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Armand Ptolemy and the Golden Aleph
Synchronicity machines ... Difference engines that calculate using the yin / yang of the iChing ... Geomancy: the art of making stone monoliths float with sound. The hacker collective 'Anonymous'. Ancient secret societies …
This is the world of ARMAND PTOLEMY, a new action-adventure hero. Facing an enemy armed with the Golden Aleph -- a mystical device that allows its wielder to see holographically into every point in time and space, Ptolemy must use every trick of his Oxford-educated mind and circus-trained body to succeed.
But how do you fight an enemy that knows your every move … even before you do?
When Armand Ptolemy is called to investigate strange tremors plaguing an old wing of the New York public library, he finds himself enmeshed in a series of events that began in 1912. Yet Ptolemy himself is rumored to be from the past -- and the world's Elite lust after the secret of how he seemingly jumped forward over one hundred years in time. Most keenly interested in this secret is Octavio Veerspike, head of the Veerspike banking dynasty.
When the Commission -- a secret society of the world's most powerful people -- suddenly call a conclave in the tropics, Ptolemy has to figure out what they're up to, and fast.
But the Elites have other ideas. Putting into a motion the capstone of a hundred-years old plan, the Commission wants Ptolemy out of the way. And with the Golden Aleph giving them very potent powers of prediction, they just may succeed ...
Author Mark Jeffrey (@markjeffrey on Twitter) is perhaps best known for his best-selling young adult novel MAX QUICK: THE POCKET AND THE PENDANT (HarperCollins, 2011). First podcast as an online audiobook, the book received over 2.6 million downloads. Later, it was picked up by HarperCollins and re-published in hardcover in May, 2011. More information can be found at maxquickseries.com
MAX QUICK: THE TWO TRAVELERS is currently available as a podcast audiobook. Mark Jeffrey is currently working on MAX QUICK: THE BANE OF THE BONDSMAN as well as ARMAND PTOLEMY AND THE GEOMANCER. More information on Armand Ptolemy can be found at armandptolemy.com
Praise for MAX QUICK:
“A wildly imaginative romp through the vagaries of time, Max Quick leads the reader on a high–speed tour of ancient myths, alien kingdoms and some books you can really throw yourself into. Terrific adventure at breakneck speed.” (Richard Newsome, author of The Billionaire’s Curse )
“An imaginative addition to the middle-grade speculative adventure canon.” (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books )
“Max Quick has the answers to life’s biggest questions. The world stands still the moment you enter this book. It’s a fabulous, fleet-footed adventure story that goes by in a whoosh.” (Kristin Miller, New York Times bestselling author of The Eternal Ones and the Kiki Strike series )
“A fresh, fun and fascinating idea deftly brought to life. With all its deeply–felt adventure, Max Quick should quickly captivate young readers.” (James Jennewein and Tom S. Parker, authors of the RuneWarriors Trilogy )
“This fast-paced adventure…will keep readers turning the pages. The incorporation of figures from Sumerian mythology adds an interesting element that may appeal to fans of Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson” series.” (School Library Journal )
“Riveting. The Pocket and the Pendant is not what you expect, no matter what you expect.” (Scott Sigler, New York Times bestselling author )
“Jeffrey’s descriptions of how time has stopped will stop readers in their own tracks. Plenty of action-adventure appeal.” (Booklist )
Mark has been named on of ‘50 to Watch’ by Variety Magazine, selected as one of the “Digital Coast 50′ by the Silicon Alley Reporter, and one of the “Heroes of Multimedia” by Entertainment Weekly.
This is the world of ARMAND PTOLEMY, a new action-adventure hero. Facing an enemy armed with the Golden Aleph -- a mystical device that allows its wielder to see holographically into every point in time and space, Ptolemy must use every trick of his Oxford-educated mind and circus-trained body to succeed.
But how do you fight an enemy that knows your every move … even before you do?
When Armand Ptolemy is called to investigate strange tremors plaguing an old wing of the New York public library, he finds himself enmeshed in a series of events that began in 1912. Yet Ptolemy himself is rumored to be from the past -- and the world's Elite lust after the secret of how he seemingly jumped forward over one hundred years in time. Most keenly interested in this secret is Octavio Veerspike, head of the Veerspike banking dynasty.
When the Commission -- a secret society of the world's most powerful people -- suddenly call a conclave in the tropics, Ptolemy has to figure out what they're up to, and fast.
