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Templar Codes
This adrenaline pumping political thriller finds a former intelligence officer on the run for his life after discovering artifacts that identify the lost tribes of Israel. Sometimes the journey for truth takes us further than we expect in Lee A. Sweetapple's heart pounding new novel, Templar Codes.
309 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 18, 2014
63 people are currently reading
347 people want to read
About the author
Lee A. Sweetapple
5 books17 followersLee A. Sweetapple hails from Miami Springs, Florida. He received a bachelor’s degree in politics and public affairs from the University of Miami. He continued on to graduate studies in geographic and cartographic science, international law, and international diplomacy. Sweetapple proudly worked in US Army military intelligence and retired in 2003 with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Sweetapple is enjoying his retirement in the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains with his wife and children.
WASP Sting was inspired by Sweetapple’s enthusiasm for World War II aviation; he flew a P-51C Mustang for his fiftieth birthday. He also serves as a colonel in the Commemorative Air Force and supports the organization’s Red Tail Squadron education outreach program.
Sweetapple has written thrillers Vette Head’s Not Dead, Key West Revenge, Templar Codes, WASP Sting and Vodka Caliphate. all available through Amazon.com. He enjoys sword collecting, hunting, skiing, and SCUBA diving.
Sweetapple is enjoying his retirement in the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains with his wife and children.
WASP Sting was inspired by Sweetapple’s enthusiasm for World War II aviation; he flew a P-51C Mustang for his fiftieth birthday. He also serves as a colonel in the Commemorative Air Force and supports the organization’s Red Tail Squadron education outreach program.
Sweetapple has written thrillers Vette Head’s Not Dead, Key West Revenge, Templar Codes, WASP Sting and Vodka Caliphate. all available through Amazon.com. He enjoys sword collecting, hunting, skiing, and SCUBA diving.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 18, 2017
Where are the Templars?
I was decidedly not impressed. I borrowed this book because the synopsis led me to believe that I would read history and mystery. Nope. There is about 60 seconds of history, and even that is not really believable. The scene with the cave of parchment with a big pool of water in the middle of it is one example of something that could have been exciting but turned out unbelievable. You can't have ancient parchment in a cave that is wet with humidity from a pool of water. Even someone with no knowledge of archaeology at all can understand this. The rest of the book is divided up into about 10% foreplay, 30% gunfights and combat, and 60% conversation between the characters, most of that being tiresome. If you love seafood, the 10% of the conversation dedicated to that might make you happy, but for those of us who don't care for seafood the fact that so much time was spent on it exclusively and no other kind of food makes us grumpy. And the author seems to have some subconscious desire for some woman to want to have sex with him within 5 minutes or less of meeting him, as he has women all through the book doing just that. The writing is choppy, not smooth, and the book needs a better editor as there are multiple grammar mistakes. Many people don't care about bad language, but some of us don't care for it. A good book with no bad language will attract readers from both sides, but a book that has bad language will stop readers who don't want it from buying your book. Why alienate a good sized chunk of your audience? Especially if you are not Stephen King? I usually review using a star to represent a different category. In this case, I couldn't find a star for any caragory. The characters are not described enough to make one feel that you know them, except for perhaps the main character. The plot could be really good but falls well short of most Templar books I've read. The setting is all over the place with not enough time setting up. The first of the book was definitely better than the rest. The conflict was probably the best part of the entire book but even that was not fully fleshed out. And the resolution was exactly as the author himself described it at the end of the story. It was anti-climactic. I am amazed that they say that this author is a prolific writer. I will not be reading any more of his work, even for free. I'm sure he is a nice man. But he needs to polish up his writing skills. All in all, it was a big disappointment and left a bad taste in my mouth. Kind of like seafood.
I was decidedly not impressed. I borrowed this book because the synopsis led me to believe that I would read history and mystery. Nope. There is about 60 seconds of history, and even that is not really believable. The scene with the cave of parchment with a big pool of water in the middle of it is one example of something that could have been exciting but turned out unbelievable. You can't have ancient parchment in a cave that is wet with humidity from a pool of water. Even someone with no knowledge of archaeology at all can understand this. The rest of the book is divided up into about 10% foreplay, 30% gunfights and combat, and 60% conversation between the characters, most of that being tiresome. If you love seafood, the 10% of the conversation dedicated to that might make you happy, but for those of us who don't care for seafood the fact that so much time was spent on it exclusively and no other kind of food makes us grumpy. And the author seems to have some subconscious desire for some woman to want to have sex with him within 5 minutes or less of meeting him, as he has women all through the book doing just that. The writing is choppy, not smooth, and the book needs a better editor as there are multiple grammar mistakes. Many people don't care about bad language, but some of us don't care for it. A good book with no bad language will attract readers from both sides, but a book that has bad language will stop readers who don't want it from buying your book. Why alienate a good sized chunk of your audience? Especially if you are not Stephen King? I usually review using a star to represent a different category. In this case, I couldn't find a star for any caragory. The characters are not described enough to make one feel that you know them, except for perhaps the main character. The plot could be really good but falls well short of most Templar books I've read. The setting is all over the place with not enough time setting up. The first of the book was definitely better than the rest. The conflict was probably the best part of the entire book but even that was not fully fleshed out. And the resolution was exactly as the author himself described it at the end of the story. It was anti-climactic. I am amazed that they say that this author is a prolific writer. I will not be reading any more of his work, even for free. I'm sure he is a nice man. But he needs to polish up his writing skills. All in all, it was a big disappointment and left a bad taste in my mouth. Kind of like seafood.
