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The Last Man
A woman goes missing, sending a young nuclear engineer on a quest deep into the Judean desert to the legendary fortress of Masada, where secrets are concealed
When a young Israeli woman suddenly goes missing, her boyfriend, an American nuclear engineer, suspects her disappearance is connected to her tantalizing theory about the haunting fortress of Masada. He decides to travel to Herod’s 2000 year old mountain fortress to see if her theory was right. There, he makes a discovery so astonishing that forces from the dark side of Israeli intelligence begin to converge on him to deflect his pursuit of the truth by any means necessary. With the aid of a beautiful Israeli archaeologist, he struggles to bring to light the treasures he believes are concealed in the mountain, unaware that there is a dangerous contemporary secret at stake.
P.T. Deutermann's fifteenth novel, The Last Man, brings all the excitement and pulse-thumping action his fans have come to expect.
When a young Israeli woman suddenly goes missing, her boyfriend, an American nuclear engineer, suspects her disappearance is connected to her tantalizing theory about the haunting fortress of Masada. He decides to travel to Herod’s 2000 year old mountain fortress to see if her theory was right. There, he makes a discovery so astonishing that forces from the dark side of Israeli intelligence begin to converge on him to deflect his pursuit of the truth by any means necessary. With the aid of a beautiful Israeli archaeologist, he struggles to bring to light the treasures he believes are concealed in the mountain, unaware that there is a dangerous contemporary secret at stake.
P.T. Deutermann's fifteenth novel, The Last Man, brings all the excitement and pulse-thumping action his fans have come to expect.
500 pages, Library Binding
First published May 22, 2012
67 people are currently reading
201 people want to read
About the author
P.T. Deutermann
41 books300 followersP. T. Deutermann is a retired Navy captain and has served in the joint Chiefs of Staff as an arms control specialist. He is the author of eighteen novels, and lives in North Carolina. His World War II adventure novel Pacific Glory won the W. Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction, administered by the American Library Association; his other World War II novels are Ghosts of Bungo Suido and Sentinels of Fire. His most recent novel is Cold Frame, a contemporary thriller set in Washington, D.C.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
October 5, 2017
“The Last Man” by P.T. Deutermann, published by St. Martin’s Press.
Category – Mystery/Thriller Publication Date – May, 2012.
If you know the story of Masada, this will be a must read. If you don’t know the story do yourself a favor and read about it – then read the book.
Masada is the true story of 960 Jewish Zealots who committed mass suicide, including women and children, rather than be taken captive by the Roman X Legion. Today it is the most visited Israeli site.
An American, David Hall, on good advice, attempts to find out what really happened at Masada. It seems there may be more to the story than committing suicide just so they would not be captives of the Romans. He must let the Israeli Government think he is just trying to relive the moment when in fact he is trying to find an underground cave that may contain the real story of Masada.
David is shadowed by Judith Ressner who has been assigned to make sure he does nothing to disturb the site.
David must make night time excursions to the site without anyone knowing and upon discovering a cave must Scuba dive to get to it.
All is not what it seems to be as not only is the cave and artifacts discovered but a sinister plot by modern day Zealots that add mystery to the site. A great read with valuable information and one heck of a trip to Masada.
Category – Mystery/Thriller Publication Date – May, 2012.
If you know the story of Masada, this will be a must read. If you don’t know the story do yourself a favor and read about it – then read the book.
Masada is the true story of 960 Jewish Zealots who committed mass suicide, including women and children, rather than be taken captive by the Roman X Legion. Today it is the most visited Israeli site.
An American, David Hall, on good advice, attempts to find out what really happened at Masada. It seems there may be more to the story than committing suicide just so they would not be captives of the Romans. He must let the Israeli Government think he is just trying to relive the moment when in fact he is trying to find an underground cave that may contain the real story of Masada.
David is shadowed by Judith Ressner who has been assigned to make sure he does nothing to disturb the site.
David must make night time excursions to the site without anyone knowing and upon discovering a cave must Scuba dive to get to it.
All is not what it seems to be as not only is the cave and artifacts discovered but a sinister plot by modern day Zealots that add mystery to the site. A great read with valuable information and one heck of a trip to Masada.
February 17, 2013
This book didn't quite fit into any standard "tags." It is an artifact thriller, but also a nuclear weapons thriller, a spy thriller, etc. It is about an American's quest to find out what really happened on Masada, or Métsada as it is called in Israel. Our hero has a theory about why the people chose to commit mass suicide/murder and leave no survivors (although a couple of women and children did make it out alive), when the Romans finally were about to crash through the siege wall after 2 1/2 years of trying. According to legend and the ex-Jewish turned Roman historian Flavius Josephus, the 960 people on the mountain decided to kill themselves rather than surrender to the Romans, be taken prisoner, tortured, raped, and put into forced slavery, and have children flung from the ramparts. The Romans were NOT happy with them. They made sure to leave plenty of food, supplies and water so the Romans would know that this was their choice, not because they were forced into it by starvation. A last stand, thumbing their noses at the Romans. The men were commissioned with killing their wives and children, and then killing themselves. The men then drew lots, ten, to determine who would go around and do the clean-up, killing those men who couldn't kill themselves, and anyone missed on the first round. And then one lot was drawn so that one man, the last man, could finish off any left and then kill himself.
But questions remain about treasure from the temple mount in Jerusalem when it was razed by the roman a number of years before - did some people take the treasure out of Jerusalem and hide it in the desert, or at Masada? David Hall, an American nuclear whistleblower physicist, now out of work because of it, decided to test the theory, so he plans an elaborate ruse of a man following a dream - to explore Masada more deeply, and "commune with the spirits." Many have said that the dead walk there and in the Roman encampment still evident around it's base. But as he clears it through the red tape and bureaucracy, he is assigned a scholarly "minder", Dr. Yehudit Ressner, who is a widow - her husband died in a nuclear accident 5 years ago and she has retreated from the world. This little adventure is supposed to draw her back into the world of people. And so it goes - the American has deeper plans than what he has led the authorities to believe, and several Israeli spy agencies seem to be inordinately interested in his every move. For me, a slow beginning, gradually building up the tension and suspense to the level of more traditional thrillers, but it still kept me back at times, since I had been there, and so many places mentioned in the book I had visited or spent time at. I had gone to Israel in 1976, to Beersheva, to join an archeological expedition there on the site of Abraham's well, as part of my college training. But we traveled to all the major historic sites, including Masada, Ein Gedi, the Dead Sea, etc. So I would stop, reach back into my memories, and go off on a tangent, coming back only 5-20 minutes later. So that may be the cause of the slowness at times. All in all, an interesting speculation, and as there have been a few books I have read lately involving Masada, it was a nice place to come back to.
But questions remain about treasure from the temple mount in Jerusalem when it was razed by the roman a number of years before - did some people take the treasure out of Jerusalem and hide it in the desert, or at Masada? David Hall, an American nuclear whistleblower physicist, now out of work because of it, decided to test the theory, so he plans an elaborate ruse of a man following a dream - to explore Masada more deeply, and "commune with the spirits." Many have said that the dead walk there and in the Roman encampment still evident around it's base. But as he clears it through the red tape and bureaucracy, he is assigned a scholarly "minder", Dr. Yehudit Ressner, who is a widow - her husband died in a nuclear accident 5 years ago and she has retreated from the world. This little adventure is supposed to draw her back into the world of people. And so it goes - the American has deeper plans than what he has led the authorities to believe, and several Israeli spy agencies seem to be inordinately interested in his every move. For me, a slow beginning, gradually building up the tension and suspense to the level of more traditional thrillers, but it still kept me back at times, since I had been there, and so many places mentioned in the book I had visited or spent time at. I had gone to Israel in 1976, to Beersheva, to join an archeological expedition there on the site of Abraham's well, as part of my college training. But we traveled to all the major historic sites, including Masada, Ein Gedi, the Dead Sea, etc. So I would stop, reach back into my memories, and go off on a tangent, coming back only 5-20 minutes later. So that may be the cause of the slowness at times. All in all, an interesting speculation, and as there have been a few books I have read lately involving Masada, it was a nice place to come back to.
August 7, 2020
What if you thought you had the Secret to Masada? I love the story of Masada. When I saw this book I wondered what his story would be?
I realize the author wanted to give the background of Masada to the reader, which he did in a prologue hook. The reading of the beginning chapters introduces us to two unlikely characters who drag us on a nail biting adventure. The last 1/4 of the book (not the end of the story) felt like his publisher wanted more pages and he slapped together the end. It was the most disappointing part of the story and really had nothing to do with anything. He could have ended it with the revaluation and the budding romance.
I suggest you purchase the audio version. The reader does an excellent job on the accents and I learned how to properly pronounce Ma Sa Da’ (we accent sa)
I realize the author wanted to give the background of Masada to the reader, which he did in a prologue hook. The reading of the beginning chapters introduces us to two unlikely characters who drag us on a nail biting adventure. The last 1/4 of the book (not the end of the story) felt like his publisher wanted more pages and he slapped together the end. It was the most disappointing part of the story and really had nothing to do with anything. He could have ended it with the revaluation and the budding romance.
I suggest you purchase the audio version. The reader does an excellent job on the accents and I learned how to properly pronounce Ma Sa Da’ (we accent sa)
January 18, 2014
A great book? No. A good book? Not particularly. But a fun book. Yes.
The Last Man hinges on Masada and the Roman conquest of Jerusalem, spies, buried treasure, and the possibility of nuclear destruction. As such, the novel provides pleasure on cold, dark, winter evenings.
The Last Man hinges on Masada and the Roman conquest of Jerusalem, spies, buried treasure, and the possibility of nuclear destruction. As such, the novel provides pleasure on cold, dark, winter evenings.
October 3, 2019
I enjoyed it : )
If you like the history behind Masada and have an interest in Israeli geo political issues then this is a great book.
If you don't like history and prefer more thriller type action books, this book may not be for you. I typically can't stand the over the top excitement of most action thrillers. This book was more thought provoking and had more of an intellect and scholarly approach than a shot em up James bond approach.
Most people gave this book bad ratings because of the historical aspect. This is why I'm giving it a good rating because I enjoyed that : )
If you like the history behind Masada and have an interest in Israeli geo political issues then this is a great book.
If you don't like history and prefer more thriller type action books, this book may not be for you. I typically can't stand the over the top excitement of most action thrillers. This book was more thought provoking and had more of an intellect and scholarly approach than a shot em up James bond approach.
Most people gave this book bad ratings because of the historical aspect. This is why I'm giving it a good rating because I enjoyed that : )
Currently reading
August 17, 2012Not happy about the incredible detail.
Deutermann seems compelled to include ever miniscule fact he learned about Masada--and I think he repeats some of them, but there's so much it's hard to know.
I'm waiting for the love story to develop between the depressed widow and the protagonist who lost his girl-friend but doesn't know how or is it why she disappeared.
Will he discover the treasures and religious relics from the Jerusalem temple that were hidden away under Masada? Will she discover his attempt to find the treasures?
These are the questions to which the answers can be guessed with a high probability of accuracy.
Nonetheless I'm hopeful that given so much exposition (the facts, ma'm, nothing but the facts), the story and some excitement will develop. Deutermann is usually pretty good, so I'm hopeful.
Deutermann seems compelled to include ever miniscule fact he learned about Masada--and I think he repeats some of them, but there's so much it's hard to know.
I'm waiting for the love story to develop between the depressed widow and the protagonist who lost his girl-friend but doesn't know how or is it why she disappeared.
Will he discover the treasures and religious relics from the Jerusalem temple that were hidden away under Masada? Will she discover his attempt to find the treasures?
These are the questions to which the answers can be guessed with a high probability of accuracy.
Nonetheless I'm hopeful that given so much exposition (the facts, ma'm, nothing but the facts), the story and some excitement will develop. Deutermann is usually pretty good, so I'm hopeful.
October 2, 2016
Overall this was a decent read. An amateur American archeologist goes to visit Masada in Israel to visit the site, or is that all. While there we run into quite a varied cast of characters involved in lots of intrigue, some history of the site and a possible international incident. So this book does pack a whole lot into a decent sized package, just over 550 pages in large print. Yet there were moments where the imagination limits were being stretched just a bit. The ending kind of pulled it all back together bringing this book in at somewhere over the three star rainbow.
July 20, 2014
It is just not worth the effort. It takes half the book before you begin to figure out what is going on or why it matters. His descriptions of physical environments are completely inadequate and the plot stretches credulity.. It's just not worth the labor to get through this book.
April 11, 2015
Scripture in a nuclear age.
A fascinating plot with enough twists to keep you turning the page. The end creates an interesting revision of the relationship between Christ and his betrayer in the context of survival of modern Israel in a nuclear age.
A fascinating plot with enough twists to keep you turning the page. The end creates an interesting revision of the relationship between Christ and his betrayer in the context of survival of modern Israel in a nuclear age.
November 22, 2012
While I really enjoy reading Deutermann's work, this was not one of my favorites.
December 9, 2025
I have mostly not liked Deuterman's stand alone books but I liked this one. Spoilers ahead.
David Hall is a retired American nuclear engineer. Forcibly retired after whistleblowing on his previous employer, but retired rich after a wrongful termination lawsuit. His Israeli girlfriend Adrian (since disappeared) had an obsession with the Siege of Masada and felt that the riches of the Second Temple of Jerusalem are still buried around there.
Hall decides to visit Masada and look for it. He has to do it clandestinely because it's a sacred area and no one would allow him to dig. He applies and gets permission for a 3 day visit but is saddled with a beautiful professor (Yehudit) who is to be his minder. During the day he acts like a normal tourist but for two nights he sneaks out and looks for and finds a hidden cistern filled with water which is where Adrian thought the treasure might be.
He develops a relationship with her and after the Masada trip takes her along for some scuba diving. He then sneaks back to Masada and dives into the cistern where he finds a hidden cave together with the hidden treasure. He brings back Yehudit and together they dive into the cave where Yehudit is able to verify the authenticity of the items and read the writing on the wall which is the last testament of the last man to die (all the defenders of Masada killed themselves rather than surrender to the Romans).
However they are trapped in the cave by a "zealot" who is part of an Israeli group who have been using the geothermal energy close by to make heavy water and the cistern as a concentration pool and collection point. That is the gist of the plot.
I liked this book better than the others because it doesn't have a surfeit of twists and POVs to follow and too many characters. We mainly followed Hall around and looked over his shoulder as he went about his business. To be honest, the sideplot with the heavy water wasn't really needed and I think took time away from the search and discovery of the cave which would have made the book much more exciting. I guess Deutermann restrained himself somewhat and there's only a modest surfeit of side characters and ancillary action instead of a whole lot of them.
David Hall is a retired American nuclear engineer. Forcibly retired after whistleblowing on his previous employer, but retired rich after a wrongful termination lawsuit. His Israeli girlfriend Adrian (since disappeared) had an obsession with the Siege of Masada and felt that the riches of the Second Temple of Jerusalem are still buried around there.
Hall decides to visit Masada and look for it. He has to do it clandestinely because it's a sacred area and no one would allow him to dig. He applies and gets permission for a 3 day visit but is saddled with a beautiful professor (Yehudit) who is to be his minder. During the day he acts like a normal tourist but for two nights he sneaks out and looks for and finds a hidden cistern filled with water which is where Adrian thought the treasure might be.
He develops a relationship with her and after the Masada trip takes her along for some scuba diving. He then sneaks back to Masada and dives into the cistern where he finds a hidden cave together with the hidden treasure. He brings back Yehudit and together they dive into the cave where Yehudit is able to verify the authenticity of the items and read the writing on the wall which is the last testament of the last man to die (all the defenders of Masada killed themselves rather than surrender to the Romans).
However they are trapped in the cave by a "zealot" who is part of an Israeli group who have been using the geothermal energy close by to make heavy water and the cistern as a concentration pool and collection point. That is the gist of the plot.
