Пророчеството Венеция

Tom Shaman #1

by Sam Christer, Сам Крайстър

В тъмната тайна на един град е скрит ключът към Портите на Ада...

Когато Том Шаман пристига във Венеция, той се надява на ново начало далеч от гетата на Лос Анджелис и онова, което го принуждава да обърне гръб на миналото и на… Бога. От този ден отец Шаман е просто Том. Без расо и без правото да изповядва и кръщава. Каква ирония, че италианската полиция има нужда от помощта му именно като свещеник.
Неволно въвлечен в разследването на серия ритуални убийства, Том се отказва от мечтата за спокоен живот и тръгва по следите на зловеща тайна. Началото е в мрачните канали на съвременна Венеция, но кървавата диря се просмуква в миналото до сексуалния разврат на XVIII век и до пророчество, направено преди хилядолетия.
666 години преди Христа един етруски гадател вижда Портите на Ада. Пророчеството шепне, че те ще се отворят днес…

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Italy, Crime, Thriller Suspense, Mystery Thriller

432 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

A pseudonym used by Jon Trace

Reviews

[Sonia Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has haunted me since I gave up on it 2 months ago, so I had to finish it. Authors Jon Trace and Sam Christer are the same person and he writes the same genre and with the same style. Although THE VENICE CONSPIRACY follows the same kind of story as the previous books I read, I didn't find it as convincing and, having finished it, I still have doubts.

What was the point here? Lars was a descendant of Satan and, before his death in prison, he wanted to wreack havoc in 3 places of the world? Is that it? Simultaneously, we have that lawyer and the billionaire's PA playing satanic killings? I don't get the point of it all.

I also think this wasn't as enjoyable because half of it happens in previous centuries. Still, I'm happy that I finished this book and hope to read Tom Shaman 2.


***

Second try started on 24th September 2020 because I really think this plot has what I like in a religious thriller and I believe there's a right time to read each book. Maybe now it's the right time to read The Venice Conspiracy.

***

On 12th July 2020, I gave up reading this book:
I'm a fan of Sam Christer's previus book and I expected to also enjoy this book. I don't really know what went wrong because the plot is just my kind of thing. I guess I'm out of patience to concentrate reading in English and the chapters set in the past didn't help. Along the first half that I read, I lost the interest :(

[Holly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Warning: The Venice Conspiracy makes heavy use of rape as a plot device, so I'd recommend giving it a pass if that triggers you.

I like a good thriller every now and then. Even ones with questionable historical veracity, but you know, so long as it's good and fun, I'll bit. The Venice Conspiracy is not one of those thrillers. I don't know if it's trying to be a supernatural thriller or one with supernatural overtones, but it's nothing but terrible from start to finish. It tries far too hard to be gritty, spreads itself thin across too many timelines, and lacks the adrenalin fuelled conclusion.

I spent the majority of it rolling my eyes because the ending isn't just spelled out, it's got its own Vegas show and advertising it in neon coloured lights. There's absolutely no suspense and the end just had me rolling my eyes. Plus, the use of rape-as-a-plot-device-of-Satan made me want to hurl the entire book across the room. It's so clearly written by a man trying very hard to be Dark, Gritty, and Edgy that it's painful, and then just manages to be offensive.

[Kalaikovan Ramamurthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book as some reviewers compared this with the works of Dan Brown. But for me, Dan Brown's work is in a different class. The book was alright but may be i had far higher expectations, so wasn't much thrilled.

[Suzannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read..had me hooked all the way through.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: ex-priest Shaman decides on a trip to Venice but, when there, he gets much more than expected. A series of ritualistic killings.

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Father Tom Shaman has just administered last rites to an dying 100 year old woman and is walking home at midnight in contemporary Los Angeles. He passes an alley and sees three thugs molesting a young woman. He deals himself a hand and when the smoke clears the young woman has been raped and two of the thugs are dead. After being exonerated for the deaths and leaving the priesthood he feels compelled to go to Venice. Then we are zapped back to 666 B.C. where we meet a young Etruscan priest and find the root of the story. We continue to be moved back and forth through the ages and watch the conspiracy unfold. The author lacks polish but it's a pretty good story.

[Veronica Freeney · Rating 3 out of 5]

It sounded like an interesting story and it certainly filled in a few hours but I can't say an awful lot more about it. Ex- priest Tom Shaman is an interesting 'hero' but his character isn't as well developed as it could be. I found the premise that the Italian police would use an American with no Italian as an aide on a homicide investigation, a little hard to believe. The story is set in Venice so it would be far more likely that they would use a local priest. I am probably nit picking!

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Father Tom Shaman is walking home late at night after seeing an LA parishioner into the next life, when he witnesses a woman being raped. Shortly after, two of the attackers are dead and the woman is taken to a place of safety.
Not long after, Tom Shaman flies to Venice ona whim, after receiving a postcard with a Canaletto on it. It doesn't take him long to get involved with the Italian police, who second him as a special advisor in an occult based murder case.
Several murders, a steamy affair with a journalist and an abduction later, the case is solved. Three bombs are also set to explode in three vastly different parts of the world at the same time, 6am on June 6th, that a follower of 'satan' is due to die by lethal injection in San Quentin.
This is an exciting novel, with plenty of suspense throughout. We are transported back to Venice in the year 666BC and 1777/8, as well as visiting present day America, Venice and Vatican City.
I really enjoyed this novel, in spite of the weird beliefs in satanism that some of the characters held. A really thrilling read.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

An entertaining & exciting thriller with plenty of action and intrigue.
Featuring an ex-priest as the main character this thriller splits itself between modern day Venice and the Etruscan 7th Century BC.
The story is exciting and the short chapters makes it easy to pick up and put down making for a good summer time read.
All in all I enjoyed both the thriller and the historical and satanic overtones in the book which made it an excellent read.

[BOOK BOOKS]

IDK ANY OTHER AUTHORS WHO WRITE THAT SORT OF BRAINLESS SCI-FI ADVENTURE NOVEL APART FROM DAN BROWN AND HE'S LOL UNREADABLE. I COULD RLY GO FOR SCIENTISTS GETTING INTO DRAMA AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN OR IN THE MIDDLE OF THE JUNGLE RIGHT NOW.

SAM CHRISTER AKA JON TRACE WRITES BOOKS THAT ARE ESSENTIALLY READABLE DAN BROWN AND I LIKE THEM.

[Bob Eastwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story, as long as you take the religious mumbo jumbo with a very large pinch of salt..! A serial killer with a difference.
No more grammatical errors than you'd expect from a modern writer. All in all; exciting and very hard to put down - I'll be looking out for other books by this author.

[Linda Fallows · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced read set in several different timelines. A race is on to find a serial killer/killers before time runs out. A well researched and readable book. Shades of the Da Vinci Code but without the clues. If you love a good mystery thriller this is for you.

[Shiva Shakthi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly it's too lengthy and kinda of boring but the end was like kept in secret.
Too much brutality.
Kinda okay book.
I read a review saying that this book is not like da Vinci code now I completely agree with it so very different.
Nice try though.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's alot of focus on rape so if you are triggered I would give this a miss!

it's a decent storyline good characters easy too read grips you from the beginning thriller!

[Catarina Pereira Dias · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining and easy to read, however it's too long.

[Hannah✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a while to get going due to the multitude of storylines, but I couldn’t put it down once I got halfway through!

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book, but felt that some elements were a little clunky. I'm going to give the next in the series a read.

[Ryan Cartmill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good, but not great. It jumped around too much for my taste. In the end, things made sense, but it could have been presented a little better.

[Павел Атанасов · Rating 1 out of 5]

Слаб сюжет, още по-слабо изпълнение. Венеция като декор също не може да спаси романа от посредствеността му.

[Karen O · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good mystery that's fast-paced enough to keep you interested. i like the writing style

[Sparklegirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as suspenseful as the first one! Can't wait to read the next one!

[Tania Chowdhury · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is engrossing and takes you on an adventure ride. However, there are dips at times and you feel you know the story ahead. Overall a good one.

[a e walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enthralling

I loved the way the author drew us in to the characters on each time line.
Couldn’t put it down, thoroughly recommended

[SierraKiloBravo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Link to my review: https://youtu.be/Jv3iGrfMVjw

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

La idea es buena pero ocupa muchas páginas sin agregar más elementos. La parte del pasado etrusco me aburrió y la dejé a la mitad, luego volví para entender algunas cosas, pero se entiende bien sin eso.
Me gustaron bastante los personajes, Valentina, Vito y Tom. Tina me cae demasiado mal. Podrían haber hecho más con la idea del ritual y los asesinatos, hacer la investigación más entretenida y en suspenso. Aunque admito que el final tiene un giro interesante.

[D · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a years old BEA ARC book that I grabbed and I’m just finding out that this author has a slew of pseudonyms and that this title is actually published under a couple of them. Thanks for the confusion. That means nothing for the book; I just found it kind of annoying.

THE VENICE CONSPIRACY is told using parallel timelines from ancient Etruscan times and mid-18th century Venice to coincide with the present day plot of this unfolding conspiracy. I liked both equally but it wasn’t an overwhelming like. The stories were okay. The ancient portion drew more of my attention but all three definitely had a lot of action going on and the slight supernatural element was interesting in its own right although not wholly realized. The religious element is really what suckered me in. I find it hard to resist conspiracy and the Catholic church in the same sentence.

What didn’t work for me here was how thinly the historical and modern day elements were connected. These tablets were what was supposed to string everything together but a lot of whys were missing and I felt like I was just supposed to accept the fact that these tablets were evil and evil people wanted to do evil things with them because that’s how evil worked. The introduction of the LA death row inmate into all of this just kind of muddied the waters. That modern day plot element just seemed nonsensical and was used more as a shock factor than anything else. It all comes back to evil people doing evil things and evil must be stopped. But motivation all around was thin. Because evil.

Another thing that really bothered me was the use of the year 666 BC to coincide with the beginning of these tablets in Etruscan times. Since we currently function on a Gregorian calendar and Catholicism was the one that attached any meaning to that number and THAT existed hundreds of years after this Etruscan event, unless that specific year coincided with an equivalent premonition of evil on the Etruscan calendar it’s an otherwise irrelevant number. Ooh spooky 666 mark of the beast and the supposed first emergence of Satan as seen in Catholicism hundreds of years before the religion even came about! But it’s a fallacious attribution and one that kept nagging at me. The Gregorian year is meaningless. I understand the use in writing because see: oooo spooky devil number but the concept of monotheism and one god/one devil wasn’t an unknown concept at the time. So it was all thinly strung together on suspension of disbelief coming into play.

I did like Tom, the ex-priest with blood on his hands (DRAMA) and Valentina (the lady cop with something to prove). They were both characters I could get behind and I was rooting for them to come out on top. But amidst everything else, because I really wasn’t on board with the story as a whole, I didn’t connect with them as much as I otherwise would have. The story was exciting and all and I didn’t struggle with reading it but I wasn’t that impressed by it. The author obviously did his research when it came to history and modern Venice but too much of the plot relied on my suspension of disbelief to be running on high and it wasn’t.

Blood and action and gore is good. But if I’m poking holes in the theory it takes away from my reading experience.

3

[tiddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is quite a fun read. The storytelling is flowing, though the ex-priest's story for quitting priesthood isn't that convincing, jumping right into another a new (sexual) relationship, no less.

There are a lot - and I mean, a lot - of plots of historical backdrop of the Tablet of Atmanta that, while engrossing, leaves much to be desired. From the violent death of Teucer and Tetia in 666 BC, it jumps right to 18th century Venice with the violent death of another ex-priest. Although it's understood that much as the history of the Tablets have remained unknown, hence the supposedly big gap in its happenstance, I wish there is more to be said, of how the Tablets have spawned a Satanist cult following throughout the centuries.

Was it really all started by Larth, the brutal enforcer who stole the Tablets in the first place? Had there been successes? The ending of the book suggests that the seed of Satan is sought in another raped pregnancy. Are we to believe that, over the course of centuries, from 666 BC to present day, there has not been one - even just one - success of the Satanist cult? If we are to believe too, from the Carabinieri findings, that there had been various other events in past history that would point to the inkling of the Tablets and this cult, including as farfetched as 9/11 and the tsunami in Asia, are we truly to believe that this Lars Bale really can cause that much damage, with the exception of maybe three explosions, two of which were folded? I highly doubt it. It's also puzzling, of how the three Tablets were snatched by Tanina during the frenzy, have ended up scattering about? It seems odd, that the author has spent so much inks on the stories of Teucer/Tetia, and then Tanina/Tommaso, just to suddenly drop the prior historic plots, as if he's got a sudden change of hearts or has lost interests in it all.

And then there're loose ends, in the thick of plots towards the last 1/3 of the book, like the suggestion that the 15-year-old's killer might have been left-handed Mera Teale, when around the middle of the book, it's suggested that the killer was the one who controlled the security monitors who was Ancelotti, the rogue lawyer, instead.

In comparison, the character of Valentina and his murdered cousin, Antonio, seem almost like an afterthought, which can almost be done without. Is the subplot of Antonio's murder in explosion really necessary? It's almost as if this was added to the plots, just so that we can feel something about the rather one-dimensional character of Valentina. In fact, the book could very easily stand on its own with Major Carvalho in the investigation, without the distractions of Valentina/Antonio; afterall, the veiled attraction of Valentina to Father Tom is all but white noise. What's the point, really?

All in all, I wish the book has some of the plots trimmed, and others expanded to make it more coherent, rather than trying to throw everything in one big melting pot, with the hope to fit into the category of religious thriller created by The DaVince Code. Should it have done that, this book could have attained 5 stars. Pity.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grabbed this at this year's BEA (Advance Reader copy). I was a little confused, when I went to add it on Goodreads it's apparently published with the same cover under a different author's name (and both are pseudonyms), but I digress.

So, the bad. There are many, many moments where I totally had to suspend logic reading this. It's a Dan Brown-type thriller, so some of this is to be expected. The toughest pill to swallow was the weird ability for everyone in the book to seem to understand English or Italian. The main character, Tom, is often in large meetings filled with Italians, even though he doesn't speak a lick of it. Valentina says right in the beginning her English isn't great, but she never stumbles with it and even manages to get in quite a few colloquialisms.

But again, I digress.

The plot is what you would expect for this kind of book. Secret societies, people dying in wacky ways, symbolism, art, etc, so if that's not your bag, look elsewhere for your next book. Most of the time I'm looking for more out of my reading, but since I had just finished "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green, I was in the mood for some fun.

So, the good. I really couldn't put the book down. It's chopped up into small chapters that end in the middle of the action then jump to a different time and place. Annoying, but effective. I couldn't put it down. Th story is interesting, and filled with cool facts about Venice and Italy.

Props to the author for picking a little explored topic: the Etruscans. I don't remember much from my Roman history classes about the Etruscans, so it was nice to refresh my memory on them and learn a little more about their culture.

[Graeme · Rating 5 out of 5]

Praised by critics and readers alike for his international bestseller The Stonehenge Legacy, Sam Christer continues to weave an irresistible plot of conspiracies and sudden death in one of the world's most mysterious ancient sites.

When ex-priest Tom Shaman, jaded from years in the Los Angeles ghetto, decides on a last-minute trip to Venice, he gets much more than he expected. A brutal killer is on the loose and Tom finds himself in the midst of a series of ritualistic killings unlike anything Venice has ever seen. Enlisted by the Italian police, Tom teams up with young investigator Valentina Morassi to dig deep into the city's darkest history, stretching from an ancient civilization to the sexual decadence of eighteenth-century Italy to the gritty underworld of modern-day Venice. As Valentina and Tom trace the killings through the centuries, they uncover a deadly secret that generations have killed to protect: a priceless mosaic known as the Gates of Hell.

As the clock counts down, Tom and Valentina's adventure builds to an astonishing and satisfying end. Exotic and well-researched, The Venice Conspiracy will continue to build Christer's name in the hit-thriller genre... A must read novel, the history, the time frame, the mystery blends with the ritual killings of a serial killer(s). Very well written and top marks for an entertaining and most enjoyable read. Definately worth the time and effort to learn some history (albeit maybe fact or fiction) after all is that not what a good story is...

[Karen Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know what to expect of this book as I had not read anything by Trace before and was in the mood for a light thriller/action novel. Despite some cliched descriptions at the beginning of the book, this is better than that. It's a rollicking tale of good and evil that segues between different time periods to tell of a Manichean battle that has gone on for centuries.
It was the Venice in the title that first attracted my attention and while the book is mainly set there, the title is misleading but in a good way - Venice is not so much the source of the conspiracy as it is the final stage for its conclusion. Only, even the notion of 'Venice' as a richly imagined place that is not necessarily confined to one geographical location is played with.
The protagonist of the tale, Tom Shaman, is a priest for the first few pages of the tale. Leaving the church in extenuating circumstances, this tall, handsome and well-built youngish man, finds himself in the canal-laced city that to many defines romance - but to those who know it better, it is also a place of dark and terrible secrets and it's these that Shaman inadvertently uncovers. Joining forces with the local police, the race is one to see who, in the eternal battle for souls will win. But Shaman has already forsaken his faith - but has it forsaken him?

A good page-turner with an interesting historical bent (though, there were a few inaccuracies that drove this Venice buff (including some poor Italian) crazy!)