Inca's Death Cave

by Bradford G. Wheler

Adventure, archaeology, technology, and mystery mix to form a breathtaking action-packed tale. INCA'S DEATH CAVE An Archaeological Mystery Thriller A 500-year-old puzzle catapults an archaeology professor and his brilliant grad student into the adventure of a lifetime in INCA'S DEATH CAVE, a new mystery thriller from author Bradford G. Wheler. What happened to a band of Inca rebels who journeyed north in Peru to seek the fabled cave of the true gods - and escape the disease and destruction brought by Spanish conquistadors? They were never heard from again. Did they just melt back into their villages or was something more sinister involved? What trace or treasure did they leave behind? The ingenious plot of this thriller is full of twists and turns, excitement and adventure, archaeology and technology. Readers will meet fascinating characters they'll never forget: a high-tech billionaire, a quick-witted professor, his beautiful young student, and her still-tough grandfather, a retired Marine gunny sergeant. Cornell University professor Robert Johnson and his star PhD student are hired by a billionaire entrepreneur to solve a 500-year-old archaeology mystery in northern Peru. But first, they will have to survive corporate skullduggery and drug-lord thuggery. And why, 6,700 miles away in Vatican City, is the old guard so upset? What dark secrets could centuries-old manuscripts hold? This assiduously researched, fast-paced novel brings the Incas and their ancestors to life against the backdrop of the Peruvian Andes. Along with riveting action, INCA'S DEATH CAVE contains 22 illustrations and photos. Wheler draws on his own expertise in engineering, technology, and business to help readers feel that they are living the adventure. Mixing the action of David Baldacci's The Hit, the tech thrills of Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park, and the dialogue of Robert B. Parker's Spenser novels, INCA'S DEATH CAVE is a true pleasure to read.

Genres: Thriller

412 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 11, 2014

About the author

BRADFORD G. WHELER is the former CEO, President and Co-owner of Allan Electric Company. He sold Allan Electric to a New York Stock Exchange listed company. After staying on as President during the transition, Brad retired.
Brad’s lifelong love of history, art, books, and the inherent humor in man’s nature led to the founding of BookCollaborative.com and the publishing of MONGOLIA AND THE GOLDEN EAGLE: An Archaeological Mystery Thriller, as well as INCA’S DEATH CAVE An Archaeological Mystery Thriller, LOVE SAYINGS: wit & wisdom of romance, courtship, & marriage, GOLF SAYINGS: wit & wisdom of a good walk spoiled, “CAT SAYINGS: wit & wisdom from the whiskered ones, HORSE SAYINGS: wit & wisdom straight from the horse’s mouth, DOG SAYINGS: wit & wisdom from man’s best friend, and SNAPPY SAYINGS: wit & wisdom from the world’s greatest minds.
His community involvements include being a Trustee of Community General Hospital in Hamilton, NY, and chairing their Finance Committee. He is the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Cazenovia College, and former Chairman and member of the Board of Directors and Alumni Association and President of the Sigma Phi Society at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. He is also a former member of the Board of Directors of the Greater Cazenovia Area Chamber of Commerce and several other boards.
Brad played polo on the Cornell University men’s polo team for four years and was a member of the Cazenovia Polo Club. In 2012 he was inducted into the Manlius Pebble Hill Athletic Hall of Fame.
He holds a BS and ME in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY as well as an MBA degree from Fordham University in New York, NY. He is a licensed Professional Engineer.
Brad, his wife, Julie, and their golden retriever Finlay live in Cazenovia, NY and Fort Pierce, FL.

Reviews

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

High Tech and Archeology

Professor Johnson and his graduate student, Abby, are asked by Walter Falcone to come to Peru to investigate legends of an Inca Death Cave. It sounds like a wonderful opportunity and the adventure of a lifetime. They agree and setup their base for a year at the Falcone ranch in Peru.

Walter promised them a team and while the team calls themselves “The Rejects,” the young people are bright, technologically competent, and able to put high tech to good use to find and explore the Death Cave.

I have mixed feeling about this book. The plot is great, the information, first class, and the characters interesting. The problem is that this is a fiction book. The dialog is poor. In the opening chapters, Abby and the Professor call each other by their names in almost every piece of dialog. People just don't talk this way. In addition, the dialog, particularly in the opening chapters is almost all data dump. Luckily this data is interesting or I would have put the book down immediately.

The other problem is that the project team is too good to be true. All the team members are bright. They help each other, and Professor Johnson is everyone's favorite boss. While this isn't totally unrealistic, it sounds a lot like Shangrila to those of us who have managed projects.

I would have given this novel five stars, but the writing so amateurish that I have to go with four. If you are interested in archeology, you'll enjoy this book. If you want a well written novel, this isn't it.

I reviewed this book for Net Galley.

[a · Rating 5 out of 5]

a most excellent 5 star read...
I don't know when or if I have ever read such a book as this. I really enjoyed the story immensely, a rollicking good read! I don't know how I can review it... It was categorized as a mystery/thriller I would say it was neither, more like a history lesson from a great professor. The story was not real but most of the technical stuff was.
I am still thinking about it. It is technical & full of stats and it's the most polite story I have ever read. I just don't know what else to say. Experience it for yourself and read it now.
A professor and his brilliant student are hires by a billionaire to uncover what some think might be an Inca death cave deep in Peru.
There is a run in with a drug cartel, snipers, any type of ammo ever made, nuns, the Pope & religion, the Israelis & politics, computer geeks extraordinaire and a computer saboteur, an awesome billionaire's compound with underground tunnels and a swimming pool, scuba divers, drones, planes, a blimp and awesome super smart young people! I mean, c'mon, what more do you need?

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this smart action, mystery thriller. Some of what I learned was over my head, some I loved learning and makes me want to go to Peru. Yes some parts were hard to get through the facts, science of the book. The search for the cave and the action part of the book I really enjoyed and wanted them to find the information.

I loved the characters, they are such a mix. You Have Robert Johnson that is a Professor and will lead a team. I like him he is funny, smart. His student is Abbey who started college at 15. She is smart, calm and has hidden talents you don't expect for this 22 year old. You have a billionaire that is smart, backs up his people, likeable and gets the job done. I can't get the scene with two of the team dancing and singing Ding Dong the witch is dead out of my mind. You want these characters to keep learning and seeing the things they come up with to do the job.

The main setting for the book is Peru. They are on a ranch owned by the billionaire owns with labs underground and lots of toys lie drones, computers, planes even golf carts what ever they need to be safe and get the job done. I would have loved flying over sites in a blimp or plane.

This is one smart book and makes for a good story of what is out their to learn about the past and what might be the future of some computer programs. I would love to see more of these characters in the future.

I was given this ebook to read by Net Galley and in return agreed to give honest review of it.

[Paul Franco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being an armchair--and at-site--archaeologist, and loving any few weeks I get to spend in Peru, I was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately there wasn’t much archaeology to it, though there was quite a bit of historical investigation. It ended up being more of a thriller with plenty of action sequences and technology. It’s obvious the guy knows his stuff, especially the technology, and has spent a considerable time in Peru.
And that’s all the good news. . .
Never have I been more conflicted about a book. There's a lot that’s excellent here, with one plot linking together what are many smaller plots, filled with excellent characters. The history and technology are first rate, and all of this should have been very enjoyable.
The reading style started very flippant, which is saying a lot, considering I’m the one saying it. This could not last throughout an entire book, I thought, and I was right. . . too right. It turned bland in a hurry, but that’s just the tip of this amateurish iceberg.
This is the first real book written by Bradford Wheeler; the others are collections of quotes, which is obviously far different. Perhaps that’s where he got the idea for the incredibly numerous and tiny chapters, which was amazingly annoying.
The style, though I think I flatter it by using that word, is far too matter of fact. There’s tons of info dumps, just facts told in boring style as though by rote, and he doesn’t even have it in the run of things, but as dialogue! No one speaks like that. As if that wasn’t enough, there’s many empty unadorned “said” and “replied” and so on; completely useless without adverbs. Many useless “began” and “started” as well. This taking place in Peru, there’s a bit of Spanish, but he got the wrong gender more than once. And to strike in another of my pet peeves, he perpetuated the myth that no one knew about Machu Picchu until Bingham “found” it; not true.
It feels like a fan fiction. . . or rather, written by someone who’s only read amateur fan fiction and thought that was what writing is supposed to be: stilted and boring. The great part about the internet is that anyone can upload their art, but the downside is, of course, that anyone can upload their “art.” It’s obvious no editor was used; no publisher would have spent a dime on this. The author seems to be retired and apparently well off, so I’m wondering if he ever considered using a ghost writer to polish this thing up.
Yeah, probably not. . .
I suppose if you use this as a reference book, especially about emerging technologies, this might be worth looking up. Any other reason. . . don't bother.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I start. I thought this book was about Archeology. Well, it is. BUT, it is also about history, technology, the Vatican, a Billionaire and well, a bunch of young adults who have nothing better to do than develop cutting edge software while helping solve an archeological mystery of hundreds of years.

TECHNOLOGY: Wheler will describe so many computer ideas both hardware and software that you will need a degree in computer science to keep up. He also will hit on drones, surveillance devices and cutting edge aircraft to make you think the book is about modern toys of the rich. Then he will have a Billionaire that seems to be just a bit to nice for us to believe, but believe we must.

ARCHEOLOGY: Now we have a Cornell University Professor and his Graduate Assistant who become the main focal point of the novel. They are bright, engaging, fun loving and just plain normal people, or are they? Abbey is a Phd student who has a steel trap mind for details and information. She may be about archeology, but her grasp of information makes her a waking computer data base. Not just about archeology but history, finances, economy, computers, etc. It's almost unreal to think someone can be this gifted. But gifted she is.

Abbey is going to help the professor work through the historical documents that they need to find the Inca Death Cave and the secrets that is holds. She will become proficient in ancient 1600's era Spanish as well as modern Spanish so that she can read the history and texts of monks and scribes in their original languages instead of in the rough English translations. The professor is not that gifted.

Then there are the "Reject Team" members that Walter Falone (the billionaire) assigns to help the professor. THEY ARE NOT REJECTS by any stretch of the imagination. They are geniuses in their own fields. These young people will help the professor and Abbey achieve the unachievable.

Now, don't get me wrong, Professor Rob is not an old dottering fool. He is brilliant in his own way and understands people, students, issues and science enough to lead the group to achieve what Walter Falone hopes they can achieve.

This book is so well written that even though you start to get lost in the descriptions of technology and science you can't help keep reading. You want to know what is going to happen.

I kind of lost track but I think there are maybe six plot lines that you will follow. They all are fun. They all are interesting, and they all pull together to form one giant great novel of mystery and intrigue.

ENJOY!

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rich owner of Falone Advanced Technologies signs up Cornell University Professor Robert Johnson, an archeologist and his highly trained PHD student, Abbey Summers to go to Peru with a team of his computer experts, to determine the history and life styles of certain Incas and their leaders during and after the assaults by the Spanish in their conquest of Peru. There are pages and pages of historical references that Prof. Johnson must use to determine this plus descriptions of Falone’s technicians as they write their formulas to accomplish what they need. Then they are sabotaged by a member of the firm, have trouble receiving ancient Catholic records for these times although a local Mother Superior does help this along, and when they are out in the field and getting close to the burial caves of the Incas they seek, they are attacked by several local drug cartels and several of the technical experts are wounded.
At the end of the story, are explanations of the pictures plus who are fictitious characters and who are historical ones throughout the story, and for me, it made a big difference in attempting to understand this highly sophisticated novel. For the common readers, it might not intrigue them so much, but for readers who like bits and pieces of history and modern technology thrown in, this will be your cup of tea.
I was given a complimentary copy for an honest review.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading about archeology you will enjoy this book. It can get rather dry at times--but the mystery and the characters are memorable. Now why would anyone want to sabotage an archeological expedition to the point that soldiers had to be brought in to protect everyone? You will be surprised if you read this book. Is the Inca's Death Cave ever found? Can't tell you--that would give away part of the plot! INCA'S DEATH CAVE an Archaeological Mystery Thriller

[Jay Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite an interesting and informative story. The characters are very real, and the excitement builds in every respect. For the first time I questioned my choice of college major after learning the excitement and inspiration of a modern search for an ancient city and its people. The story was off-beat, but so very entertaining and educational. This book is well worth more than one read.

[Sarah-Jayne Briggs · Rating 2 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I would ideally give this book 2.5 stars if I could give half stars. I found this book somewhat difficult to get into, even though the blurb and front cover of the book were both really intriguing.

I felt that a lot of the issues I had with this book came from the fact I felt that, although a lot of research had clearly gone into this, there was too much info-dumping. Dialogue's good, but there was much more of it than the action.

The characters were interesting, though there were a couple of things I noticed, such as the spelling of Abbey's name changing from Abby. There were also a couple of observations made by the characters that didn't really sit right with me.

I felt that Abbey's background was quite an interesting one and although I felt that she came across as a little too much 'centre of attention', I would have liked to see a bit more of her as a character.

I felt there was too much of the book focused on the technological aspects of the dig. I felt that the mystery parts didn't work as well as they could have done, mainly because there seemed to be so much dialogue and explanations of things going on.

I felt that this book might have been better if the dialogue had been condensed further down and some of the characters further expanded. I would have liked to know more of the backgrounds of other characters.