I liked this book better than the others because it doesn't have a surfeit of twists and POVs to follow and too many characters. We mainly followed Hall around and looked over his shoulder as he went about his business. To be honest, the sideplot with the heavy water wasn't really needed and I think took time away from the search and discovery of the cave which would have made the book much more exciting. I guess Deutermann restrained himself somewhat and there's only a modest surfeit of side characters and ancillary action instead of a whole lot of them.
July 27, 2019
This was pretty great! It's definitely not what I usually read, which is exactly why I picked it up!
This story follows whistle-blower David Hall as he travels to Israel to try and unearth the secrets of Masada, where 960 Jewish people committed mass suicide after a Roman seige. While there, he meets Judith Ressner: a recent widow who is his unenthusiastic mandatory escort. While Hall tries to secretly investigate Masada, this is Ressner's last chance to convince her boss she isn't slipping into a deep depression and deserves to keep her job.
I thought the lore in this story was very believable, well-researched, and not too overwhelming. David's journey to unravel the secrets was not too ridiculous (for example, he didn't just stumble upon some secret cave), and I thought the science/math/timing he had to go through helped keep the story on the realistic side.
The only thing I didn't really like about the story was the romance aspect. Hall continuously referenced his ex-girlfriend, a character that we never truly meet, and explained that it was truly her theory that he was investigating. That part of the story fell a little flat, as I don't know too many people who would travel to Israel, deceive the government, and break the law in the dead of night on the hunch of someone who wouldn't commit. On top of that, the developing romance between Hall and Ressner felt a little forced, and there were a few too many paragraphs about her body (as well as other female bodies) for me.
This story follows whistle-blower David Hall as he travels to Israel to try and unearth the secrets of Masada, where 960 Jewish people committed mass suicide after a Roman seige. While there, he meets Judith Ressner: a recent widow who is his unenthusiastic mandatory escort. While Hall tries to secretly investigate Masada, this is Ressner's last chance to convince her boss she isn't slipping into a deep depression and deserves to keep her job.
I thought the lore in this story was very believable, well-researched, and not too overwhelming. David's journey to unravel the secrets was not too ridiculous (for example, he didn't just stumble upon some secret cave), and I thought the science/math/timing he had to go through helped keep the story on the realistic side.
The only thing I didn't really like about the story was the romance aspect. Hall continuously referenced his ex-girlfriend, a character that we never truly meet, and explained that it was truly her theory that he was investigating. That part of the story fell a little flat, as I don't know too many people who would travel to Israel, deceive the government, and break the law in the dead of night on the hunch of someone who wouldn't commit. On top of that, the developing romance between Hall and Ressner felt a little forced, and there were a few too many paragraphs about her body (as well as other female bodies) for me.
August 2, 2024
Espionage with a Twist
An unusual turn on a thriller by Deutermann. It is a tale of intrigue, espionage, archaeology, and last, but not least, religion. One aspect of Detutermann books that stand out, and evident in this story, is his fixation with caves. If anything can build up suspense for a reader with a touch of claustrophobia is being trapped in a cave absent the possibility of escape. Deutermann manages to instill the creepiness of fear in this book as well as several of his other thrillers (Hunting Season, Cat Dancers, Spider Mountain). The setting for this tale is Israel, and primarily at the site of ancient Masada (Metsada or Fortress). The objective is development of nuclear capabilities within the Jewish state and the entanglement of an American nuclear engineer as a dupe in the resolution of counterintelligence activities. It concludes with a turn on religion by the discovery of Second Temple artifacts, and yes, although with a modest and subdued presentation, the Holy Grail. Grail stories have been attempted by many authors, to include the likes of Bernard Cornwell and Nelson DeMille. Deutermann's is a quiet approach and he doesn't use the word grail in the book, but it is strongly implied. Although this particular Deutermann book is not as good as Hunting Season, Sweepers, or Official Privilege, it does capture the emotions of the major characters -- one aspect of Deutermann stories very well done. As a consumer of Deutermann thrillers & war stories, I can also recommend this as a solid read.
