SOME SECRETS SHOULD REMAIN SECRETS. SOME MYSTERIES SHOULD REMAIN MYSTERIOUS ."
AND THEN SHE THROWS THE DAMN LUCIFER GOSPEL IN THE OCEAN. THE FRIGGING END.

Thank you for dragging me on for 350+ pages just to throw it in the sea. What. was. the. point?

Why am I so pissed? Because this whole time the author baits you with the "lucifer gospel" that supposedly is a gospel written by Jesus when he fled to America or whatever and its going to change everything and it's too dangerous blah blah blah. Evidently it was too dangerous for the writer because, as the reader, we never really get to know anything about it. The book cover explicitly states in at least 3 places how it will change history and shake faith and all this other stuff but no information is actually given about it.
And Devereaux, GOOD GRIEF. You spend your whole life defending this earth-shattering scroll and now you want the damn thing and the cavern destroyed? Why? Because there are "new gods" now?! And because a gospel written by Jesus Christ would be dangerous because Christians would either reject it or embrace it (although we have no idea what that even means in this context) and would start new crusades. I'm sorry, does this author know anything about the history of Christianity? This makes no sense even as a hypothetical.
In the end the hype built up by the Lucifer Gospel both by the cover of the book and the actual narrative itself collapses on itself astonishingly bad. There's no payoff because the namesake of the book is honestly an afterthought.

[Zallee Pepper]

Nothing seemed to make any sense or have any rationale at all. Also seems to be a forum to unload about everything the author finds wrong with Egypt. To me, these adventure stories which are situated in all sorts of exotic locations should be creating an atmosphere, not spending the time describing locations in a totally unappealing kind of way.

The main character doesn't hold, either. For example - maybe spoiler next...

She wakes up in the middle of the night to a stranger lurking in her locked hotel room. The stranger proceeds to chat about banal stuff like bribery in Egypt. She finally interrupts the guy with something like - can you please explain to me who you are and what you're doing here. Surely a "Who the hell are you" would be more likely under the circumstances.

I gave up pushing at it after about 60 pages.

[M. Sprouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5
This reminds me of the novels I use to read 15-30+ years ago. Authors like Cussler, McDermott, Du Brul, and a half dozen others. They generally followed the: link to the past, save the world by finding something in a week no one had found in several centuries. Add to that, exotic locations and well, you get the picture.

This one wasn't bad, but at times it seems like the author was just writing to complete the second book of a two novel contract, though there are 4 books in this series. Often the details do not add up. For example, early in the book one of the two main characters throws a grenade at a helicopter that hasn't really threatened them and who they can't positively identify. Some of the writing is good and I felt a chemistry between Finn Ryan and Hilts. It moved quickly but the plot had so many holes, that it resembled swiss cheese.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

thriller, just a quick read
Young archaeologist Finn Ryan and charismatic pilot and photographer Virgil Hilts are scouring the Sahara for the long-lost tomb of an apostle. But they find something they weren’t looking for: signs of a decades-old murder, along with an ancient Roman medallion bearing the infamous name of a fallen archangel. It doesn’t take long for them to realize that they’ve found a piece of a much bigger puzzle—and a trail of clues that could get them killed.
Forced to flee from a relentless enemy, Finn and Virgil are pursued across the globe. From the sinister ruins of an ancient monastery to a sunken ship in the Caribbean, the two desperately search for a truth that can save their lives, but might shake the foundations of history...

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hoewel ik normaal gezien houd van spannende opgravingen, onthulde stukken geschiedenis en mysterie, voelde dit nogal als een onsamenhangend verhaal. De 2 hoofdpersonen werken ergens, voelen aan dat de baas niet helemaal zuiver is en komen ineens hier en daar en overal terecht. Daarnaast worden er zoveel verschillende dingen in de geschiedenis erbij gehaald dat ik de verbanden kwijt ben. Een interessant boek opzich, maar het wordt allemaal wel een beetje vaag en onduidelijk. Grappig genoeg zegt de hoofdpersoon op een gegeven moment ook "ik krijg hoofdpijn, veel te veel informatie in een keer". Ook werd een van de hoofdpersonen ineens weer 'de fotograaf' en later 'de piloot' genoemd, wat verwarrend was.

[Don M. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t wait to get to the end of this book. It was poorly written with over half of it being unnecessary filler to boost the page count.

Errors such as Finn turning around three hundred and eighty degrees, instead of the usual 360 degrees just added to the reading experience. Hilts, who is male whispered “to herself” during a diving sequence. A few more strategically placed commas would definitely help the readability. There are more problems, but it’s not worth the time to list them here.

Sadly, I have two more e-books by this author to read. This wasn’t even a very good time-waster.

[Karolina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Według Lucyfera Paul Christopher

"Według Lucyfera" to powieść ze zbioru różnych gatunków - sensacja, kryminał i thriller - autorstwa Paula Christophera. Opowiada o młodej archeolog Finn oraz o fotografie Virgilu. Pracując nad tymi samymi wykopaliskami, zaczynają odkrywać dziwne i tajemnicze sprawy z przeszłości. Zostają wmieszani w zabójstwo i ściga ich nie tylko policja, ale również agenci wysłani przez ich szefa. Nie rezygnują jednak z poszukiwania odpowiedzi na to, co działo się lata temu.

Akcja związana z poszukiwaniami z całą pewnością nie była nudna. Podobało mi się, że dzieje się tak wiele na raz, bo dzięki temu chciałam sięgać po książkę i poszukać odpowiedzi na pytanie "co dalej?". Uważam, że dynamika i rozwój wydarzeń wypadają całkiem dobrze. Moją sympatię zyskała humorystyka tej książki. Pewne dialogi lub sytuacje mnie bardzo bawiły. Nigdy nie zapomnę tego... Specyficznego dialogu, przy którym poznali się główni bohaterowie. Dzięki tej książce rozpoznam miasto po zapachu.
Nie mogę pominąć bohaterów, którzy naprawdę zyskali moją sympatię. Właściwie to wszystkie postacie, którym można było się bliżej przyjrzeć pod względem charakteru, zostały napisane w ciekawy sposób. Nie było tutaj tworzenia według wzoru, te postacie nie były zero jedynkowe. Na plus dla mnie jest silna postać kobieca. Finn była samowystarczalna, inteligentna i zaradna. Virgil za to był całkiem zabawny, nonszalancki oraz także niezaprzeczalnie inteligentny. Oboje się dopełniali, dzięki czemu potrafili wyjść z kryzysowych sytuacji.
Muszę też pochwalić pomysł na fabułę. Nie czytam książek historycznych lub powiązanych z prawdziwymi religiami, ale tutaj połączenie tych wątków - religijnego i historycznego - stworzyło potencjał na naprawdę ciekawą historię. Z ciekawości sięgnęłam. Muszę przyznać, że spodziewałam się czegoś nieco innego, ale mimo wszystko wykonanie autora mi się podoba. Prawdopodobnie całość rozkręca się w drugiej części, która nie została przetłumaczona na język polski.
Ostatnimi rzeczami, które mi się podobały, są już czysto techniczne aspekty. Okładka książki mnie przyciągnęła. Kolorystyka jest ładna, mimo że wszystko się nieco rozmywa. Długość tomu też nie była jakaś niesamowita w porównaniu z ilością akcji, która się tam zadziała. Nawet na plus.

Przechodząc na minus, mimo ciekawego rozwoju wydarzeń, to wszystko było coraz bardziej przewidywalne, biorąc pod uwagę, że bohaterom zawsze udawało się uciec bez szwanku. Nie mówię, że chciałabym śmierci któregoś z bohaterów, w żadnym wypadku, ale postawienie ich losu pod znakiem zapytania, być może odniesienie poważniejszych ran, chwilowe zaginięcie. Nawet jeśli jednorazowa, taka sytuacja wzbudziłaby trochę napięcia, które pojawiało się niestety tylko na początku.
Nie jestem fanką rozwoju romantycznej relacji pomiędzy bohaterami. Może nie tyle mam coś przeciwko samej relacji, ile sposobie, w jaki się wykształca. Moim zdaniem trochę dziwnie to wychodzi, bo autor skupia się na aspekcie tej tajemnicy, którą starają się odkryć i te momenty, w których można było to delikatnie, ale gładko wprowadzić zostały pominięte. Czuję się trochę, jakbym przeskoczyła coś ważnego z ich nowymi posunięciami. Niektóre momenty sugerują oznaki zauroczenia, a niektóre wyglądały, jakby byli już razem i czułam się z tym nieco niezręcznie. Po prostu brak wyczucia.
Ostatnia rzecz to również aspekt techniczny. Brakowało mi ładniejszego formatowania w środku książki. Tam przy rozdziałach nie cieszyło oka nic. Nie mogę tego nazwać minimalizmem, bo nawet numeracja rozdziałów była w najzwyklejszej, nudnej czcionce. No można było się z tym troszkę postarać. Nie przeszkadza mi to w czytaniu, ale szybciej się nudzę.

Podsumowując, książka mi się całkiem podobała. To moje pierwsze zderzenie z taką mieszanką gatunkową. Nie powiem, że zakochałam się w tym typie opowiadań, ale jestem zachęcona do spróbowania z innymi. Polecam osobom, które również chcą spróbować z tym klimatem.

[Jeremy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read for the most part. I enjoyed the action, suspense and adventure found throughout most of the book.
Most of the life or death situations were pretty much just them trying not to get shot, however. And while this can be fun to read, it got a little repetitive.
The ending wasn't quite the "wow" moment I was hoping for either. It was really more of an "oh" moment. Big (kind of) reveal followed by "they made it".
Again, not a bad read, but not really good enough to seek out any of the other books in the series.

[Marti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but there were a number of questions never satisfactorily answered such as, "What really was Simpson's interest? His final goal?" And, "How did Adamson keep finding Finn and Hilts so quickly?" I really like Finn and Hilts; however, they are so knowledgeable that they seem like Superman and Supergirl in disguise! Excellent adventure writing; just needs a bit of tightening up.

[Tory Wagner · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Lucifer Gospel by Paul Christopher is the second in a series featuring Finn Ryan, an illustrator with an interest in archeology. When she is hired on an archeology dig to find a lost tomb of an apostle, she teams up with pilot/photographer Virgil Hilts in a grand adventure. Their quest takes them all over the globe and what they find might alter the history of the world.

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

The plot of this book has it sounded like it was going to be a good read, but sadly it’s been a kind of dull farcical thriller.
The inclusion of a lot of actors names, has felt very namedropping and has maybe like the book less as it was too much of it!
For me this is sadly been a disappointing conspiracy thriller that has so much potential.

[Jayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this book, I'm afraid. Despite a promising blurb, the book just did not deliver. The plot dragged, there were random action scenes which led nowhere and there appeared to be nothing motivating the characters. I found the writing clunky with information being thrown at the reader for little reward.

[Wes Church · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another series in the style of Steve Barry / Dan Brown. Have now read two of the books, and find them engaging. Putting an attractive young woman as the lead protagonist seems to work, and she seems to "save the day" at least as often as the supporting males. So far so good on the series!

[Kate · Rating 1 out of 5]

Interesting title and that's it. If you cut out the pages with archeology stuff, the book will have 3 pages to read. Then you have poor Jews and Americans - the best nation in the world. No more reading by this author.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the story was enjoyable enough I found myself constantly wondering if this was a teen fiction novel rather than an adult thriller. I’ve read the full Templar series by this author and going by the evidence of this book I don’t feel the Finn Ryan series will be anything like as good.

[Roz Radmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a conspiracy thriller , a mix of history , archaeology and fiction
Finn Ryan is hired to do the drawings of a dig in North Africa . On the way she meets a colleague . They become suspicious of their boss and realise they are mixed up in something much more serious

[Mark Deisenroth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read

I read.book one of this series quite some time ago and while it was ok I just couldn't completely.get into it. I decided to give book 2 a chance and really enjoyed it.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dan Brown meet Indiana Jones in the quest for the holy grail and the Chrystal skull with some extraordinary escapes. I can only wonder what the first book was like.
This was fun read as long as I suspended judgement and any sense of reality. It is, after all, a work of fiction.

[Tanya Pesklevy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It had so much promise but failed to deliver in the end. There was barely an explanation about what the gospel was and no explanation for why it ended up where it was or how anyone knew of it’s existence in the first place. The only interesting part was the explanation of who Lucifer was.

[George · Rating 2 out of 5]

An easy read but again a terrible ending. I am giving up on this series