I'm not sure if I would read other books by this author. I would have to judge them on a book-by-book basis.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is self-described as a mystery thriller. It's not. By the end of chapter six, nothing of any interest whatsoever had happened. Up to that point, at least, it appeared to be a thriller designed for people who like to curl up with a glass of wine ("... a bottle of 2001 Corison Kronos Vineyard from Napa Valley ... an aromatic and cassis-scented Cabernet. Perhaps $80-$100 per bottle"--that's the kind of overly-specific detail the author constantly bogs his story down with) and read a good stock prospectus. The characters are not well drawn, there is no hint of tension or conflict, and the dialogue is clumsy. The Goodreads summary for the book compares it to Baldacci and Crichton. I can't believe anyone wrote that with a straight face.

I skipped ahead to chapters 12, 20, 40 ... and saw no sign of things getting better, so I abandoned the book. I'm not particularly comfortable reviewing a book I couldn't make myself finish, so let me just say in summary: as of chapter six, the best thing about the book is the picture on the front cover.

[Randy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Professor Robert Johnson, the main character in our story, has a pretty telling though early in the book.

"My eyes were starting to glaze over."

And shortly he is asked if they're boring him.

The author should have realized if his own characters were bored, what about the reader. Entirely too many info dumps early in the story, piled on top of each other. It didn't take me long to start fast skimming over those parts.

There's a pretty good story here, it just takes too long to get going. Most of it is technological, computer work, as they search for an Incan cave in Peru. I myself would have preferred more field work, but interesting nevertheless.

Problems encountered were a drug cartel and The Catholic church's slow examination of papers before release to Johnson's team. What could have happened five hundred years ago that would embarrass the Church.

Okay thriller

[Margot M. Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

I enjoyed this book. It had the right combination of action adventure and technical detail. There were a few grammatical errors but nothing worse than most books.
The one thing I appreciated the most is the lack of obscenity, graphic violence, sex, etc... It is a book I can feel comfortable to read with my teen. The story depicts great work ethic and the need for continuing education. It provides great discussion points. I am looking forward to other books by this author.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, I really enjoyed! However, I do have to say, if you do not like technology and history this read may not be for you. Especially learning about the technology because this is current new info that I found myself rereading to understand ... in fact, I am reading the book a second time to absorb more fully. Loved the characters and setting and hope for another book in the future so I can experience more through them. The detail in the research is obvious.

[Kaila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow... ok so where to start.. This was a very interesting story. The characters kept me on the edge of my seat, the plot was different but very good and everything flowed well. Some parts were a bit off for me but I think thats because I know nothing about archaeology. However, I enjoyed all the mystery parts and even the archaeology parts and the pictures were amazing as well. Very good story and author, can't wait to read more by this author.

[Deb Novack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an extremely well written mystery and action book. Professor Robert Johnson and his assistant are chosen to find the death cave in Peru. Unexpected things begin to happen, like being shot at by drug cartels and being stalked. This was a finely written storyline with great characters and interesting facts about the history of the land.

***I received this book in exchange for an honest review***

[Zeljka · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried hard, but really could not finish it. Dialogues were too unrealistic. People were talking like walking encyclopedias. Narrative and events didn't seem plausible enough to force me to continue reading. When I start to ask too many rhetorical questions about some passage or other, in an annoying manner, to innocent bystanders, that's a signal to give up on the book, which I did eventually.

[Lynn]

Don't waste your time.

I read this e-book courtesy of NetGalley.

[Christy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reads a bit like a technical report...unfortunately bland.

[Kristjan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book: **
Performance: ***

Info Dumps R'Us

I like history … and I like action/adventure stories, especially ones that have history as a backdrop. That is what I thought this was. This story is more like a history textbook with some action/adventure in the background. I appreciate the well researched details; but I didn’t need to know all that to enjoy this “thriller." Even so, using wikipedia style info dumps to present ancillary context and detail is a rookie mistake; especially when a lot of this doesn’t seem to actually advance anything in the story. It might be more interesting to those readers that enjoy historical trivia and travelogues. In addition, the simple, and often limited, dialog interspersed amongst the extensive narration was made even more awkward and unnatural by the frequent use of I said, s/he said, etc. (even when not needed by the poor character voice differentiation).

Ok … so we have an archeology professor and his research assistant sent to Peru to do a little historical investigation looking for the proverbial treasure of the Inca’s Death Cave. Unfortunately … the story is actually a little too true to form here as the initial setup is extremely long and boring while the team works to digitize the relevant conquistador records. I suppose that it is natural to make the Catholic Church one of the boogeymen in story; queue the typical critiques and moralizing on why the Vatican is evil. Despite the opinionated preachiness, the basic underlying facts were pretty accurate even as interpretation leaves something to be desired and the Vatican is redeemed in the end (as a non sequitur). It a multi prong effort, there is also some data mining and programming hijinks (aka hacking) and some sensor drone mapping to identify probably locations for the cave … and about as exciting as watching paint dry. I mean, it was interesting from an academic point of view, just not a thriller yet. In the mean time, let’s bring in a total unrelated conflict with a drug cartel so that we can shoot at our heroes (which is basically the only action/conflict of the story). Finally … the end comes up quickly and is pretty much anticlimactic with an epilogue to fill in the happily ever after expectation. Over all, this is a very simple story that would probably only appeal to those with an interest on that specific time and location.

I was given this free advance review/listener copy (ARC) audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#IncasDeathCave #FreeAudiobookCodes

[CassandraG · Rating 5 out of 5]

Archeology professor Robert Johnson and Student Abbey Summer get involved with an
interesting mystery. Interesting setting, plotline and characters. You like Abbey and
the professor and their unique way of working together and the characters they come across in their journey to solve a mystery. So when you get a chance pick up a copy and enjoy.

[Ellen White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good narration, a letter comes and he should consider it. Leads him to Inca caves, a 500 year old mystery, for the Professor, and his star student. With a team and a year of funding, sounds to good to be true. Good archeological.story. Given Arc audio for my voluntary review and
my honest opinion

[Shanna Tidwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story. I loved this so much. All of the characters are brilliant and all work well. The story has so many twists and turns. I will definitely be looking for more from this author and narrator.
If you are looking for a wild ride adventure this is a great story for you!

[a · Rating 5 out of 5]

:)

[Stephanie G. Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

While interesting, it made me miss Amelia Peabody

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted more Archaeology!!

[Jessica Villagaray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inca's Death Cave an Archaeological Mystery Thriller is about Professor Rob Johnson, a Cornell Professor of Archeology, who is selected by Mr. Walter Falone, multimillionaire and owner/operator of Falone Advanced Technologies, to lead a team on an Archeological adventure to discover the tomb of Manchancaman and his "Strong of Heart". Mr. Falone pays Professor Johnson and his brightest student, Abbey, to come to Peru and lead the search. Abbey and the Professor have many adventures and work hard to accomplish the task they set out to complete with their team of "Rejects".

At many points in the story, both the Professor and Abbey are given many reasons to quit, give up, and return home to the tedious safety of Cornell University, but together they are determined to see their project through.

This story is full of many interesting characters and a lot of archeological information. As an Archeology buff myself, I can understand the obsession and determination of each of the characters as they study hard and survive many "close-calls" on their road to discover what happened to Manchancaman and his "Strong of Heart."

With every obstacle that the Professor and Abbey overcome, the more you want them to succeed. You will find yourself holding your breath and cheering many times throughout this novel. It was a great read and I fell in love with each of the characters the further I dove into the story.

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given To Me For An Honest Review


Bradford Wheler's book INCA'S DEATH CAVE An Archaeological Mystery Thriller is a must read. Once you begin reading it, it will grab you, keep you on the edge of your seat and the pages will begin to turn and turn and turn some more. Before you know it, you will be at the end of the book. This is a real good mystery thriller. The only problem I did have is that it seemed to have so much science information that it slowed down the reading. The story is set in Peru. An archaeological group goes there in search for Inca's death cave. I enjoyed reading about this search and the action involved. The characters were well developed. This book is a great archaeological lore, action with drug cartels and use of high technology to uncover a fantastic piece of history. What past might we be able to learn? What might we be able to learn for the future? This book will open your mind to things that you probably have never thought about. I recommend it to everyone. It would make a good addition on your bookshelf or even a great gift for someone you know who likes mystery thrillers. I look for more by Bradford G. Wheler.

[Charissa Wilkinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book for a fair review.

Robert Johnson and his student, Abbey, are on their way to Peru to find a fabled lost city.

I try not to give less than 3-star reviews. This one was unavoidable. However, this time, it’s not based on the story line. Mr. Wheler had a great idea; it just ran away from him.

The story is well researched. It’s just the way the research came through that was once of my biggest causes for concern. This is a rookie mistake. Perhaps this is because his other books are non-fiction.

It’s a good learning experience. Enjoy it for the knowledge, but look for a better archeologist book for the story.

[Laune · Rating 5 out of 5]

This takes archaeology, mystery, and technology with a team seeking an Inca Death Cave for a billionaire. They encounter all the negatives (drug cartel, snipers, religion, politics, computer geeks and computer saboteur) to a make a good read.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I really enjoyed this story. The writing was overly technical and dry at times, and the dialogue wasn't always believable, but the story was interesting. I'd read more of Rob and Abbey's adventures.