An unusual turn on a thriller by Deutermann. It is a tale of intrigue, espionage, archaeology, and last, but not least, religion. One aspect of Detutermann books that stand out, and evident in this story, is his fixation with caves. If anything can build up suspense for a reader with a touch of claustrophobia is being trapped in a cave absent the possibility of escape. Deutermann manages to instill the creepiness of fear in this book as well as several of his other thrillers (Hunting Season, Cat Dancers, Spider Mountain). The setting for this tale is Israel, and primarily at the site of ancient Masada (Metsada or Fortress). The objective is development of nuclear capabilities within the Jewish state and the entanglement of an American nuclear engineer as a dupe in the resolution of counterintelligence activities. It concludes with a turn on religion by the discovery of Second Temple artifacts, and yes, although with a modest and subdued presentation, the Holy Grail. Grail stories have been attempted by many authors, to include the likes of Bernard Cornwell and Nelson DeMille. Deutermann's is a quiet approach and he doesn't use the word grail in the book, but it is strongly implied. Although this particular Deutermann book is not as good as Hunting Season, Sweepers, or Official Privilege, it does capture the emotions of the major characters -- one aspect of Deutermann stories very well done. As a consumer of Deutermann thrillers & war stories, I can also recommend this as a solid read.
January 27, 2021
(Let me preface by saying that I listened to the audio version of this book.) I love a good archaeological thriller. And the fact that this one was set in Israel was a definite plus for me. Much of the action takes place at Masada, of which I just knew the basics. I ended up taking a virtual tour of Masada online so I could get a good feel for what was being described. The plot turned into something of a spy thriller, which was okay. I felt mind wandering several times when the minutae of various things were described - calculations, equipment specifications, etc. And it seemed there were SO many characters, but that could have been because I was listening and not reading. (The reader did an excellent job with the various voices and accents, by the way.) Also, the end of the book left a question hanging for me, which I didn't really like. So, all in all, I wanted to see how it ended, but felt like there was too much going on for one book.
February 16, 2023
When a young Israeli woman suddenly goes missing, her boyfriend, an American nuclear engineer, suspects her disappearance is connected to her tantalizing theory about the haunting fortress of Masada. He decides to travel to Herod's 2000 year old mountain fortress to see if her theory was right. There, he makes a discovery so astonishing that forces from the dark side of Israeli intelligence begin to converge on him to deflect his pursuit of the truth by any means necessary. With the aid of a beautiful Israeli archaeologist, he struggles to bring to light the treasures he believes are concealed in the mountain, unaware that there is a dangerous contemporary secret at stake.
February 11, 2025
I read about two thirds of the book before I lost interest. It's well written, somewhat suspenseful, but it drags on far, far too long. I didn't like that the main character lied and took it upon himself to dig at a site sacred to the religion of a people he didn't belong to. If he was planning to turn over what he found to them, why not just tell the archeologists at the site his idea and let them do the digging? So, once that really began to bother me, I no longer cared if he got caught, and whatever it was he was looking for didn't matter to me, anymore.
February 23, 2022
First non Navy book I have read from P T Deutermann and I wasn’t disappointed.
Well researched and well told modern day mystery of the fall of Masada or Metsada as the Israelis know it .
Nice twist at the end with the relationship of the last man
Well researched and well told modern day mystery of the fall of Masada or Metsada as the Israelis know it .
Nice twist at the end with the relationship of the last man
March 29, 2018
Great Read around Easter/passover
August 24, 2018
I did not know the story of Masada so that part was very interesting to me. I thought the writing was a bit clunky.
September 25, 2018
Superior read!!
Outstanding Deutermann. Have read many, this rates tops.
Thank you P.T.
I look forward to reading more of your works.
G. Hummel, jbh46@frontier.com
Outstanding Deutermann. Have read many, this rates tops.
Thank you P.T.
I look forward to reading more of your works.
G. Hummel, jbh46@frontier.com
October 15, 2018
Listened on audio for book club. Ehhhh.
July 9, 2019
Nice pace with a mix of action. I did think finding the cavern so easily was a real stretch. But I really liked the male/female interface.
October 31, 2019
What a story!