July 9, 2014
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
This book was all over the place. I don't know if this was a book two of a series, but there were some things that would pop up out of nowhere. For example, one of the characters says something along the lines of "Jennifer was still living at home." Jennifer was never mentioned before this point (which is about 30 pages from the end), so who is she?
Another thing that bothered me was the plot twist. I felt it was too much! This person is doing that, but he is also this guy, and guy A is actually in on it, but guy B is clueless, and guy C comes out of nowhere!
The final thing that I did not appreciate was the romance. I understand this book was for adults, and consensual sexual relationships are common, but how many people meet someone, grab their hand and say "Show me your bedroom"? And then act like a couple the rest of the time they are together? Completely unrealistic.
The story wasn't hard to read, but was a bit confusing at times. I guess it was an overall good read.
This book was all over the place. I don't know if this was a book two of a series, but there were some things that would pop up out of nowhere. For example, one of the characters says something along the lines of "Jennifer was still living at home." Jennifer was never mentioned before this point (which is about 30 pages from the end), so who is she?
Another thing that bothered me was the plot twist. I felt it was too much! This person is doing that, but he is also this guy, and guy A is actually in on it, but guy B is clueless, and guy C comes out of nowhere!
The final thing that I did not appreciate was the romance. I understand this book was for adults, and consensual sexual relationships are common, but how many people meet someone, grab their hand and say "Show me your bedroom"? And then act like a couple the rest of the time they are together? Completely unrealistic.
The story wasn't hard to read, but was a bit confusing at times. I guess it was an overall good read.
April 1, 2020
Interesting
The Temples Code was very interesting. The characters were very defined.. The story interesting. The women except for Gwen seemed a little too sexual but maybe that is the way spies are. The ending was strange but who am Into say where the plates should have been taken.
The Temples Code was very interesting. The characters were very defined.. The story interesting. The women except for Gwen seemed a little too sexual but maybe that is the way spies are. The ending was strange but who am Into say where the plates should have been taken.
September 9, 2019
Templar codes
Really enjoyed this book, hopefully another book with these characters will be written, great plot,great twists,great book. Really good author.
Really enjoyed this book, hopefully another book with these characters will be written, great plot,great twists,great book. Really good author.
July 30, 2021
Lee Sweetapple's third book in a continuing series featuring main character Jim Stillwater, action-oriented veteran of the US Intelligence community and his small but tightly knit community of friends who, like Jim, have been tested and proven in America's less publicized struggles with varied enemies.
As is his writing style, Lee Sweetapple moves the reader along at a fast pace, providing location details and references to keep the reader oriented. The story line took a few unexpected plot twists and turns which kept this reviewer guessing and very engaged. Some books, you can almost guess from the title and previous works how the story will go, this book will not disappoint in that manner!
In this book, long lost records created by the Knights Templar are recovered by Jim and his friends, initiating gun battles and successive attempts by rogue agents to steal said artifacts, artifacts which prove in the end to have impressive historical significance.
The story line whisks you from the Mediterranean ocean, through Europe and ending in an explosive finale in Scotland. Folks who've traveled Europe will feel they're back as familiar locations are described and local cuisines consumed by Stillwater's team.
Plenty of action, enemies at every turn, and even a gourmand's appreciation of food to keep things moving along.
As is his writing style, Lee Sweetapple moves the reader along at a fast pace, providing location details and references to keep the reader oriented. The story line took a few unexpected plot twists and turns which kept this reviewer guessing and very engaged. Some books, you can almost guess from the title and previous works how the story will go, this book will not disappoint in that manner!
In this book, long lost records created by the Knights Templar are recovered by Jim and his friends, initiating gun battles and successive attempts by rogue agents to steal said artifacts, artifacts which prove in the end to have impressive historical significance.
The story line whisks you from the Mediterranean ocean, through Europe and ending in an explosive finale in Scotland. Folks who've traveled Europe will feel they're back as familiar locations are described and local cuisines consumed by Stillwater's team.
Plenty of action, enemies at every turn, and even a gourmand's appreciation of food to keep things moving along.
March 19, 2014
I was so happy to discover this great author and his series through Goodreads. I was lucky enough to win a copy. Jim Stillwater who is a retired intelligence officer has a series of coincidental events happen in and around him in Cyprus. He is drawn back into a world that he thought he had left. Without giving away any of the plot, this is an exciting read, and the subject is about ancient artifacts that suddenly come to life. I really enjoyed this book and turned the pages as quickly as I could. I will be looking for and reading anything else that Lee Sweetapple writes. It is never too late to discover a great author, and this book certainly shows how imaginative and creative he is. Read it and you won't be disappointed.
April 3, 2014
I received this book as a winner in the GoodReads Giveaway and as such am writing this impartial review. This type of book is not my usual read so I asked my wife to readit and give me her opinion as she is an avid reader of this genre. She said that her rating would be 4.5 if a half was allowed. The only drawback she reported was that it started slow and took her a couple of chapters to get into the book. After those chapters, she quickly went through this work and it was one that held the reader's interest and moved swiftly and logically with the always expected surprise. This is a recommended book.
September 6, 2016
An easy read, fast-paced, contemporary action novel. Tidbits of history intertwined with a geo-political "stew" of players, who keep the reader guessing "who is working for whom and what's their goal?" Nice escape, in a comfy chair, on a cold, blustery day, when indoors is the place to be.
February 13, 2016
This was a good story. I liked it and the characters were well written. I would read more by this author.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews