S comme survivre: Une mission de Gideon Crew

Gideon Crew #3

by Lincoln Child, Douglas Preston, Sebastian Danchin (Translator)

Gideon Crew--brilliant scientist, master thief--is living on borrowed time. When his mysterious employer, Eli Glinn, gives him an eyebrow-raising mission, he has no reason to refuse. Gideon's task: steal a page from the priceless Book of Kells, now on display in New York City and protected by unbreakable security.

Accomplishing the impossible, Gideon steals the parchment--only to learn that hidden beneath the gorgeously illuminated image is a treasure map dating back to the time of the ancient Greeks. As they ponder the strange map, they realize that the treasure it leads to is no ordinary fortune. It is something far more precious: an amazing discovery that could perhaps even save Gideon's life.

Together with his new partner, Amy, Gideon follows a trail of cryptic clues to an unknown island in a remote corner of the Caribbean Sea. There, off the hostile and desolate Mosquito Coast, the pair realize the extraordinary treasure they are hunting conceals an even greater shock-a revelation so profound that it may benefit the entire human race . . . if Gideon and Amy can survive.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Mystery, Adventure, Audiobook, Suspense, Action

384 pages, Pocket Book

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Lincoln Child was born in Westport, Connecticut, which he still calls his hometown (despite the fact that he left the place before he reached his first birthday and now only goes back for weekends).

Lincoln seemed to have acquired an interest in writing as early as second grade, when he wrote a short story entitled Bumble the Elephant (now believed by scholars to be lost). Along with two dozen short stories composed during his youth, he wrote a science-fiction novel in tenth grade called Second Son of Daedalus and a shamelessly Tolkeinesque fantasy in twelfth grade titled The Darkness to the North (left unfinished at 400 manuscript pages). Both are exquisitely embarrassing to read today and are kept under lock and key by the author.

After a childhood that is of interest only to himself, Lincoln graduated from Carleton College (huh?) in Northfield, Minnesota, majoring in English. Discovering a fascination for words, and their habit of turning up in so many books, he made his way to New York in the summer of 1979, intent on finding a job in publishing. He was lucky enough to secure a position as editorial assistant at St. Martin's Press.

Over the next several years, he clawed his way up the editorial hierarchy, moving to assistant editor to associate editor before becoming a full editor in 1984. While at St. Martin's, he was associated with the work of many authors, including that of James Herriot and M. M. Kaye. He edited well over a hundred books--with titles as diverse as The Notation of Western Music and Hitler's Rocket Sites--but focused primarily on American and English popular fiction.

While at St. Martin's, Lincoln assembled several collections of ghost and horror stories, beginning with the hardcover collections Dark Company (1984) and Dark Banquet (1985). Later, when he founded the company's mass-market horror division, he edited three more collections of ghost stories, Tales of the Dark 1-3.

In 1987, Lincoln left trade publishing to work at MetLife. In a rather sudden transition, he went from editing manuscripts, speaking at sales conferences, and wining/dining agents to doing highly technical programming and systems analysis. Though the switch might seem bizarre, Lincoln was a propeller-head from a very early age, and his extensive programming experience dates back to high school, when he worked with DEC minis and the now-prehistoric IBM 1620, so antique it actually had an electric typewriter mounted into its front panel. Away from the world of publishing, Lincoln's own nascent interests in writing returned. While at MetLife, Relic was published, and within a few years Lincoln had left the company to write full time. He now lives in New Jersey (under protest--just kidding) with his wife and daughter.

A dilettante by natural inclination, Lincoln's interests include: pre-1950s literature and poetry; post-1950s popular fiction; playing the piano, various MIDI instruments, and the 5-string banjo; English and American history; motorcycles; architecture; classical music, early jazz, blues, and R&B; exotic parrots; esoteric programming languages; mountain hiking; bow ties; Italian suits; fedoras; archaeology; and multiplayer deathmatching.

Reviews

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the first two books of the Gideon Crew series it was hard not to compare them to Preston and Child's Pendergast series. Unfortunately, when comparing to Pendergast, you have big shoes to fill. Up until now, those shoes were falling off because Crew's feet were too small. But, it seems like Crew has finally had a growth spurt in a big way!

The Lost Island was a fantastic, enthralling, and intricately crafted adventure. Combining science, technology, art, literature, history, adventure, and sarcastic comebacks, I was into this book from page one. In fact, while there is some back story in the first two books, I think if you are short on time you could read this one right after The Ice Limit - note: you HAVE TO read The Ice Limit first, or you may as well not even bother.

I think I am going to end this review here in order to avoid spoilers. But, know this, it is good, it is great, Preston and Child are the masters of the adventure mystery genre (is that a genre? If not, I am coining the phrase here!) You owe it to yourself to read Pendergast and Crew!

[Pamela Cathcart · Rating 2 out of 5]

*Eyeroll*
How can my dear authors go so far astray? The beginning was all my dreams bundled together: palimpsests, the Book of Kells, Gideon fooling Sotheby's. Yum. Then before my very eyes, the plot was taken over by 12 year-old boys... the kind who spend their lives drawing pictures of monsters and running about going "raaawarrrrr." Gideon was sidelined by everyone else in the book: his partner, his employer, the island goings-on. I did finish the book, but it won't be pulled out again, and that's a first for a Preston & Child on my shelf.

[Blaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Lost Island is probably my favorite of the Gideon Crew series. I enjoyed the early heist scene, and the interplay between Gideon and Amy. Although the plot went in a very unexpected direction, it was plausible in a James Rollins sort of way. I still like the Pendergast books better, but this one was solid and nicely set up a sequel to The Ice Limit. Recommended.

[Vicki Elia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Audiobook Review
1 Star

A very foolish book that attempts to reconstruct parts of Homer's Odyssey in the guise of a Gideon Crew saga. I am sorely disappointed in this Preston & Child offering. It is phony, pathetic and pretentious, and seems to be written for the SyFy channel for a 2:00 a.m. airing. Once.

Homer is rolling over in his grave.

[Marialyce · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book might have been a three star novel, but once you threw in the Cyclops well that kind of ended it for me. Don't get me wrong, I am a stickler for a good yarn with fantasy and history thrown in on the side, but for some reason the last quarter of the book just did not gel.

It was ok for some mindless fluff to while away a summer's day.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Lost Island
By Preston & Child
Another great thriller adventure. This one has Gideon on a couple of adventures to get to the main course! That is on an island that is even more dangerous than what he has already experienced. Here, he meets a real-life Greek myth! Very action-packed!

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

No book has ever made me want to reach through the pages and slap the crap out of a character like this book. It also made me cry. Dammit.

[Kay · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read where I did not like any of the main characters. A book is only enjoyable when you can connect to its characters and this was not the case with The Lost Island. A disappointing read.

[Wdmoor · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book will make you feel stupid. And annoyed. It seriously needed a good editor to shake it up and slap some sense into it. Too bad it didn't get one.

If you're old enough you'll remember the weekly Saturday matinee serials with their crazy cliffhanger endings. You'd always feel a little cheated the next week how easily the hero or heroine overcame whatever peril was placed in their paths, but then forget about it as the next cliffhanger ending grabbed your attention.

This book was one whole lousy cliffhanger ending after the other. Mild spoiler alert. At one point the hero and heroine are clasping each other on the precipice of a cliff, thousands of feet above the ocean with no way down as fire and explosions swirl around them...and a helicopter ladder appears. Wtf?

The authors play too fast and loose with the readers of The Lost Island. There is something slapdash and hurried about the book and it left this reader grouchy as hell. And to make things worse, the freaking book ended on a cliffhanger ending! Except I don't give a flip about the next Gideon Crew book.

[Heidi (on slight hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great amusement park ride— thrills, chills, suspense and a few moments of just dangling in space with no parachute in sight. This is definitely my favorite entry of the series.

Love a book that raises the heart beat and kicks you in the mouth a few times? This is it.

(And for the naysayers— sure it was completely unbelievable— but that’s okay. That’s what I want from a book that starts with a treasure map!!)

PS- The nods to Greek mythology was like frosting on this thriller cake!!

[Kate Ayers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, the half star rating might come in handy here, although I probably would go down instead of up. I normally like Preston & Child, but this one was a bit too farfetched. Admittedly, though, it certainly was action filled. The idea of a treasure hunt was so irresistible, it drew me in. The treasure was an intriguing one, too, thankfully not just another billion dollars. But the implausibility of their quest and what they find...that put me off. Still, it's an entertaining read.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm afraid I have to agree with all the other negative reviewers out there. I mean, where to start with this book? With the hero who doesn't drive the plot and just goes along with things, even when they make no sense? With the ridiculous premise? With the surprisingly poor writing? With the rehashing of Preston and Child's personal cliches? It's hard to find a single part of this book that wasn't screwed up.


Okay, so the beginning of the book was decent, if a bit light on important backstory. I read the first Gideon Crew book a long time ago and have forgotten most of it, and haven't read the second at all so I was confused by a lot of things in the beginning. We learn from the back of the book that Gideon has a terminal condition but we don't find out what it is until a third of the way into the book. And he's taking orders from a guy named Glinn in an apparently long-standing relationship where Gideon does illegal things for Glinn without knowing why. None of this was explained so I was kind of lost at the start.

Once Gideon started working on stealing a page from the Book of Kells things picked up a bit, but even that was mishandled. We spend the whole theft in the perspective of a random woman who is given a rather extensive backstory but is totally irrelevant to the book and never appears again. And Gideon's solution to stealing the page, while clever, would have completely destroyed it. So the next day when Glinn's people destroy the priceless page in order to reveal the map underneath, Gideon's outrage seems pretty hypocritical.

Unfortunately, things go downhill from there. To start, the treasure map allegedly leads to a mystical plant call "the lotus" that can heal grievous injuries and even birth defects. The search for this plant is pitched to Gideon by Glinn as being this fantastic, altruistic thing. The "client" (who was very obviously Glinn himself but our supposedly super-smart hero never figured it out until it was revealed at the climax) promises that the plant will be cultivated and made into a drug that will be freely given to the people, not priced so high it can only be afforded by the ultra-wealthy. And Gideon never stops to give this notion even a moment's thought. I mean, seriously? You're going to give a drug to the entire world that will basically make everyone immortal? Does anyone else see a slight problem with this? Over-population? Starvation? There's just no way this could ever be a good thing in reality. People NEED to die, or the earth would be overrun in just a few years. But neither Gideon nor anyone else in book ever even considers this angle. The whole time, the quest to bring this drug to the populous is touted as being the "right" thing to do.

And that's just the first of many things Gideon fails to think about or question in this long book. As soon as the woman, Amy, is introduced, Gideon immediately becomes a useless Beta who just goes along to get along. Amy dictates absolutely everything they do from that point on. And almost 100% of her orders put them in life-threatening danger FOR NO REASON. Seriously, this happens like 8 times. A strange boat hails them and Amy invites the people on board, insisting that it's the most prudent thing to do, and Gideon lets her have her way. The people are sketchy as hell when they come on board and Gideon wants to pull up anchor and leave but Amy dictates that they stay, insisting that their boat will be able to outrun the other one if something bad should happen. Guess what, it can't. The other people come back in the night and hold them hostage. Gideon has to figure a way out and they barely get away with their lives. Their boat is damaged and Gideon wants to call Glinn but Amy refuses, insisting that they can easily continue with the mission even with their damaged engine and a hurricane looming and the pirates still out there stalking them...and Gideon acquiesces to her, AGAIN.

They head for the next landmark on the map, and have to fight big time to keep the boat from foundering in the hurricane-tossed seas. Then the damaged engines cut out and they almost capsize. Emergency repairs have to be made and they barely survive. Once again, Gideon wants to call Glinn but Amy insists they keep going...and he lets her have her way, AGAIN. They continue on to the landmark, knowing full well that the pirates will be there waiting for them, but Amy insists that they'll be able to outsmart the pirates by using the radar. Guess what, they can't. The pirates come after them and in the ensuing battle both boats sink and Gideon and Amy spend an agonizing day and night in a sea that's being ripped apart by a hurricane. Gideon is hallucinating badly from dehydration and swallowing sea water and when he finally washes up on an island shore, he can't even stand long enough to search for Amy. Eventually she finds him and when she gets him back to her little camp we see that she has already laid out all the supplies and started a fire and lots of other things that must have taken quite a while to accomplish. She did this BEFORE she went looking for him, even though they only got separated a little ways off shore so she must have known he wasn't far off. Bitch.

Here again, Gideon wants to call for help but Amy insists they not...and he acquiesces to her AGAIN. And she won't even tell him WHY she's insisting. She just says vague things, like that he'll just have to trust her. WHY THE $@#% WOULD HE TRUST HER? He doesn't KNOW her! She's been secretive, bossy and aloof the whole time they've been together and virtually every one of her decisions has gotten them in mortal peril!

This is just plain old bad writing. Not only is Gideon never given an adequate reason for Amy's insistence that they keep going, the reader is never given one either. There's no real justification for her determination. SHE'S not dying of some terminal condition like Gideon is. She doesn't have a sick child back home who needs the medicine or anything like that. It just doesn't make sense for her to continue to go on when with one quick phone call, Glinn could have them outfitted with a new yacht and equipment in no time. And following that, since there's no good reason for her behavior, there's REALLY no good reason for Gideon to keep agreeing to follow her. It's hard to get invested in a story when the main characters' actions make no sense. Not to mention that it made Gideon seem like a pansy for constantly giving in to her.

Maybe if the writers had made Amy more likable or built more of a relationship between her and Gideon it would have seemed more plausible that he constantly acquiesced, but as it was, it just painted "LAZY PLOT CONTRIVANCE" across the sky in big neon letters. The real reason for Amy's insistence that they go on is because Preston and Child needed them to stay alone and on the quest in order to keep the plot going. Any time things are blatantly happening just to keep the plot going, you know you've got a badly written story. And this happens over and over. Later on, when they meet the natives and concoct a plan that involves one of them eating a flower that they think is the lotus in order to trick the natives into revealing the source, Amy says that she'll only agree to the plan if SHE'S the one to take the lotus. Once again, she won't give any justification for this and it makes no sense in the grand scheme of things. Gideon is the one who's dying, so it makes the most sense for him to take it. If it turns out to be this miracle cure then he'll be saved. If it turns out to be poison then, well, he only had a few more months to live anyway. But, once again, Gideon just gives into her on this without even putting up a fight.

A short while later, they end up on the final island and Amy is hurt and sick with infection from her wound. Gideon spends harrowing hours climbing up and down a sheer rock face and constructing vine ropes and slings in order to get Amy to safety. This is about the fifth or sixth time they've been in life-and-death danger since the first time Amy insisted they not call Glinn for help. And yet, once again, when Gideon suggest they call, she refuses. She literally can't stand up, and Gideon nearly died saving her, but she's still being stubborn. THERE'S NO LOGIC TO THIS. Gideon finally grows a pair and calls anyway but then, despite her making her position on this matter VERY clear, he still hands her the phone when she asks for it and she promptly throws it off a cliff. It all came together to make Gideon seem very stupid and weak and the book very poorly written. We're never given an adequate justification for Amy's determination to continue. She just talks about wanting to finish the mission, rather than call for help and most likely be left out of any repeat attempts. That's not a strong enough reason for me to believe in her actions. She doesn't have anything personally at stake here, so risking both their lives over and over just seems unbelievable and selfish if her only motivation is to be able to put a check mark in the "completed mission" box.

The rest of the book is a complete rehash of the last act in Still Life With Crows. Giant lumbering creature that's barely human, can only speak a few broken words, is preternaturally strong and develops a crush on the girl character because she says the word "friend"? Check. Lots of running around in dark caves for the final confrontation? Check. A dog killing? Check. (seriously guys, what is WRONG with you that you feel the need to kill a dog in every book? You seriously need to seek professional help because that is NOT normal!!!)

And Gideon's behavior was just as incomprehensible and lame here as it was in the whole rest of the book. His devotion to Amy and total blindness to her behavior was just bonkers. She's been consistently acting stubborn and irrational the whole book, and yet he's surprised every time she does something crazy. And then he gives up his chance to make it to safety in order to go back and "rescue" her. I didn't see their relationship as being in a place where this would make sense. They kissed once, and even that felt like it was coming out of nowhere because there was absolutely no chemistry between them the whole story. And yet he's ready to die for her? When she's the one who put herself in danger, AGAIN? Nope, don't see it.

And Amy's devotion to the cyclops was bizarre too. Yes, I get it, he's the last of his kind and should be left alone to live in peace. That's a wonderful fairy tale story for her to believe in. But here in reality, the truth is that the only way for him to be left alone is if everyone walks away and pretends they never discovered the island. And to do that, they'd have to abandon forever the quest for this life-saving medicine. A) Glinn would never allow that, B) what about all the people in the world that this medicine was supposed to help? I've already said that this idea is BS, but since everyone in the book insists it's the right thing, then Amy should recognize that abandoning the quest for the lotus isn't an option. Is she really saying that it's better for the 7 billion people on the planet to go on dying of diseases that the lotus could cure, just so that the cyclops can continue to live his lonely, dangerous existence on the island, instead of in the nature preserve Glinn is suggesting? A creature that by all rights should have died centuries ago but has been granted abnormally long life because of the lotus? And C) Glinn is right that the Nicaraguan and Honduran governments will be there in a flash to find out what the Americans are doing. And once they realize the goldmine the lotus represents, they'll lock it down and sell it for as much money as they can get. And they'll either kill the cyclops or put him in a zoo that will probably be a lot less comfortable than the nature preserve Glinn has in mind. So any way you look at this, Glinn's idea is not only the best option, it's the only option.

(Incidentally, Gideon once again showed himself to be a total waste of space in this part by not taking a decisive stance one way or the other. He sort of vaguely felt that it was bad to cage the cyclops but also kind of vaguely got why it was necessary but he didn't SAY or DO anything. He didn't talk to Glinn and try to convince him to let the cyclops go and he didn't talk to Amy and try to get her to see reason. He just stood there letting everyone else decide things for him. What a terrible hero.)

But anyway, Amy is so insane that she ignores all of this logical information and sticks with the "he must be set free!!!" mantra. So she lets the cyclops out and then stands by as he murders dozens of nameless red shirts who were just following orders and probably all had loving families back home. She also kept shouting about how the cyclops had saved Gideon's life, conveniently omitting the fact that he'd been the one to injure Gideon in the first place. Amy also conveniently fails to recognize that all of this is HER fault. That if she hadn't been so hell-bent on going forward, the island, cyclops and lotus would never have been found and he could have gone on living his peaceful, idyllic life.

The ending was lame because Gideon was just as useless there as he'd been everywhere else. He stupidly thinks he can reason with the cyclops, even though the creature has never liked Gideon to begin with and had just tried to kill Gideon, AGAIN, because he walked in on Gideon and Amy kissing and was jealous. And directly after that the creature had been attacked by Glinn and all his men so he was like a bear with a wounded paw. But noooo, our allegedly genius level physicist hero who's skilled in social engineering thinks he can talk sense to the creature AND get it to act as a truffle sniffing pig for them to find more lotus. Right. That's totally going to happen. And it was super hypocritical of Gideon to think he could predict how the creature would behave just based on his intuition and social engineering skills, and then in the epilogue of the book totally malign Glinn for having the audacity to think HE could predict events using his computer simulation software. Gideon went on and on about what an arrogant prick Glinn was for not respecting the X factor of circumstance and human unpredictability...and yet Gideon himself had done the exact same thing. What a pompous douchebag.


So Gideon goes and hides in a cave for a few hours waiting for the creature to get finished grisily murdering all of Glinn's men and blowing up the camp, setting fire to the whole island. Once all the exciting stuff is done happening elsewhere, the creature finally comes to where Gideon is hiding. Amy is there too and tells Gideon that he should run because the creature is totally out of control and will kill him. And, sure enough the second Gideon reveals himself, the creature attacks. Gideon had his rifle at-the-ready expressly for the purpose of shooting the cyclops if he was beyond reason....and then he doesn't take the shot. Why? Because he's a useless weakling hero. Instead they have the requisite chase through the dark caves that Preston and Child include in every single book and at the end the cyclops has Gideon dead-to-rights when he just decides to pack in it and commits suicide instead. Gideon didn't do a single thing to bring about the conclusion of the situation. Totally lame.

The bit where Amy is ready to kill herself like the cyclops didn't move me at all. Her actions the whole book hadn't made any sense and I didn't understand her desire to die in this moment, nor did I care. Gideon's cliched "I'm dying and would love to have more time and you're ready to throw yours away" speech didn't interest me either. It was totally unoriginal and I didn't see why he cared whether Amy lived or died because there'd been no chemistry between them the whole book. Plus all the time he spent talking her off the ledge made it so that the fire closed in on them and cutoff any attempt at escape. Great job Gideon, you stopped her from jumping to her death so she can burn alive with you instead. Brilliant. But Glinn rescues them by dropping a rope ladder from a helicopter in the nick of time.

Incidentally, I never understood why Glinn cared so much about Gideon. Maybe this was something the previous books established, but nothing Gideon did in this book showed him as being the least bit competent. So why a smart, wealthy, driven man like Glinn thought the sun rose and set with him was beyond me.



So all in all, the book just didn't hang together. Gideon was a complete failure as the hero, Amy was annoying, bossy, aloof and just plain nuts. Glinn acted like a jerk when a softer approach would have gotten him better results. The plot was a travesty of contrivance and lunacy, and the ending was just another stamping out of Preston and Child's usual cliches. Don't bother with this one.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the first two books in this series. This one, however, leaves me certain that I won't read any more. The story started off ok but immediately hit a snag in one of the major characterizations. When a recurrent character acts in a way that isn't consistent with previous behavior, there needs to be a logical reason.

By the end of the book, I was so angry with the illogical actions of Glinn, who is supposed to be an intelligent and reasonably good guy, that I wanted him torn from limb to limb.

The ending of the book doesn't make emotional or logical sense leaving the reader feeling cheated and angry.

I've read pretty much everything these authors have written, together and singly, and I love the Pendergast books. This book was a total disaster, though the Greek elements and the tie-in with Odysseus's journeys were fun.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Way better than the other two Gideon Crew books! Lots of fun! Sets up book four really well and kinda hints it might be the last.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best in Crew novels. Fun tale and surprising treasure map adventure.

[Nuria · Rating 3 out of 5]

3'5 /5🌟

Me ha gustado sigue en la misma línea que los dos anteriores. En plan a Gideon le mandan una misión imposible y al final todo da un giro y los siguientes sucesos son diferentes a los que eran en un principio.

A mí me gustan estos giros porque no sabes lo que te puedes esperar al final.

En cuanto la historia en principio está interesante y llama la atención. En esta ocasión Gideon tiene que robar la página de uno de los libros más valiosos del mundo que está expuesto en un museo en Nueva York con unas medidas de seguridad imposible de superar. Bueno nadie puede menos nuestro protagonista. Pero esta no es la verdadera misión del prota porque luego de esto deriva a que tiene que buscar con la ayuda de Amy, otra chica que trabaja para Glinn como Gideon, como una planta que cura todo, si estas enfermo o tienes una discapacidad pues te lo cura todo.

Y este puede que sea lo que menos me gustó del libro, porque bueno en si el libro es de misterio pero en plan sin elementos fantásticos, o más específicamente que siempre son muy realistas muy fieles a nuestra realidad 😄. Y pues en este, pues bueno al final lo de la cura y otras cosas que pasan que no voy a decir porque podrían fastidiar la sorpresa cuando aparezca pues un poco fantasía si que es.

Y bueno ya como en todos estos libros cuando realizan la misión todo se complican, descubren cosas super interesantes que dan un giro de la historia e intentan sobrevivir.

Así que bueno lo único que destaca es en lo que se centra la historia que es en buscar la cura. Que oye a mí me gusta, es en plan como una búsqueda de un tesoro o lo típico de la fuente de la juventud, y siempre suelen ser entretenidos leerlos porque siempre hay tensión porque se suelen presentar muchas dificultades. Y he de decir que en este libro si que pasan porque hubo como mínimo dos ocasiones en las que pensé " Meca que al final no acaban la misión por lo menos uno de ellos"🙈

Esa tensión mola te hace meterte en la historia.

En cuanto a cómo está escrito el libro me gustó. Estos escritores me gustan mucho tienen las descripciones justas y si utilizan un lenguaje específico como palabras científicas siempre las explican de manera que se entienda bien.

Metiéndonos en los personajes sigue gustando me mucho Gideon. Valiente, con ese toque de humor que quita tensión en las partes que la tienen y un experto en contar mentiras que flipas. Se inventa cada historia que más de una vez le salva la vida, ya no solo en este libro si no también en los anteriores. Ingeniería social la llama😄.

También me gustó mucho Amy. Quería conectar con algún personaje femenino porque las chicas son poco relevantes en esta saga no me llegaban a convencer , pero en este libro conocí a Amy y me gustó mucho. Me gustan las protagonistas valientes, que son capaces de defenderse solas y Amy es un claro ejemplo de estas protagonistas. Me ha encantado este personaje.

Y otra cosa que me gustó es que pudimos conocer mejor a Glinn el jefe de EES que es la empresa que contrata a Gideon. Tenía mucha curiosidad sobre este personaje porque, bueno no lo he dicho en otras reseñas pero él está en silla de ruedas , con un parche en el ojo y tenía mucha curiosidad de cómo hacía acabado así. Y en este libro a parte de que te explican porqué lo podemos conocer mejor . Así que mi curiosidad se ha resuelto😄.

En cuanto al final me ha gustado. No me he llevado ninguna sorpresa porque es lo que me veía venir. Pero eso no quiere decir que no me haya gustado, creo que es el final que tiene que tener el libro. Y como siempre te lo deja abierto y te deja saber cuál será la siguiente misión que tendrá Gideon.

En conclusión me ha gustado. No es nada del otro mundo porque al final puede ser como cualquier novela de este tipo pero el tema principal de la historia está guay y puede llamar mucho la atención. Y por lo menos a mí me deja con más ganas de seguir con la serie.

Lo recomiendo.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

And of course would I buy this novel by messieurs Preston & Child, mostly because of their Pendergast-series.

The Gideon Crewe series seems to be far more tailored for the cinema, as long as Tom Cruise does not spoil the fun. This book is a combination of genres the Heist genre, the historical/fantastical thriller, some pirates and treasure seekers thrown in and some lost world for good measure (the Arthur Conan Doyle variety it is). And it all delivers an adventure novel that fires on all fronts and manages to entertain in a casual way. It does handle Homers Odyssey in a modern way that does not make it offensive,

As before the Crewe series do deliver fun adventerous novels that seem to be written for a cinema release. For me it lacks the depth of their other work but they should be allowed to have some fun too. And honestly I will watch out for the next installment with pleasure.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is by far my favorite of the Gideon Crew series. I was so happy when I got an advance copy from my local bookstore. I've been reading Preston & Child since I was a young girl and am happy that they have another series besides Pendergast. I found this book a quick but enjoyable read which I had difficulty in putting down. The plot remained interesting and was difficult to predict. I see this series becoming a new favorite for adventure loving readers.

[Toby Tate · Rating 5 out of 5]

These guys never cease to amaze and entertain. I love all the Gideon Crew books, and this one is the greatest yet. Gideon and his pal, Ami, find a tribe of people and a bizarre creature living on a remote Caribbean island as they search for a plant whose chemical properties may even cure cancer! Action/adventure/sci-fi/horror at its best!

[itchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

i enjoyed this better than the previous ones, although this seems like a great departure from the rest of the series' subject matters

i dunno why eli had to carry a small-ass caliber m16 when the rest of his retinue carry m4a1s

p224: he picked up the cell phone and unlatched the box. amiko watched as he opened it, checked the battery. still at one percent.
he turned it on.
what a bad-ass battery that was, indicating a one-percent charge while on the "off" state

[Monnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's no shortage of action in this, the third in the series featuring Dr. Gideon Crew - a thief turned scientist with a terminal illness that could take his life at any given moment. As one might expect, that means he's got nothing much to lose, so he's willing to go where no man has gone before.

And man, he does exactly that. I enjoyed it thoroughly - in some ways even more than the first two - but I warn that you'll need more than a modicum of creative imagination to get through it; some parts (make that most parts) cross over to the realm of fantasy. Still, it's fun, moves along quickly and, all in all, didn't dampen my enthusiasm for the series in the slightest.

This one begins as Gideon is brought in to steal a page from the Book of Kells, which is on display in New York City under seemingly impenetrable security. Of course, he pulls it off - only to deliver it to his "boss," the invalid Eli Glinn, who promptly dunks it in something to remove the text and drawings to reveal an ancient treasure map. But all that glitters isn't gold; rather, it's a long-hidden secret that could change the course of both Gideon and Glinn.

Together with a young, beautiful woman named Amy (with whom he was ordered to partner up), he sets off on a journey that traces those of ancient Greeks and takes them to never-before-seen territory. There, they discover - well, you'll just have to read the book to find out what - but suffice it to say the adventure nearly costs them their lives.

I wasn't sure whether a fourth book will be forthcoming, but after finishing this one, it's pretty clear there's one in the works. Count me among those on the waiting list!

[Jaksen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 'Treasure Island' story for the 21st century - and adult readers.

Not adult as in 'adult adult,' but just a more grown-up story. There's treasure maps which need to be sorted out, and mysterious characters in the form of pirates and natives who might be helpful, or not. There's a courageous young chap, a gorgeous young woman - and she's no stereotype, she's actually tougher than the male MC - and off somewhere watching it all a crippled billionaire looking for a little more than mere treasure. There's also comparison to the myths surrounding the heroic and legendary character Odysseus, with his voyage to get home as he battles creatures and witches, Cyclops and sirens. This book has it all.

It's like a romp, though - the typical put your character(s) in a tree and throw rocks at them. You hardly get a breath in from one 'we've got to get out of this or die' scenario to the next. There's no sort of 'reflective pause' for the reader to think, 'now what was that all about?'

But it is adventure and derring-do and cleverness to get out of one predicament after another. (Rather like Odysseus did in his legendary travels.) I enjoyed the first part of the book more than the second as we were still in 'what the heck is this all about territory.' Once things were explained it was getting long and a little tedious in spots...

But hey, it's Preston and Child and I love their books. The MC in this one, Gideon Crew, isn't as fascinating as Aloysius Pendergast (MC in another series they write) but I do think I'd continue reading about Amy (Amiko), the other main character.

Three stars, B- to C+ in my book.

[Tiffany PSquared · Rating 2 out of 5]

It took me a while to get into this and when I did the book was nearly over.
Not sure if it's that I'm just not that much into treasure hunting or if it just wasn't the best time for me to read this book. It didn't grab me.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of those authors who I liked but this one didn't work for me because the narrative flow was off, especially between the male and female investigators.

MY GRADE: C plus.

[Gaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t know if it’s that I finally got into the story and Gideon’s vibe, if it’s because the plot of this book was extremely entertaining or if it’s because it had a huge chunk of Greek mythology adjacent plot, and I’m biased towards everything mythology. But I had the best time reading this book.

I was not expecting the plot to go that way. It started with a “regular” heist, and while it was impressive how he pulled it off, it was nothing unique in the grand scheme of things. But then, the discovery of the map and what it signified blew my mind.

I haven’t forgiven Glen, but if Gideon can try to make it work, then so can I.

[Auri Nogueira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Son mis autores preferidos, pero esta serie no engancha tanto como la de Pendergast. Sigo pasándolo bien con sus libros, pero ya no enganchan tanto como antes. Aun así, es una lectura muy amena y entretenida. Lo recomiendo.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't care what anyone said about this book... this was the one that introduced me to Preston and Child, and got me to read their books! Yes, yes, I know, the... thing at that place (no spoiler given) might have been quite far-fetched, which I'm sure is the reason for the avg stars given. But the action and adventure was INCREDIBLE

[J Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story started out very good. Got a little weird at the end with Ancient Greece references and finding a living Cyclops.
Love the characters, but I felt disappointed with the end of the story.

3.5 stars

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, escapist novel. Fast read. I love the way Preston/Child use ancient history as a driving force and weave it all together. If you just sit back and enjoy, and don't ask too many questions, it's a page turner.

[Casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can say that this was a fairly fast read. Beyond that, the authors do not begin to approach the standard of writing they show in the Pendergast series. This is the last of the Gideon Crew series that I will read as they continue to decline with each one.