Aside from a quibble here and there I found this book to be engrossing. As it seems, all Deutermann books prove to be.
Aside from a quibble here and there I found this book to be engrossing. As it seems, all Deutermann books prove to be.
May 25, 2021
Typical PT. Murder. Nukes. Archaeology. Love. Espionage. Good read.
June 15, 2021
Interesting read. Entertaining but not outstanding like his naval novels.
March 22, 2023
This is a real good adventure mystery along the lines of Indiana Jones type novels. Enjoyed it a lot.
February 27, 2024
Lots of twists and turns and a bit of a slog to wade through at times. But a well researched and well written tale with great characters. Leaves one to ponder what was actually at Masada.
January 26, 2023
I liked the book. Interesting plot
February 23, 2017
I really enjoyed this book. He writes such detailed prose, the characters are believable, and the setting and scope were fascinating. The suspense was sustained throughout the book.
All throughout I found the plot a little hard to believe but gave him the benefit of the doubt because he tells such a good story.
I struggled, though, to understand all of the espionage and counter-espionage that was going on (who was spying on whom, and why?), and I gave it a 4 only because I simply was unable to understand the ending. I think he failed to explain everything adequately and left questions unanswered.
All throughout I found the plot a little hard to believe but gave him the benefit of the doubt because he tells such a good story.
I struggled, though, to understand all of the espionage and counter-espionage that was going on (who was spying on whom, and why?), and I gave it a 4 only because I simply was unable to understand the ending. I think he failed to explain everything adequately and left questions unanswered.
May 18, 2015
This novel combines two of my favorite things: archaeology and secret weapon-grade nuclear material. Well…one of those is true. While Israel’s uber-secret nuclear production is a sub-plot, the bulk of story is a young Americans search for what he believes to be a stash of artifacts from the Second Temple stashed in a hidden cistern at Masada.
The author makes the assumption you know nothing of Masada and spoon feeds you the history over and over again. Typical of the genre, the author includes a Preface outlining the historical context (i.e. how the treasure got buried, or how the ancient monster was captured and locked away until some stupid 21st century mortal accidently sets it free—) and this time I purposefully skipped it. No harm done. The story evolved with the protagonist, as it should, and not the all-knowing reader.
There is a sexy (yet emotionally damaged) female of the species who initially despises the all-American (yet slightly nerdy) hero but eventually falls for the guy. Of course!
Despite all the built in Clive Cussler clichés, the author does manage to avoid the obligatory gratuitous fight scenes and, instead, focuses on what you would need, and how you would sneak into a World Heritage Site and start digging around—or in this case scuba dive an ancient well.
There are glaring plot holes and mistakes which make you mentally correct the author (a renowned archaeologist enters a soon-to-be-destroyed cave knowing it contains history-altering artifacts—and doesn’t bring a camera), yet it is an interesting read.
There is nothing profound here. And there are a few surprises (Judas gets a redemption), including a satisfying ending. Worth your time, probably a beach or long flight book.
The author makes the assumption you know nothing of Masada and spoon feeds you the history over and over again. Typical of the genre, the author includes a Preface outlining the historical context (i.e. how the treasure got buried, or how the ancient monster was captured and locked away until some stupid 21st century mortal accidently sets it free—) and this time I purposefully skipped it. No harm done. The story evolved with the protagonist, as it should, and not the all-knowing reader.
There is a sexy (yet emotionally damaged) female of the species who initially despises the all-American (yet slightly nerdy) hero but eventually falls for the guy. Of course!
Despite all the built in Clive Cussler clichés, the author does manage to avoid the obligatory gratuitous fight scenes and, instead, focuses on what you would need, and how you would sneak into a World Heritage Site and start digging around—or in this case scuba dive an ancient well.
There are glaring plot holes and mistakes which make you mentally correct the author (a renowned archaeologist enters a soon-to-be-destroyed cave knowing it contains history-altering artifacts—and doesn’t bring a camera), yet it is an interesting read.
There is nothing profound here. And there are a few surprises (Judas gets a redemption), including a satisfying ending. Worth your time, probably a beach or long flight book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews