The Stolen Apocalypse

Raiders of the Arcana #0.5

by Jacquelyn Benson

For a determined lady scholar, nothing perks up a wedding quite like exploding coffins and a priceless stolen manuscript.

Professional archivist and fervent suffragette Ellie Mallory loathes marriage ceremonies, but she's willing to endure this one if it means she can get her hands on a uniquely fascinating 13th century apocalypse manuscript. The only problem? The manuscript she finds is a fake, and the real one will be swapped out by thieves before the wedding bells start to chime.

Ellie has only one hour to figure out where the exchange is to take place within the vast Gothic maze of historic Christchurch Priory. With the help of her fashionable, knife-wielding bestie, Constance Tyrrell, she must navigate deadly belfries, a morose groom, and a crypt full of potentially explosive coffins—all while wearing a nightmarishly pink borrowed dress.

But Ellie's quest to save the apocalypse leads her to stumble into another historical mystery—one that might uncover the fate of an even more precious treasure. Can she find the prize, stop the thieves, and save the wedding in time? Pick up The Stolen Apocalypse, the adventure-packed and delightful introduction to Jacquelyn Benson's swashbuckling Raiders of the Arcana series, and find out!

The Stolen Apocalypse special prequel novella also contains a preview of the first chapters of Empire of Shadows, Book 1 of the Raiders of the Arcana series.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery, Historical, Adventure, Novella

81 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 10, 2024

About the author

Jacquelyn Benson writes smart historical thrillers where strong women confront the stranger things that occupy the borders of our world.

She once lived in a museum, wrote a master’s thesis on the cultural anthropology of paranormal investigation, and received a gold medal for being clever. She owes a great deal to her elementary school librarian for sagely choosing to acquire the entire Time-Life Mysteries of the Unknown series.

Her debut novel, The Smoke Hunter, was nominated for Best Historical Fiction by RT Times. When not writing, she enjoys the company of a tall, dark, and handsome English teacher and practices unintentional magic.

If you’d like to be friends, you may find her everywhere @jbensonink or join the email list at jacquelynbenson.com.

Reviews

[nika.ex.libris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, the covers caught my interest (I haven't read the synopsis)

Atmospheric, intriguing, and funny at times

It reminds me of Veronica Speedwell🙌🏻
I'm definitely going to keep reading

[kaitlyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

i wasn’t a fan of this novella, but i’m currently reading the first book in the series and loving it! i would suggest skipping this one

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I read the original version of this novella last September and enjoyed it, but THIS is the revised edition that is a prequel to Empire of Shadows (my most anticipated release of 2024!) and I was excited to read it again, as well as get some additional content. It was still really fun. I liked seeing Ellie and Constance together and I love their friendship. I missed Adam, though I understand why he wasn't there. And I am LOVING the new cover!

[Natalie]

My 3000th book read on Goodreads!

This was a cute novella tied to my favorite read of the year so far, The Smoke Hunter. Apparently this novella bridges that novel and the London Charismatics series, which I have not yet read but now really want to! I’m so happy I discovered this author earlier this year. I can’t wait to read more by her.

[Imre (serieuzeboekenverslaving) · Rating 3 out of 5]

☆ 3,5 ☆

Één ding is zeker, en dat is dat deze auteur geweldige personages kan schrijven met heerlijke droge humor waar ik af en toe hardop om moest grinniken.
Ik vond het super leuk om meer te lezen over de beste vriendin van Ellie, Constance in hun mini avontuur.

Alleen liep ik bij deze novelle weer een beetje tegen hetzelfde aan als bij Empire of Shadows, en dat is dat Ellie nog wel eens de neiging heeft om geschiedenis info dumps te geven.
Normaal vind ik dit wel interessant, maar soms is het een beetje veel waardoor ik af en toe uit het verhaal gehaald word.

Naast dit minpuntje vond ik het verder een leuke novelle, ik ben dol op Ellie en Constance!!

[Mia · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I read this prequel novella because I got arc for the first book in series, and I like Ellie as characters, so I'm interested in arc.

[꧁•⊹٭𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚍𝚒٭⊹•꧂ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reminded me of National Treasure

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Introduction to the new series 🥰

[Sarah Weeks-Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite thing about this is that the heroine just wanted to stop and appreciate the church architecture.

[Tiffany Whitehead · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t mind a novella, but A Stolen Apocalypse does nothing for the Raiders of the Arcana series. If I had read this prequel novella instillation prior to Empire of Shadows, I would have missed out on one my my favorite 5🌟 series. This novella felt rushed and underdeveloped, and I finished it wondering, what was the point? Skip it, please don’t let it prevent you from reading the series!

[Rosemary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fun fast read serves as a lovely introduction to the ladies of the "Raiders of the Arcana" series. If you want a romp through a church to foil manuscript thieves, enjoy this adventure that literally goes from crypt to belfry during the set-up for a large Victorian wedding. Shrubbery and crinolines may get in the way of our intrepid heroines but they will foil the villains and survive for an upcoming series of books.

[Kayla’s Book Binge · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s definitely a lot of knowledge thrown at ya that I don’t always absorb but I loved the vibes and felt like I was on a treasure hunt. I think I’m gonna love the series! I can’t wait to get into the next one.

[Pandora Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 ? Format novella donc court, mais j'aime bien ce qu'on découvre des personnages. À suivre...

[Suzannah Rowntree]

A romp of a story. As a wedding looms, two suffragette archaeologists search the historical church from crypt to belfry on the trail of a stolen manuscript. I chuckled throughout

[Alex (HEABookNerd) · Rating 2 out of 5]

THE STOLEN APOCALYPSE was a short prequel for Ellie's book and I think it just wasn't my style. Ellie and her friend Constance felt like teenagers even though they were supposed to be older. Additionally, there was a lot of focus on the history and architecture of churches and that just didn't interest me personally. However, I did find Ellie's mix of studious and adventurous fun and I do still plan to read the first book in the series.

[Ari♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ☆

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been eyeing Book 1 of the Raiders of the Arcana Series, Empire of Shadows, for some time now, so I thought I'd give this prequel a go. It's a cute short story. It familiarizes you with the characters and their precocious personalities well enough, and it's got a touch of adventure.

[Mella aka Maron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall a cute little novella. I read this in preparation for the arc of Empire of Shadows.

Ellie is not quite my favorite kind of protagonist: she’s very feminist (marriage is “ritual enslavement” 😅), and she’s gone to university which means that she has to spout random facts every two seconds like it’s her personality.

But she grew on me a little by the end - and hopefully she will continue to grow in the book itself.

Constance was by far the star for me here. She was hilarious and interesting and the two girls had such great banter together. I really hope we see a lot of her in the next book!

[Karyl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Empire of Shadows last month and enjoyed it, so I figured I’d read the prequel novella just to see what it was like. Unfortunately I don’t think it necessarily adds anything to the story. Yes, we meet Ellie and her friend Connie, but the novella is so short, not only in pages but also in time; the whole book covers maybe an hour. While fun, I don’t feel like I learned anything new about Benson’s series, nor had I read this first, would I have necessarily wanted to keep going with the series. It’s cute, and it’s fun, but it’s definitely not needed.

[Rach · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and adventurous prequel novella to the Raiders of the Arcana series. I enjoyed the concise and action-packed plot of this story, and the opportunity to get to know Ellie’s bestie, Constance, a bit more, especially since Constance will be joining Ellie in book 2. I can’t say the characters would have left much of an impression if I hadn’t already read book 1 of the series, but briefly meeting teenage Anthony Rivers, who apparently stars in the author’s other series, The London Charismatics, has definitely piqued my curiosity to read that series as well. And I love getting to spend more time with Ellie, her passion for ancient texts and buildings, and her indignation and anger at constantly being sidelined because she is a woman. I’m looking forward to reading book 2 of the series!

[Megan Johnston · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've had the first book on hold for the last four months (I'll get it one day, right?) so when the chance to read this novella literally popped up, I jumped on it QUICK.
It was cute, if shallow. I fell in love with the two main characters and I'm hyped to see them again as I (hopefully one day) read the rest of the series. I found Ellie's monologues about marriage to be accurate but also overdone. I hope we are not going to have to listen to the same complaints throughout every chapter of the rest of the series, but I have a sinking suspicion I am in for a #girlpower ride. Hopefully the author keeps it quirky and not preachy (I say this as a committed member of the choir).

[K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content warnings: theft, misogyny

I saw this series recommended for people who like Veronica Speedwell and The Mummy (1999) so obviously I immediately purchased both the first full book and this prequel. And it seemed sensible to start with the prequel. It was fast paced and I liked the characters and the interactions between them. The mystery/adventure/search for a missing artefact aspects of the story did at times feel a little rushed, but it's a novella so that's kind of par for the course.

[Dee]

the empire of shadows sneak peek.... IM DEAD. I was wondering what the timeline was going to be. whether it would continue where the smoke hunter ended or start over and ITS THE LATTER. WHY DID I WIN SO HARD this is literally everything i could ask for... we are going to see and experience adamellie meeting for the first time. again. april hurry UP!

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this (very) short, short story in preparation to read Benson's new novel Empire of Shadows, which is staring at me from my shelf. This was a fun, little historical adventure involving a foiled heist of an ancient manuscript. I really liked the main heroine, Ellie, and her friend, Constance, and I'm looking forward to reading more of them in EoS.

[DeannaK ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyable little treasure hunting adventure. A brief bit of history mentioned, but very easy to follow if you’re not experienced with that. A quick read at under 100 pages in preparation for Empire of Shadows. I found the comedy aspects very entertaining as well. Always love reading about treasure hunts and definitely feeling like I want to play the Uncharted series again.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

An ancient religious text, codes, puzzles, secret passageways, a crypt, a formidable grandmother, two inquisitive and adventure loving friends, one who knows jiu jitsu and can pick locks, the other essentially a suffragette and a lover of logic, and a heist during a wedding -- this has everything!

Jacquelyn Benson's prologue to her Raiders of the Arcana is a lot of fun, and is a great way to meet Eleanora (Ellie) and Constance and the way their energy and ideas bounce off each other. Can't wait to read book one now.

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a cute and interesting read. I'm usually not a fan of novellas as they are usually too short and not fleshed out but this one certainly packed in quite the adventure. I loved seeing Ellie and Constance working together! Makes me want to go re-read the Smoke Hunter.

[brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 rounded down

Overall a cute novella. We meet Ellie, who's honestly almost too feminist for her own good in 1897.

Benson knows how to write an interesting and concise mystery but she's very wordy with scene descriptions. This is a personal issue but I'm used to it with the LC series.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Petit prologue court mais vraiment sympathique ! J'ai adoré le ton léger et la relation de Ellie/Constance (cette dernière a une personnalité que j'ADORE).
Le côté historique est super bien expliquée/exploité avec plein de référence à Henry VIII j'ai adoré ça ^^

[Jocelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐
It was a nice little novella with a quick and wrapped up historical puzzle to solve, though if I saw the word 'neatly' used one more time, I might've neatly lost my cool finally!

Can't wait for the second book to come out!