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The Lazarus Key
Extinction was just the beginning. In this pulse-pounding adventure, a Wyoming game warden encounters something she never thought a real-life saber-tooth tiger. For two decades, Sam Brodie has never let a poacher get away or come across an animal print she couldn't identify… until she tracks a vicious predator that went extinct in the Ice Age. But when Sam reaches the tiger, she finds herself in the crosshairs of ruthless hunters who want no witnesses. As she delves deeper into the case, she uncovers a chilling plot to clone extinct predators for a barbaric "extreme" hunting experience for the wealthy elite. But these cloned creatures are not just replicas; they're bigger, meaner, and pose an unparalleled danger to the world's ecological balance. With the fate of the world hanging in the balance, Sam and her new team must race to stop the mastermind before he unleashes his ultimate creation. Will Sam stop him, or will humanity face its own extinction? Join the hunt and find out!
If you enjoy Black Crouch, Jeremy Bates, and Michael Crichton, then you will love this dark technothriller. Pick up your copy of the dark action-adventure that's been described as X-Files with cryptids!
If you enjoy Black Crouch, Jeremy Bates, and Michael Crichton, then you will love this dark technothriller. Pick up your copy of the dark action-adventure that's been described as X-Files with cryptids!
354 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 8, 2024
46 people are currently reading
1120 people want to read
About the author
Rachel Aukes
66 books406 followersRachel Aukes is the bestselling author of over forty books, including 100 Days in Deadland, which made Suspense Magazine’s Best of the Year list. She writes in a number of genres, including science fiction, fantasy, horror, thriller, and more. Her series includes Waymaker Wars, Space Troopers, Flight of the Javelin, Fringe, Deadland Saga, Colliding Worlds, and Guardians of the Seven Seals. Her novels have repeatedly been Amazon Top 100 bestsellers and #1 bestsellers in Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Space Fleet, Space Marine, Galactic Empire, Colonization, Alien Invasion, and Cyberpunk. When not writing, Rachel can be found flying old airplanes with an incredibly spoiled dog over the Iowa countryside.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
January 12, 2024
Entertaining, would be better as a TV series. Would have liked more of the science fiction side, as this was skimmed over and emphasis was put on law enforcement to "get the bad guys."
November 4, 2023
The Lazarus Key is about a Game Warden for a National Park discovering an extinct species of sabertooth tiger has been brought back into her park. It's the scheme of a lab that uses them for greed, and Sam must stop the eco-terrorist organization.
One thing I really like about this book, is it's straightforward way of writing. It helped add to the grit themes of the story, and wasn't convoluted. It helped get across the overall theme and aesthetic, especially with the main character being a skilled outdoorsman. This has good enough knowledge of guns and hunting, and I appreciated the underlying lesson of poaching happening in our national parks.
Warning for animal cruelty/animal death, I think we all expect people to die but it hits different when it's animals. Another thing I really loved was the MC (Sam) is so respectful and shows a lot of care for the lives of the animals that she's essentially forced to take.
I don't know if this was necessarily a horror, it's more of a action/adventure. So I wouldn't go in thinking this is something that may necessarily scare you (unless you are afraid of predators or big cats) as opposed to interest you. For myself, I was never scared or fearful. Especially for the main character's Sam and Murphy who I always felt had a good handle on the situation. In a way, this hindered the story, because I was never allowed to fully drown in my tension or anxiety because I knew Sam and Murphy were in no real danger of being killed off. Instead, we saw a lot of nameless or supporting character's suffer the brunt of the gore.
If you're a fan of Jurassic Park, you'll love this. It's a very fun and engaging story that you'll be able to finish rather fast, and go back to multiple times! It's also a favorite if you're a fan of paleontology or cryptozoology. I had a lot of fun reading it.
One thing I really like about this book, is it's straightforward way of writing. It helped add to the grit themes of the story, and wasn't convoluted. It helped get across the overall theme and aesthetic, especially with the main character being a skilled outdoorsman. This has good enough knowledge of guns and hunting, and I appreciated the underlying lesson of poaching happening in our national parks.
Warning for animal cruelty/animal death, I think we all expect people to die but it hits different when it's animals. Another thing I really loved was the MC (Sam) is so respectful and shows a lot of care for the lives of the animals that she's essentially forced to take.
I don't know if this was necessarily a horror, it's more of a action/adventure. So I wouldn't go in thinking this is something that may necessarily scare you (unless you are afraid of predators or big cats) as opposed to interest you. For myself, I was never scared or fearful. Especially for the main character's Sam and Murphy who I always felt had a good handle on the situation. In a way, this hindered the story, because I was never allowed to fully drown in my tension or anxiety because I knew Sam and Murphy were in no real danger of being killed off. Instead, we saw a lot of nameless or supporting character's suffer the brunt of the gore.
If you're a fan of Jurassic Park, you'll love this. It's a very fun and engaging story that you'll be able to finish rather fast, and go back to multiple times! It's also a favorite if you're a fan of paleontology or cryptozoology. I had a lot of fun reading it.
December 27, 2023
Thank you to Netgalley.com and Waypoint Books for providing an ARC for the review!
"When you play God, God might decide to play back."
What a perfect quote to come from such a hidden gem of a book! This quote perfectly sums up the themes and struggles that are portrayed in The Lazerus Key by Rachel Aukes.
The Lazerus Key is a sci-fi thriller about a 47 year old Wyoming game warden named Sam Brodie as she investigates a seemingly impossible report; a Saber-toothed tiger which has been extinct for thousands of years, has been spotted in the area. Before she knows it, she's caught up in a devious plot for rich men to hunt dangerous predators come back from extinction by mad scientists and megalomaniacs! To defeat these foes, she joins forces with a secret federal agency: the federal Wildlife and Animal Special Protection (WASP) agency. They handle the bizarre and unusual cases that her normal job usually disregard (cryptids like Big Foot or The Mothman). But there's more here than meets the eye... Why did the government form this organization? How did that Saber-toothed tiger get in Wyoming? Has our MC gotten in over her head? I'll leave that, dear reader, for you to find out!
Oh man what a thrilling read! Now I love creature features like Natural Selection and Jurrassic Park, but they tend to follow a specific pattern; so you can kind of know what to expect. This book however, throws all of that out the window, and I am here for it! It gripped me in the first 5 pages and did not let go!
First, it's done in a dual-timeline format, which can be tricky to get right, but the author definitely succeeded. Knowing what was happening in the past and seeing it converge with the present added more suspense and tension to the story. Next, it follows a Game Warden who works for the WFS (Wildlife and Fisheries Services), which you normally wouldn't think of as an exciting career, but I found it to be a fascinating glimpse into a whole new world. You can clearly see the love, care and respect the MC has for animals and how it kills her when she's forced to take a life; though sometimes it's necessary in this field. The villain's whole story arc of starting out as morally grey at best to downright evil and single-minded was so satisfying. But that ending has got to be the most WHAT?! moment i've experienced while reading in a long time, and I really hope there's a sequel so that I can find out more in that regard.
What else can I say? If you enjoy books like Jurassic park or Jaws, love a good bad-guy-taking-over-the-world plot with some mad science thrown in, then you will love The Lazerus Key!
"When you play God, God might decide to play back."
What a perfect quote to come from such a hidden gem of a book! This quote perfectly sums up the themes and struggles that are portrayed in The Lazerus Key by Rachel Aukes.
The Lazerus Key is a sci-fi thriller about a 47 year old Wyoming game warden named Sam Brodie as she investigates a seemingly impossible report; a Saber-toothed tiger which has been extinct for thousands of years, has been spotted in the area. Before she knows it, she's caught up in a devious plot for rich men to hunt dangerous predators come back from extinction by mad scientists and megalomaniacs! To defeat these foes, she joins forces with a secret federal agency: the federal Wildlife and Animal Special Protection (WASP) agency. They handle the bizarre and unusual cases that her normal job usually disregard (cryptids like Big Foot or The Mothman). But there's more here than meets the eye... Why did the government form this organization? How did that Saber-toothed tiger get in Wyoming? Has our MC gotten in over her head? I'll leave that, dear reader, for you to find out!
Oh man what a thrilling read! Now I love creature features like Natural Selection and Jurrassic Park, but they tend to follow a specific pattern; so you can kind of know what to expect. This book however, throws all of that out the window, and I am here for it! It gripped me in the first 5 pages and did not let go!
First, it's done in a dual-timeline format, which can be tricky to get right, but the author definitely succeeded. Knowing what was happening in the past and seeing it converge with the present added more suspense and tension to the story. Next, it follows a Game Warden who works for the WFS (Wildlife and Fisheries Services), which you normally wouldn't think of as an exciting career, but I found it to be a fascinating glimpse into a whole new world. You can clearly see the love, care and respect the MC has for animals and how it kills her when she's forced to take a life; though sometimes it's necessary in this field. The villain's whole story arc of starting out as morally grey at best to downright evil and single-minded was so satisfying. But that ending has got to be the most WHAT?! moment i've experienced while reading in a long time, and I really hope there's a sequel so that I can find out more in that regard.
What else can I say? If you enjoy books like Jurassic park or Jaws, love a good bad-guy-taking-over-the-world plot with some mad science thrown in, then you will love The Lazerus Key!
February 17, 2024
A very fun action packed read which gave me early Michael Crichton vibes!
This is a story about a group of rich bad guys and scientists who are working to bring back dangerous and extinct species back from the dead using cloning science. They are doing this for multiple purposes such as extreme hunts, arena fights, extinct meat restaurants and more, with a much more dangerous eco-terrorist plan in the works.
Our main characters are a small sub group of wildlife federal agents going after the scientists and the bond villain like bad guy pulling the strings. They first find out about the illegal hunts by running into a saber tooth tiger in a national park. We follow them as they proceed through their investigation and find out the conspiracy gets deeper and deeper.
I loved the action in this one. We get a good police investigation, we follow along with the bad guy scientists as they work on increasingly evil projects, and we see the motivations behind the antagonists and why they are doing what their doing.
If you enjoyed Jurassic Park, Congo, or any other early Crichton novels, then I think there will be more than enough to like here. I found myself addicted to this story. Action packed, fast paced, and surprisingly fun. If you are looking for a good science fiction story, you could do much worse than this. They did leave room for a possible sequel and I will be keeping my fingers crossed that we get one. 5/5 stars!
This is a story about a group of rich bad guys and scientists who are working to bring back dangerous and extinct species back from the dead using cloning science. They are doing this for multiple purposes such as extreme hunts, arena fights, extinct meat restaurants and more, with a much more dangerous eco-terrorist plan in the works.
Our main characters are a small sub group of wildlife federal agents going after the scientists and the bond villain like bad guy pulling the strings. They first find out about the illegal hunts by running into a saber tooth tiger in a national park. We follow them as they proceed through their investigation and find out the conspiracy gets deeper and deeper.
I loved the action in this one. We get a good police investigation, we follow along with the bad guy scientists as they work on increasingly evil projects, and we see the motivations behind the antagonists and why they are doing what their doing.
If you enjoyed Jurassic Park, Congo, or any other early Crichton novels, then I think there will be more than enough to like here. I found myself addicted to this story. Action packed, fast paced, and surprisingly fun. If you are looking for a good science fiction story, you could do much worse than this. They did leave room for a possible sequel and I will be keeping my fingers crossed that we get one. 5/5 stars!
November 25, 2023
Wonderfully entertaining storyline and read
February 2, 2024
I fell in love with the book as soon as I read the quote from Carl Sagan... which means to say immediately! The first thing I noticed was this book was far, far outside of Rachel Aukes preferred genre, and she did it with aplomb. The book portrays a near-future event where it's game warden vs an illegal animal fighting ring and hunts only instead of the usual animals of dogs or chickens it was Sabertooth Tigers and the like. Grab the book to find out if Sam, the MC and her team of wardens can take down the culprits of this crime.
Here are some of the quotes I enjoyed throughout the books pages:
“Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception.” ~ Carl Sagan
“The problems of this world are only truly solved in two ways: by extinction or duplication.” ~ Susan Sontag
“Biological diversity is messy. It walks, it crawls, it swims, it swoops, it buzzes.” ~ Paul Hawken"
...And just so there's one quote from Rachel Aukes:
"When you play God, God might decide to play back."
Here are some of the quotes I enjoyed throughout the books pages:
“Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception.” ~ Carl Sagan
“The problems of this world are only truly solved in two ways: by extinction or duplication.” ~ Susan Sontag
“Biological diversity is messy. It walks, it crawls, it swims, it swoops, it buzzes.” ~ Paul Hawken"
...And just so there's one quote from Rachel Aukes:
"When you play God, God might decide to play back."
December 7, 2023
The Lazarus key is a thrilling, action packed story that will keep you on the edge of your seat!
The Lazarus Key is a book that took me by absolute surprise, I was glued to this book, it was absurdly addictive, it elicited in me the burning need to get to the end of the story. Which is exactly what I needed as my reads previous to this weren't the best.
You follow Sam Brodie, a game warden for a national park who gets wrapped up in their most interesting case ever. Extinct animals are being brought back to life and are being used in trophy hunting. This of course is only the tip of the iceberg, as you continue reading it slowly reveals that there is a much bigger problem at hand.
Now initially you might think that following a game warden wouldn't be that interesting, but it's such a different idea for me that I was intrigued and was willing to give it a shot (it also helps that I am a fan of Aukes's writing). Turns out it was way more interesting that I gave it credit for, I did learn about game wardens and how they functioned which I can appreciate but honestly following Brodie and her rag tag team of fellow agents (its 3 of them haha) was fun. The team Brodie ends up working with is a new sub division of the FBI and they take on the cases others tend to shrug off, the more unreal you can say. So they end up working with what they have available to them and relying on their intuition and collective skills, each person is vital to the team.
One of my favorite aspects of the book was how Aukes connected her two story lines. One storyline is set in the present and the other is set 10 years in the past, and she wove these two storylines together seamlessly. What I really appreciated about this method was how the merging timelines helped build the anticipation of the plot. The closer they got to connecting the more invested I became because I needed to see how and when it would happen. And when those timelines did finally connect it was explosive and worth every bit of build up. What was also really well done was how certain events that happened in the present, were also shown in the past but served more as an understanding of how events would play out. Sometimes you will see events in the past that take a while to show up in the present but they always meet up, and it's flawlessly done.
My absolute favorite aspect of the book was the villain. Aukes gave us a character that truly started out as a morley gray character but as it progressed you started to realize that they were just plain evil and corrupt and thought so highly of themselves. Watching his arc unfold was the most interesting part to me. His chapters are also the ones that start in the past so seeing the beginning of his plans and how they started and going through the journey to what they were leading up to helped make the ending all that more rewarding.
The action as usual is fantastic. Aukes has a way with scripting her action scenes that are explosive, entertaining and yet so easy to digest and understand. I honestly feel a lot of what she writes could transfer well to the tv screen. The end of this book is the most explosive part and while the case does get ‘solved’ there is a specific aspect that was left open and left me going “WHATTTTT??!!?!” I have a burning need to know what is going to happen with that particular thread because omg I am so invested!
So yes, give this book a shot, it's entertaining, and addicting and the ending alone is worth your time.
The Lazarus Key is a book that took me by absolute surprise, I was glued to this book, it was absurdly addictive, it elicited in me the burning need to get to the end of the story. Which is exactly what I needed as my reads previous to this weren't the best.
You follow Sam Brodie, a game warden for a national park who gets wrapped up in their most interesting case ever. Extinct animals are being brought back to life and are being used in trophy hunting. This of course is only the tip of the iceberg, as you continue reading it slowly reveals that there is a much bigger problem at hand.
Now initially you might think that following a game warden wouldn't be that interesting, but it's such a different idea for me that I was intrigued and was willing to give it a shot (it also helps that I am a fan of Aukes's writing). Turns out it was way more interesting that I gave it credit for, I did learn about game wardens and how they functioned which I can appreciate but honestly following Brodie and her rag tag team of fellow agents (its 3 of them haha) was fun. The team Brodie ends up working with is a new sub division of the FBI and they take on the cases others tend to shrug off, the more unreal you can say. So they end up working with what they have available to them and relying on their intuition and collective skills, each person is vital to the team.
One of my favorite aspects of the book was how Aukes connected her two story lines. One storyline is set in the present and the other is set 10 years in the past, and she wove these two storylines together seamlessly. What I really appreciated about this method was how the merging timelines helped build the anticipation of the plot. The closer they got to connecting the more invested I became because I needed to see how and when it would happen. And when those timelines did finally connect it was explosive and worth every bit of build up. What was also really well done was how certain events that happened in the present, were also shown in the past but served more as an understanding of how events would play out. Sometimes you will see events in the past that take a while to show up in the present but they always meet up, and it's flawlessly done.
My absolute favorite aspect of the book was the villain. Aukes gave us a character that truly started out as a morley gray character but as it progressed you started to realize that they were just plain evil and corrupt and thought so highly of themselves. Watching his arc unfold was the most interesting part to me. His chapters are also the ones that start in the past so seeing the beginning of his plans and how they started and going through the journey to what they were leading up to helped make the ending all that more rewarding.
The action as usual is fantastic. Aukes has a way with scripting her action scenes that are explosive, entertaining and yet so easy to digest and understand. I honestly feel a lot of what she writes could transfer well to the tv screen. The end of this book is the most explosive part and while the case does get ‘solved’ there is a specific aspect that was left open and left me going “WHATTTTT??!!?!” I have a burning need to know what is going to happen with that particular thread because omg I am so invested!
So yes, give this book a shot, it's entertaining, and addicting and the ending alone is worth your time.
November 29, 2023
Marketed as a “science thriller,” this is actually a gory, basic police procedural regarding genetically-altered animals. The blurb promises thrills but it’s more on the lines of shock factor blood and guts yuck than surprise.
The protagonist is a female wild animal officer whom I couldn’t help comparing unfavorably with Nevada Bart’s Anna Pigeon (a character I greatly admired—especially when voiced by the incomparable Barbara Rosenblat). In general, I thought the book’s dialogue is a bit stiff, glib, and cocky and its tone lacked heart, grit, depth, and the beauty of nature.
I’m not a big fan of police procedurals, and it’s not marketed as such, but I scooped this book up for the purported science fiction aspect. Unfortunately, I got too much of what I don’t like and not enough of what I like.
I was hoping for more from the science fiction aspect. By that I don’t mean weird cross-bred animals or more blood and guts. I mean more of an educated stance regarding science. The scientists were easily manipulated schmucks, and their motives and backgrounds didn’t seem rooted in data. Showing the one guy all smelly and disheveled made him seem like a mad scientist. And the theme of morally corrupt scientists against noble nature is juvenile. And for that dumbing-down, I have to take away a star.
The protagonist is a female wild animal officer whom I couldn’t help comparing unfavorably with Nevada Bart’s Anna Pigeon (a character I greatly admired—especially when voiced by the incomparable Barbara Rosenblat). In general, I thought the book’s dialogue is a bit stiff, glib, and cocky and its tone lacked heart, grit, depth, and the beauty of nature.
I’m not a big fan of police procedurals, and it’s not marketed as such, but I scooped this book up for the purported science fiction aspect. Unfortunately, I got too much of what I don’t like and not enough of what I like.
I was hoping for more from the science fiction aspect. By that I don’t mean weird cross-bred animals or more blood and guts. I mean more of an educated stance regarding science. The scientists were easily manipulated schmucks, and their motives and backgrounds didn’t seem rooted in data. Showing the one guy all smelly and disheveled made him seem like a mad scientist. And the theme of morally corrupt scientists against noble nature is juvenile. And for that dumbing-down, I have to take away a star.
January 8, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this story about Special Agent Sam Brodie with the United States Fish and Wildlife Services. The story started out with her being stationed in Wyoming and getting a call that ended up with her having to take down a saber-tooth tiger. Extinct for thousands of years you say? Well, that's what Brodie thought too.
Brodie ends up being selected for the Wilderness and Animal Special Protection (WASP) Task Force, whose 'official responsibility is the rapid response to unclassified, obscure, and abnormal fish and wildlife that may pose a threat to American environments.'
So she, along with her counterparts, are in for a crazy adventure involving cloned dangerous extinct animals and their even more dangerous human creators and handlers.
This story was well written and fun and hopefully will be the start of a new Sam Brodie series.
I received this Digital Review Copy from Waypoint Books through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review. This is that review.
Brodie ends up being selected for the Wilderness and Animal Special Protection (WASP) Task Force, whose 'official responsibility is the rapid response to unclassified, obscure, and abnormal fish and wildlife that may pose a threat to American environments.'
So she, along with her counterparts, are in for a crazy adventure involving cloned dangerous extinct animals and their even more dangerous human creators and handlers.
This story was well written and fun and hopefully will be the start of a new Sam Brodie series.
I received this Digital Review Copy from Waypoint Books through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review. This is that review.
November 26, 2023
I was instantly hooked on this! My covid brain couldn't distract me from this one. It was a miracle.
So right off the bat a man dies from an attack while hunting a tiger unlike anything living today. Then we meet our protagonist, a woman named Sam, who fights poachers. She is the coolest!
Sam ends up joining a team of people investigating this cryptid (maybe) they shot in Yellowstone and it puts her in serious danger. Rich jerks are not people to mess with.
I loved it so much! I know I usually hate anything "cop" but this was enough like Jurassic Park and my favorite book Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich that I was into it. It can have some cop stuff. It is okay this time.
I serious. This was glorious.
So right off the bat a man dies from an attack while hunting a tiger unlike anything living today. Then we meet our protagonist, a woman named Sam, who fights poachers. She is the coolest!
Sam ends up joining a team of people investigating this cryptid (maybe) they shot in Yellowstone and it puts her in serious danger. Rich jerks are not people to mess with.
I loved it so much! I know I usually hate anything "cop" but this was enough like Jurassic Park and my favorite book Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich that I was into it. It can have some cop stuff. It is okay this time.
I serious. This was glorious.
March 24, 2024
There's echo of Jurassic Park and a strong ecological message in this well plotted and fast paced techno thriller. I enjoyed it and rooted for Sam.
The clones were victim and hoped for the best outcome for them too.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
The clones were victim and hoped for the best outcome for them too.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
November 4, 2023
Game Warden Sam Brodie is concerned about poachers and hunters in Yellowstone Park. She should be more concerned about their prey. Because when Warden Murphy Barnes calls of help, the prey is a sabertooth tiger. And the hunters are sharpshooters armed with automatic weapons. After the two survive both hunters and tigers, Murphy asks Sam to join him as a WASP (Wilderness and Animal Special Protection task force) Agent. Sam agrees and learns that there have been sightings of prehistoric animals in National Parks, put there to be hunted down by sophisticated methods.
Paralleling this story is the development of Sention Laboratories by Angel Cooperation and Marc Angel. Their work with animal DNA is only a small part of a devastating plan. WASP must stop Marc Angel before he can reach his world wide goal.
Fans of Michael Crichton will love The Lazarus Key. So will all readers! If you love a well written action thriller with characters you’ll want to see again and a multilayered plot that will leave you guessing, The Lazarus Key is for you! I hope this is the start of a new series. 5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley, Waypoint Books and Rachel Aukes for this ARC.
Paralleling this story is the development of Sention Laboratories by Angel Cooperation and Marc Angel. Their work with animal DNA is only a small part of a devastating plan. WASP must stop Marc Angel before he can reach his world wide goal.
Fans of Michael Crichton will love The Lazarus Key. So will all readers! If you love a well written action thriller with characters you’ll want to see again and a multilayered plot that will leave you guessing, The Lazarus Key is for you! I hope this is the start of a new series. 5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley, Waypoint Books and Rachel Aukes for this ARC.
October 23, 2023
Captivating story with great characters. Couldn't put it down. Highly recommend it!
February 19, 2024
This book seemed to be a blend of science fiction mixed in the pulp fiction. It moves fast and is an easy read. Probably why I liked it.
Scientists don't come out of it well yet again, the mad/egotistical scientist is such a lazy cliche. But the book was still a bit of fun.
Scientists don't come out of it well yet again, the mad/egotistical scientist is such a lazy cliche. But the book was still a bit of fun.
November 3, 2023
I wish there were more books like this around. Humans bringing back extinct animals and mayhem ensuing is never boring to me. The author gives us a protagonist that is a middle aged woman named Sam (not short for anything), who has been in the Army and currently works in the Fish and Wildlife department. She's not fond of poachers, and she's good to be around in a fire fight. It's a nice break from the lead woman being some damsel or delicate scientist. This lady is brave and tries to do the right things, but is still able to think in shades of gray. The villains are the rich elite humans in the story and I feel so bad for the innocent animals caught up in their schemes. I'm hoping this is a start of a series, because it was fun and cryptids were mentioned enough to hint there is more going on in the world.
February 27, 2024
Special Agent Sam Brodie is a girl! Shock! Get over it!
Special Agent Sam Brodie is with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, assigned to Wyoming. While tracking a poacher in Yellowstone she got a call to investigate a huge wildcat in the park. When Sam arrived on-site she saw that the subject of her call was huge! More than 200 pounds with a mouth full of sharp teeth with 2 huge canines protruding like a sabertooth tiger. But that couldn't be. Sabertooths were extinct, right? After taking down the animal and 4 poachers who would rather kill the Agents (Sam had found a Wyoming FAWS agent surveilling the cat on-site) than be arrested.
In the following days, Sam was assigned to a temp position with WASP (Wilderness and Animal Special Protection task force). Her first assignment was to track down whoever was bringing extinct animals back to life! The organization proved to be larger than they thought with a nefarious plan to flood the planet with prehistoric nightmares for the purpose of entertaining rich losers with more money than sense who wanted these ancient trophies on the wall of their game rooms. WASP and FAWS were going to be very busy!
Great characters, slimy villains and extreme danger are the hallmarks of this story! The slimeball running the villains has the ultimate plan, but Sam would never have thought . . .
This is a good read!
Special Agent Sam Brodie is with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, assigned to Wyoming. While tracking a poacher in Yellowstone she got a call to investigate a huge wildcat in the park. When Sam arrived on-site she saw that the subject of her call was huge! More than 200 pounds with a mouth full of sharp teeth with 2 huge canines protruding like a sabertooth tiger. But that couldn't be. Sabertooths were extinct, right? After taking down the animal and 4 poachers who would rather kill the Agents (Sam had found a Wyoming FAWS agent surveilling the cat on-site) than be arrested.
In the following days, Sam was assigned to a temp position with WASP (Wilderness and Animal Special Protection task force). Her first assignment was to track down whoever was bringing extinct animals back to life! The organization proved to be larger than they thought with a nefarious plan to flood the planet with prehistoric nightmares for the purpose of entertaining rich losers with more money than sense who wanted these ancient trophies on the wall of their game rooms. WASP and FAWS were going to be very busy!
Great characters, slimy villains and extreme danger are the hallmarks of this story! The slimeball running the villains has the ultimate plan, but Sam would never have thought . . .
This is a good read!
February 8, 2024
Pleasant surprise
Really likeable good guys, really hateable bad guys, big, nasty predators from our ice age past. How could you go wrong?? Hope Sam et al have more adventures we can read about soon.
Really likeable good guys, really hateable bad guys, big, nasty predators from our ice age past. How could you go wrong?? Hope Sam et al have more adventures we can read about soon.
February 8, 2024
4.5/5.. superb book. Excellent characters. Tight plot. I hope the series will continue with Sam Brodie as the hero!
January 30, 2024
Fun and exciting
I really enjoyed this story of Sam the WASP. It was full of action and intrigue, and I really loved that they were practicing Krav Maga which I am hoping to begin practicing myself soon!
I really enjoyed this story of Sam the WASP. It was full of action and intrigue, and I really loved that they were practicing Krav Maga which I am hoping to begin practicing myself soon!
January 19, 2024
An interesting story about a meglomaniac who sponsors the cloning of extinct animals for purposes of exotic animal hunts, exotic animal fights and food to save the world. Easily read and well-written. Quite entertaining.
January 16, 2024
I enjoyed the book. I kept me turning the pages till the end. I liked Sam and her determination to save and protect animals.
Aukes does a good job of keeping the reader invested in the story and her characters are grounded in reality and human foibles. I look forward to more stories of Sam and WASP.
Aukes does a good job of keeping the reader invested in the story and her characters are grounded in reality and human foibles. I look forward to more stories of Sam and WASP.
January 13, 2024
It could happen!
What a story this was! There was enough excitement to raise adrenaline, characters that stood out in good and evil and some nasty surprises as well. A reminder that evil is as evil does. A wonderful read.
What a story this was! There was enough excitement to raise adrenaline, characters that stood out in good and evil and some nasty surprises as well. A reminder that evil is as evil does. A wonderful read.
January 8, 2024
Sam Brodie works for the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and hunts illegal poachers. She is excellent at her job, although, she is often mistaken for being a man, having the first name of Sam (her Dad wanted a boy).
Things take a turn for the unusual though, when she receives a call to attend what is apparently a ‘Saber-tooth Tiger’ lose in Yellowstone National Park. She meets another Warden at the park, Murphy Barnes, and together, they come across a large cat, that at first appearance, does appear to be a Saber-tooth Tiger. However, when they go to stop the big cat, they are attacked by a team of ruthless hunters who don’t want to leave any witnesses.
Sam finds herself drawn into a new investigation, one in which someone is cloning creatures from the past to create ‘extreme’ hunting experiences and other experiences for those that have a lot of money. She and Barnes, who is not actually a Warden, but belongs to a specialist Task Force, must find who is behind this before people not only get hurt or killed, but before these animals make it out into the wild and damage the world’s ecological balance.
But as Sam and the team investigate, they find that this is not the only insidious thing that is going on, and that there are far darker things unfolding behind the scenes. With limited resources, and limited time, Sam and this new Task Force she has been tied to, must uncover multiple plots that not only risk damaging the world’s ecological balance, but could ultimately destroy it and humanity in the process.
This is an absolute thrill ride of a story, one in which once you start reading, you just can’t put it down. There are multiple compelling storyline lines that all interweave together as the story unfolds. We follow Sam as she tries to catch a Saber-tooth Tiger, with terrifying action scenes, before moving to laboratories to follow one of the science teams working on how to create various creatures from the Jurassic era for a better hunt, and being pushed to develop something that is a crossbreed to make it meaner. There are aspects of Jurassic Park in this book, tied with the intrigue of a Michael Crichton or Matthew Reilly novel, that captivating, fast-paced intellectual thriller.
Aukes ties this all together with her characteristic brilliant character writing, Sam Brodie is engaging and riveting as the Warden, used to tracking down poachers in the Yellowstone National park, but suddenly finds herself face to face with what appears to be an extinct predator from the Ice Age. We find this determined Woman, who for two decades has protected her parks against poachers and learned a lot of valuable skills. Now she is faced with a much larger (literally) threat(s), and has to put all of those skills to use chasing people far beyond the scope of mere poachers. But she has help, from the very likeable, and capable Murphy Barnes, who works for WASP, The Wilderness and Animal Special Protection Task Force. Barnes is a great character in that he has a good sense of humour and just lightens Brodie’s intense character a bit. There are multiple other great characters within WASP, but I don’t want to give away spoilers.
If you love a great action-adventure thriller, one that has some heart-pounding action scenes involving predators that haven’t been seen on earth in thousands of years, then this is a must read. More than that though, this is an intelligent thriller, with a good streak of intrigue and mystery as the main characters try to uncover a multi-faceted threat against not just the animals and ecological environment, but humanity itself. This is going to be one of those thrillers everyone is talking about – one of the must reads of 2024!!!
Things take a turn for the unusual though, when she receives a call to attend what is apparently a ‘Saber-tooth Tiger’ lose in Yellowstone National Park. She meets another Warden at the park, Murphy Barnes, and together, they come across a large cat, that at first appearance, does appear to be a Saber-tooth Tiger. However, when they go to stop the big cat, they are attacked by a team of ruthless hunters who don’t want to leave any witnesses.
Sam finds herself drawn into a new investigation, one in which someone is cloning creatures from the past to create ‘extreme’ hunting experiences and other experiences for those that have a lot of money. She and Barnes, who is not actually a Warden, but belongs to a specialist Task Force, must find who is behind this before people not only get hurt or killed, but before these animals make it out into the wild and damage the world’s ecological balance.
But as Sam and the team investigate, they find that this is not the only insidious thing that is going on, and that there are far darker things unfolding behind the scenes. With limited resources, and limited time, Sam and this new Task Force she has been tied to, must uncover multiple plots that not only risk damaging the world’s ecological balance, but could ultimately destroy it and humanity in the process.
This is an absolute thrill ride of a story, one in which once you start reading, you just can’t put it down. There are multiple compelling storyline lines that all interweave together as the story unfolds. We follow Sam as she tries to catch a Saber-tooth Tiger, with terrifying action scenes, before moving to laboratories to follow one of the science teams working on how to create various creatures from the Jurassic era for a better hunt, and being pushed to develop something that is a crossbreed to make it meaner. There are aspects of Jurassic Park in this book, tied with the intrigue of a Michael Crichton or Matthew Reilly novel, that captivating, fast-paced intellectual thriller.
Aukes ties this all together with her characteristic brilliant character writing, Sam Brodie is engaging and riveting as the Warden, used to tracking down poachers in the Yellowstone National park, but suddenly finds herself face to face with what appears to be an extinct predator from the Ice Age. We find this determined Woman, who for two decades has protected her parks against poachers and learned a lot of valuable skills. Now she is faced with a much larger (literally) threat(s), and has to put all of those skills to use chasing people far beyond the scope of mere poachers. But she has help, from the very likeable, and capable Murphy Barnes, who works for WASP, The Wilderness and Animal Special Protection Task Force. Barnes is a great character in that he has a good sense of humour and just lightens Brodie’s intense character a bit. There are multiple other great characters within WASP, but I don’t want to give away spoilers.
If you love a great action-adventure thriller, one that has some heart-pounding action scenes involving predators that haven’t been seen on earth in thousands of years, then this is a must read. More than that though, this is an intelligent thriller, with a good streak of intrigue and mystery as the main characters try to uncover a multi-faceted threat against not just the animals and ecological environment, but humanity itself. This is going to be one of those thrillers everyone is talking about – one of the must reads of 2024!!!
January 10, 2024
Rachel AUKES, The Lazarus Key (Waypoint Books) available on Kindle or on Bookshop.org.
In her latest work, The Lazarus Key, Rachel Aukes promises us an outstanding thriller, triggering some of mankind's oldest, primal, prehistoric emotions, while delving deeply into some of the most profound scientific and moral issues of our modern era. It's an ambitious promise, but Aukes delivers in spades as her tale unfolds.
The tale of The Lazarus Key centers on Sam Brodie, a veteran of the U.S. Army who now seeks nothing more than a quiet life working as a Fish and Wildlife Services game warden in Wyoming. The mundane routine of chasing poachers and enforcing game laws is broken, when she encounters a mysterious hiker, and a saber-tooth tiger, both grossly out of place in Yellowstone National Park. Soon enough, Brodie is spun out of her mundane existence, and into a special Federal task-force, investigating what might best be described as abnormal wildlife sightings. The tale deepens into one of adventure, intrigue and danger, as Brodie and her team struggle to come to grips with a nefarious scheme, which goes far beyond its first appearance, of a high-tech, but simple, effort to create exotic Ice Age carnivores for wealthy hunters to target.
Aukes weaves this story masterfully, cutting between scenes with Brodie and her colleagues as they investigate, and the villains, suitably powerful and cunning, and a foe well-matched against the resources even of a Federal agency.
Here is Aukes' especially impressive accomplishment. One distinction between a mystery and a thriller is that the mystery largely, though not always, is told from the point-of-view of the detective or one of his associates, and the task or the author is to dole out clues for the reader in such a fashion as to allow the correct solution to emerge at, or just before, the final denouement by the detective.
The thriller, in contrast, though a more emotional text, is in many ways a more cerebral challenge for the author. The reader knows, or guesses, much of the nefarious plot early on. The villains implement their scheme, and the reader sees them doing so. The problem for the author becomes providing just enough information to keep the reader intrigued, but not so much information as t make the dramatic points anti-climactic. The task is formidable, but Aukes manages throughout to keep the right balance between drama, tension, suspense and information. It is a masterful work, by an author who has clearly reached the pinnacle of her craft in the genre.
By now, readers should come to expect virtuoso performances from Aukes, who has published thirty-six novels, including 100 Days in Darkland, and the comedic Secondhand Spaceman. She works in an astonishing variety of genres including not only contemporary thrillers, horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Throughout, whatever the genre, her writing can be relied upon to be precise and crisp. Somehow, she always manages to find exactly the right tone and mood at any given moment in her story, whether a moment of high dramatic tension in a thriller, or the light humor of a moment's comic turn. Striking just the right pitch is always difficult for a writer; to do it even occasionally is an achievement. To manage regularly, as Aukes does, is a wonder.
All in all, The Lazarus Key is an immensely entertaining work, and readers will find it delivers suspense and drama a-plenty,. I greatly look forward to seeing the next installment in the adventures of Sam Brodie.
In her latest work, The Lazarus Key, Rachel Aukes promises us an outstanding thriller, triggering some of mankind's oldest, primal, prehistoric emotions, while delving deeply into some of the most profound scientific and moral issues of our modern era. It's an ambitious promise, but Aukes delivers in spades as her tale unfolds.
The tale of The Lazarus Key centers on Sam Brodie, a veteran of the U.S. Army who now seeks nothing more than a quiet life working as a Fish and Wildlife Services game warden in Wyoming. The mundane routine of chasing poachers and enforcing game laws is broken, when she encounters a mysterious hiker, and a saber-tooth tiger, both grossly out of place in Yellowstone National Park. Soon enough, Brodie is spun out of her mundane existence, and into a special Federal task-force, investigating what might best be described as abnormal wildlife sightings. The tale deepens into one of adventure, intrigue and danger, as Brodie and her team struggle to come to grips with a nefarious scheme, which goes far beyond its first appearance, of a high-tech, but simple, effort to create exotic Ice Age carnivores for wealthy hunters to target.
Aukes weaves this story masterfully, cutting between scenes with Brodie and her colleagues as they investigate, and the villains, suitably powerful and cunning, and a foe well-matched against the resources even of a Federal agency.
Here is Aukes' especially impressive accomplishment. One distinction between a mystery and a thriller is that the mystery largely, though not always, is told from the point-of-view of the detective or one of his associates, and the task or the author is to dole out clues for the reader in such a fashion as to allow the correct solution to emerge at, or just before, the final denouement by the detective.
The thriller, in contrast, though a more emotional text, is in many ways a more cerebral challenge for the author. The reader knows, or guesses, much of the nefarious plot early on. The villains implement their scheme, and the reader sees them doing so. The problem for the author becomes providing just enough information to keep the reader intrigued, but not so much information as t make the dramatic points anti-climactic. The task is formidable, but Aukes manages throughout to keep the right balance between drama, tension, suspense and information. It is a masterful work, by an author who has clearly reached the pinnacle of her craft in the genre.
By now, readers should come to expect virtuoso performances from Aukes, who has published thirty-six novels, including 100 Days in Darkland, and the comedic Secondhand Spaceman. She works in an astonishing variety of genres including not only contemporary thrillers, horror, fantasy, and science fiction. Throughout, whatever the genre, her writing can be relied upon to be precise and crisp. Somehow, she always manages to find exactly the right tone and mood at any given moment in her story, whether a moment of high dramatic tension in a thriller, or the light humor of a moment's comic turn. Striking just the right pitch is always difficult for a writer; to do it even occasionally is an achievement. To manage regularly, as Aukes does, is a wonder.
All in all, The Lazarus Key is an immensely entertaining work, and readers will find it delivers suspense and drama a-plenty,. I greatly look forward to seeing the next installment in the adventures of Sam Brodie.
January 30, 2024
First of all, I LOVE Saber Tooth Tigers. Smiledon are my favorite prehistoric cat. I had high hopes for this book. This was less cheesy than The Meg. Reviews say if you love Michael Chrichton, then you'll love this. Well I am a huge Chrichton fan, and I thought this was just okay. It had cheesy moments, and it wasn't as techno-sci fi thriller as Chrichton books. I wish it focused more on Saber Tooth Tigers and other prehistoric creatures but it really didn't. I thought it was going to be a suspenseful sci fi thriller but it wasn't. It's a woman working a case of an evil corporation, like Jurassic Park, but a very skimmed version. Meh. I'm looking for more.
November 27, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley and Waypoint books for this opportunity to read rate and review this arc which is available January 8,2024!
Hot. Damn. Y’all!
It’s been a hot minute since I have read an epic monster horror book. And one written by a woman. This was a fast paced in your face (sorry for rhyming) grab you by the throat read. I freaking LOVED IT. And if you like monster horror with a strong female main character. Sinister elite and freaking SABER TOOTH TIGERS do yourself a favor and pick this book up!
Hot. Damn. Y’all!
It’s been a hot minute since I have read an epic monster horror book. And one written by a woman. This was a fast paced in your face (sorry for rhyming) grab you by the throat read. I freaking LOVED IT. And if you like monster horror with a strong female main character. Sinister elite and freaking SABER TOOTH TIGERS do yourself a favor and pick this book up!
January 29, 2025
An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my thoughts in any way.
When Wyoming game warden Sam Brodie discovers a saber tooth tiger in the wild, she is drawn into a shadow world where extinct predators are resurrected for sport. I really enjoyed this book. The plot moved quickly and I liked the characters. While the "science" requires you to suspend disbelief, that didn't bother me. I hope this is the start of a new series because I would enjoy spending more time in this world.
When Wyoming game warden Sam Brodie discovers a saber tooth tiger in the wild, she is drawn into a shadow world where extinct predators are resurrected for sport. I really enjoyed this book. The plot moved quickly and I liked the characters. While the "science" requires you to suspend disbelief, that didn't bother me. I hope this is the start of a new series because I would enjoy spending more time in this world.
May 18, 2024
This was a thrilling read about a government agency I could actually root for. Taking care of the nation’s wildlife—including protecting it from poachers—is always vitally important.
As I read my way through this book, it seemed more and more like the start of a series that I’d really want to read. It doesn’t look like there’s a part two planned yet (or even promised), but I certainly hope it will be in the near future!
As I read my way through this book, it seemed more and more like the start of a series that I’d really want to read. It doesn’t look like there’s a part two planned yet (or even promised), but I certainly hope it will be in the near future!
June 17, 2024
Another of those 'Mad Scientist' creates stories. This one done well and a nice change to lean towards Jurassic Park, with Sabre Tooth Tigers and other extinct beasts brought back for nefarious schemes. My only complaint is the division - half the book from the bad guy's view and the other from the Game Warden's. That is my personal bugaboo = two, or more, different viewpoints telling the story. Give me enough hints and I can figure out what's going on - that's why they are called 'Mysteries'.
March 5, 2024
Thrills and high stakes from beginning to end.
A world impacting plot that gets increasingly intense. The book has excellent heroes and some highly compelling villains who seek to save the world, but are more likely to destroy it. A great read and a book that is almost impossible to put down. Highly recommend it and a big thank you to the author
A world impacting plot that gets increasingly intense. The book has excellent heroes and some highly compelling villains who seek to save the world, but are more likely to destroy it. A great read and a book that is almost impossible to put down. Highly recommend it and a big thank you to the author
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