Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsHOPE WASN'T THE ONLY THING LEFT IN THE BOX!!!
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2020
Ben Walker was still recovering from the events from northern Turkey on Mount Ararat. The evil that they found had destroyed so many lives and families and Ben was still struggling with a form of PTSD as well as physical issues related to that and other "assignments" he had been involved in. So, it wasn't without worry … and a lot of anger as he had promised his son that he was coming home … that he was being sent into just such another situation in northern Iraq. After all, they didn't send him in for the simple walk in the park type of mission. But, a side benefit was that he would be working with Kim Seong. She had been with him on Ararat and she had shared the horror.
Unfortunately, that common experience and support did not prepare him to face the what was buried in an ancient buried city beneath the hills of Iraq. And, it was his job to make sure that, whatever they faced, it would be brought back to the American Government and not allowed into any one else's hands to be used as a possible weapon.
But, he wasn't prepared for what they found buried in the depths for centuries.
Christopher Golden is one of the modern day masters of all things horror. His stories typically are the slow build towards the unveiling of the true evil in the story, pulling the reader along in his wake as he weaves strand after strand into his web of fear and fright. As a reader, these are the type of stories that keep you on the edge and wanting to read just that one page more...just that one chapter more... as Golden reveals the next piece of the puzzle, a puzzle that you can feel is just out of reach and you keep seeing out of the corner of your eye but can't quite visualize until the trap is sprung and your caught. His "heroes" are created to be strong and represent "good" but eventually reveal their weaknesses and failings while his "villains" appear to be despicable but are never truly evil. It's only the horror that they face that is truly evil!
NEW READERS - This is the second of a series and the question is always... "Do I need to have read the first book?" Absolutely not. Golden crafts his stories in such a way that you can enjoy the adventure in and of itself. But, I would recommend that you then go back and read the first book... if only for the fun and thrill of it...and book 3 coming on 2020.
Note for Christopher - What the heck happened in Guatamala?