But the Elites have other ideas. Putting into a motion the capstone of a hundred-years old plan, the Commission wants Ptolemy out of the way. And with the Golden Aleph giving them very potent powers of prediction, they just may succeed ...
Author Mark Jeffrey (@markjeffrey on Twitter) is perhaps best known for his best-selling young adult novel MAX QUICK: THE POCKET AND THE PENDANT (HarperCollins, 2011). First podcast as an online audiobook, the book received over 2.6 million downloads. Later, it was picked up by HarperCollins and re-published in hardcover in May, 2011. More information can be found at maxquickseries.com
MAX QUICK: THE TWO TRAVELERS is currently available as a podcast audiobook. Mark Jeffrey is currently working on MAX QUICK: THE BANE OF THE BONDSMAN as well as ARMAND PTOLEMY AND THE GEOMANCER. More information on Armand Ptolemy can be found at armandptolemy.com
Praise for MAX QUICK:
“A wildly imaginative romp through the vagaries of time, Max Quick leads the reader on a high–speed tour of ancient myths, alien kingdoms and some books you can really throw yourself into. Terrific adventure at breakneck speed.” (Richard Newsome, author of The Billionaire’s Curse )
“An imaginative addition to the middle-grade speculative adventure canon.” (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books )
“Max Quick has the answers to life’s biggest questions. The world stands still the moment you enter this book. It’s a fabulous, fleet-footed adventure story that goes by in a whoosh.” (Kristin Miller, New York Times bestselling author of The Eternal Ones and the Kiki Strike series )
“A fresh, fun and fascinating idea deftly brought to life. With all its deeply–felt adventure, Max Quick should quickly captivate young readers.” (James Jennewein and Tom S. Parker, authors of the RuneWarriors Trilogy )
“This fast-paced adventure…will keep readers turning the pages. The incorporation of figures from Sumerian mythology adds an interesting element that may appeal to fans of Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson” series.” (School Library Journal )
“Riveting. The Pocket and the Pendant is not what you expect, no matter what you expect.” (Scott Sigler, New York Times bestselling author )
“Jeffrey’s descriptions of how time has stopped will stop readers in their own tracks. Plenty of action-adventure appeal.” (Booklist )
Mark has been named on of ‘50 to Watch’ by Variety Magazine, selected as one of the “Digital Coast 50′ by the Silicon Alley Reporter, and one of the “Heroes of Multimedia” by Entertainment Weekly.
Audiobook
First published January 1, 2011
5 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
About the author
Mark Jeffrey
27 books154 followersSerial entrepreneur and Harper Collins author | Host HASH RATE Web3 pod | General Partner: Boolean Fund | Founder & CEO, Guardian Circle ‘Friends & Family 9-1-1’ app (Partner: XPRIZE, NEWSWEEK Blockchain Impact Award (2019), FAST COMPANY ‘World Changing Idea’ 2018) | CTO Mahalo (backed by Sequoia, Elon Musk, Jason Calacanis) | Co-Founder & CEO ThisWeekIn podcast network with Kevin Pollak & Jason Calacanis | Founder: ZeroDegrees (2002) business social network (sold to IAC 2004) | Founder: The Palace (Metaverse) 1995-2000, 10M users, backed by SOFTBANK, Intel, Time Warner (sold to Communities.com 1999) | Participated in the Ethereum ICO, Bitcoin class of 2013 | Worked with UBER founder Travis Kalanick on Red Swoosh | First serialized podcast novel (The Pocket and the Pendant) 2005 (2.3M downloads) Harper Collins hardcover 2011| Author: BITCOIN EXPLAINED SIMPLY (2013), THE CASE FOR BITCOIN (2015) | Featured in ‘Trust Machine’ blockchain film (Alex Winter, Rosario Dawson), Apple's PLANET OF THE APPS reality TV show, RISE OF BLOCKCHAIN with Akon.
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 6, 2013
An enjoyable read with a very interesting style . Sometimes lacking depth but kept me reading and left me wanting more of a very interesting concept . Already asked the author twice for the next installment .
A new Author that is doing incredible works .
Without
Suffer
Abomination
E.E. Borton
A new Author that is doing incredible works .
Without
Suffer
AbominationE.E. Borton
June 16, 2013
I like Mark Jeffrey's style, the world based on urban legends, new age concepts and conspiracy theories. It's subtle in pocket and the pendant (what if a couple of Zacharia Sitchin's ideas were true?), intricate in the Two Travelers (let's force all new age nonsense be true as well) and over the top here - with a pinch of actuality thrown in (#ocupants don't know half of what they're standing up against). But this novel didn't feel as polished as Max Quick books and I had the feeling that Armand Ptolemy was Doc Savage in disguise (and I don't like Doc Savage). But even more than the character, I didn't enjoy the structure of the story (except maybe for the embedded story of Ashly) - it's all action, action, action, something with a potential of being a clever ploy, but action, action, action again. May be if it were a comic book I'd enjoyed it more, but not as a text.
August 11, 2012
Mark warned me this book was way different. He didn't lie. But he also said he thought I'd like it. He wasn't wrong. I really liked the conspiracy theories. There never came a time when I felt like any of them had jumped the shark. Don't get me wrong, they are crazy but they are walk the plausibility tightrope well. Well that said, there wasn't enough depth for me. I like Mark's style because he gets very intricate with his stories. I didn't get enough of that in APatGA. I would love a sequel. Or maybe some different adventures with Armand particularly with a younger Lucy. I loved Mark's voice for Lucy's gentleman caller. It cracked me up!
May 26, 2012
This is a quick read, has some interesting twists in it but feels a bit incomplete especially at the ending.
Fair Warning: Criticism based on personal bias.
Having some that now lives with us that has come out from a background of mental and physical abuse, I had no tolerance for the descriptions of the Black Butterfly training. Yes, I know why it was there and how it's used in e story, but I defy anyone to want to read that in fiction after dealing with the consequences of that crap in real life. It made the reading of an otherwise fun, magic/fantasy/technology book, less enjoyable.
The Rest of the Review
I enjoyed the characters but felt like I endd up knowing far more about one of the secondary characters (Ashley) than I did Ptolemy himself. I also felt like the whole story stopped while covering Ashley's story. Mark is a skillful and clever writer and I think he could have woven Ashley's backstory into the overall story while keeping the whole plot moving.
Overall, and compared to MQ, Ptolemy feels a lot more like a first or second draft of a story that the ending hasn't been written for just yet. What's there (the bones of the idea) is interesting and I want to read/hear more. Can't wait for Mark's next piece of work :-)
PS sorry to harsh on your mellow Mark - I still think you rock!
Fair Warning: Criticism based on personal bias.
Having some that now lives with us that has come out from a background of mental and physical abuse, I had no tolerance for the descriptions of the Black Butterfly training. Yes, I know why it was there and how it's used in e story, but I defy anyone to want to read that in fiction after dealing with the consequences of that crap in real life. It made the reading of an otherwise fun, magic/fantasy/technology book, less enjoyable.
The Rest of the Review
I enjoyed the characters but felt like I endd up knowing far more about one of the secondary characters (Ashley) than I did Ptolemy himself. I also felt like the whole story stopped while covering Ashley's story. Mark is a skillful and clever writer and I think he could have woven Ashley's backstory into the overall story while keeping the whole plot moving.
Overall, and compared to MQ, Ptolemy feels a lot more like a first or second draft of a story that the ending hasn't been written for just yet. What's there (the bones of the idea) is interesting and I want to read/hear more. Can't wait for Mark's next piece of work :-)
PS sorry to harsh on your mellow Mark - I still think you rock!
March 31, 2012
I could put up with the conspiracy theories by regarding them as fictional, though I do wonder if the author actually believes them, at least to a degree.
I could put up with the completely absurd premise of the Golden Aleph, passed off with a bit of mystico-technobabble and the comment by a character that it "isn't much of stretch", which it is.
But extended descriptions of cruelty I will not put up with.
I could put up with the completely absurd premise of the Golden Aleph, passed off with a bit of mystico-technobabble and the comment by a character that it "isn't much of stretch", which it is.
But extended descriptions of cruelty I will not put up with.
August 19, 2012
Innovative and current, Armand Ptolemy is a brilliant book that left me eagerly looking forward to the sequel. Never before have I read anything that uses current events as such a perfect basis for a fictional story.
January 2, 2013
The conspiracy theory stuff was a bit too much for me. The book could have used some better editing, too; there were a fair number of typos.
October 18, 2012
I just am not in the mood for this, 49% of the way through. Abandoned.
September 30, 2016
Interesting but a little out there.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews