The Sacred Spoils

Rossi & Nero Thrillers #1

by Will Adams

To the victor go the spoils…
Historian Carmen Nero, in southern Italy to help a friend search for ancient riches, is caught up in the murderous schemes of the Calabrian Mafia.

Cesco Rossi, a quick-witted conman on the run from a brutal group of neo-Nazis, is about to be confronted by his tragic past.

Israeli Professor Zara Gold is on a mission to find Judaism's most sacred relic.

For the tomb of Alaric I, the Visigoth king who sacked and looted Rome of its most fabulous treasures, is on the point of being revealed. And who knows what secrets may lie within?

The race to uncover history's greatest lost fortune has begun…

Genres: Thriller, Audiobook

389 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 25, 2019

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Will Adams has tried his hand at a multitude of careers over the years. Most recently, he worked for a London-based firm of communications consultants, before giving it up to pursue his lifelong dream of writing fiction. His first novel, The Alexander Cipher, is a modern-day quest to find the lost tomb of Alexander the Great. Published in November 2007 by Harper Collins, it is being translated into twelve languages, including French, German, Italian, Spanish and Dutch, and will be published in the USA by Grand Central Publishing.

Reviews

[8stitches 9lives · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Sacred Spoils is an intense and complex archaeological adventure in which Cesco Rossi and Carmen Nero team up to search for Visigoth King Alaric's long lost treasure before the ‘Ndrangheta, Calabrian Mafia and Israeli Secret Service (Mossad) can get their hands on it. Apparently plundered in CE 410 from the Roman Empire and hidden in Alaric's tomb beneath a dry river bed somewhere on the Italian peninsula, it remained unidentified for many years. Rumour has it that the plethora of slaves used to dig his grave lost their lives once it was completed in order to preserve the sanctity of the secret. I don't want to give too much away as I feel going in almost blind ensures you gain the best reading experience but on the journey to identify and open his tomb Nero and Rossi come face to face with a myriad of enemies who seek the stolen, ancient artefacts for themselves.

This is the first in a brand new archaeological adventure series which is fraught with danger from the outset. We meet our protagonists Nero and Rossi who are superbly developed and unforgettable characters and we have only just met them; Rossi is a young conman who has been using the lack of knowledge regarding the whereabouts of the tomb as his cash cow and has been ripping people off by promising to reveal the location of the tomb once a fee has been paid. Now he is being chased down by vengeful victims. Nero, on the other hand, is a hard-working ancient history PhD student and a straight shooter. It's a complex, riveting race against time and the research into Alaric and his story is some of the most accurate, impressive and extensive I've ever encountered. Highly recommended to those who love action-adventures with never a dull moment and the type of books along the lines of Dan Brown. A very entertaining and pacey read. Many thanks to Canelo for an ARC.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Sacred Spoils follows Carmen Nero and Cesco Rossi as they search for the hidden tomb of Alaric, a Visigoth King who had plundered many historic and sacred artifacts in CE 410. Along the way we meet a long list of villains who are trying to stop our heroes fof a multitude of reasons. Will our heroes come out on top, or will they be stopped by any number of villains?

The Sacred Spoils is a fast paced thriller with a complex plot that is very well researched. The character development in this book is amazing and many of the twists I didn't see coming. The setting is easy to picture in your mind as the author does a tremendous job in describing the many places in Italy and Israel where the book takes place. The book is well written, although some of the analogies were a bit cheesy. Overall, a fun thrill ride of a book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Will Adams, and Canelo for gifting me an e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Javier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Several years ago, probably after "The Da Vinci code" success, I became obsessed with these historical thrillers/mysteries, were the main characters have to look for some ancient artifact/tomb/city...while the villain is after the same thing while trying to thwart their efforts (and if he can kill the hero at the same time all the better). But there came a time where I realized I was reading the same book over and over again. Yeah, I may be learning some historical facts I knew nothing about, but sometimes you couldn't discern where facts ended and fiction began, so I abandoned this genre.

During that time I remember reading Mr. Adams' "Daniel Knox" series, so when I found about "The sacred spoils" I decided to come back to the lost treasures genre, and I'm glad I did. Here we have Carmen Nero and Cesco Rossi as our heroes, two charismatic characters that are looking for the tomb of Alaric, a Visigoth king who sacked Rome in CE 410, which is believed to have a great deal of treasure buried with him. I won't go into many plot details, but while on their search they come face to face with several villains, which make of this a very entertaining and fast paced read. Prior to this, I knew nothing about Alaric and his story, so it was nice to learn some historical facts about his life and death (great research work on the author's part). When reading this kind of book, one of my fears is that the historical facts get explained in a boring way, as if you were reading a history textbook, but nothing further from the truth in this case.

The ending leaves some plot lines open, so I will definetely come back for book two in the series.

Thanks to Netgalley and Canelo for providing and eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Jane Hunt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a fusion of international thriller and historical puzzle. Set predominately in Italy this is intriguing and fast-paced. The story is full of historical detail, which sets the scene for the mystery con man Rossi and historian Nero needs to unravel.

The action is adrenaline-pumping and violent, aptly illustrating the people chasing Rossi and Nero. Sub-plots converge as the menace intensifies. Rossi and Nero are an unlikely partnership, but they need each other to survive. The mystery's complexities complement the action sequences drawing the reader into the story.

I received a copy of this book from Canelo via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

[Merril Anil · Rating 4 out of 5]

So basically I learned a valuable lesson while listening to the audiobook of this book. Never go for an audiobook for thrillers especially when there is a high chance of being distracted 🙄So as with anybody who goes for audiobooks, I was listening to this book while doing a lot of other things. So naturally, my attention was diverted …. (Saying It lightly) So I did miss certain parts of the story. So hereon I have decided to watch out for the book that I prefer on audiobook. Anyways coming back to the book, Maybe it was the audiobook or maybe I wasn’t fully occupied in it that I had a very mixed experience with the book.

Please bear with me while I nag a bit. What I missed is a bit more information on Alaric I. I feel that a bit more on backstory or brush up on the history would have made the whole treasure trail adventure more exciting. Right now the history lesson is restricted to a long paragraph at just one or two instances and that too delivered in one breath. So it kind of makes it hard to absorb and understand it fully all of a sudden. That is the one thing I felt could have been more interesting.

The book is running with a lot of parallel stories. Well all of them do actually converge towards the end but you need to have your patience and concentration on each of these storylines to see how it all works out in the end. Hence the reason why I opened my review complaining about how audiobook might not have been the best idea for me especially for this book. Depending upon how intricate and complex, you like your book, these multitudes of parallel stories can be confusing or interesting.

For me personally, I felt that without a few history lessons or touch up I couldn’t fully feel the excitement of the whole expedition. So in turn scope was left with the backstories of all the other characters and how all of them were going to end this expedition. I felt that the book went with characters and their story more than the treasure trail. Maybe that's just me. Anyways for me, the book was a mixed one. I did love the book but maybe the timing was bad or the medium of the book choice was bad because I couldn’t fully immerse myself. I would still say that it is a good one.

[gillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

This kept me gripped from the start. I always enjoy books that include historical mysteries and the author puts their own ideas and theories in to the story. This did not disappoint fabulous story with loads going on and really interesting characters. Looking forward to the next Rossi and Nero instalment.

[Nigel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story with a number of different story lines interconnecting and finally becoming one at the end. The characters are well written and fleshed out. The storyline entering around Alaric the Visigoth makes a refreshing change to the normal historical tales. Well worth a read and looking forward to reading the next instalment.

[Bethan Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twists and turns throughout

I enjoyed this book the way it was written with a variety of threads that appear distinct but are actually connected. It was both a historical narrative and yet a detective and with an element of romance as well.

[Barry & Dana Stiller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seit langer Zeit mal wieder ein Roman von WIll Adams, einem der wenigen Autoren, dessen Geschichten mit archäologischen Rätseln und Abenteuern aufwarten und die uns nicht gleich den Rückwärtsgang einlegen lassen 😅

Sᴀᴄʀᴇᴅ Sᴘᴏɪʟs
Der Auftakt einer neuen Reihe um Archäologin Carmen Nero und den umtriebigen Cesco Nero klang – da konnten wir doch nicht dran vorbeigehen! Also das digitale Buch eingepackt und los gelesen.

Dᴀʀᴜᴍ ɢᴇʜᴛ ᴇs
Das Grab des Visigothenkönigs Alarich ist legendär, aber bis heute nicht gefunden worden. Doch Hinweise tauchen an verschiedenen Stellen immer wieder auf und halten das Interesse in unterschiedlichen Gruppen lebendig.
Hochstapler Cesco Rossi ergaunert sich seinen Lebensunterhalt mit geführten Tauchgängen nach archäologischen Funden und wird plötzlich in die Suche nach dem Grab Alarichs hineingezogen: Er rettet Carmen Nero, die nur knapp einem Anschlag der ‘Ndrangheta entgangen ist.
Das ungleiche Duo macht setzt sich auf die Spur des Rätsels – ohne dass Carmen freilich ahnt, dass Ceso keineswegs ein Archäologenkollege ist… Und schon bald sind ihnen nicht weniger als drei gegenerische Gruppierungen auf den Fersen, die vor wirklich gar nichts zurückschrecken, um als erste den sensationellen Fund zu machen.

Sᴛᴀ̈ʀᴋᴇɴ ᴜɴᴅ Sᴄʜᴡᴀ̈ᴄʜᴇɴ
Rasant erzählt, unterhaltsam und mit einigen überraschenden Entwicklungen bei den Protagonisten ist dies weder ein Krimi noch vom archäologischen Standpunkt wirklich schlüssig. Als historisch inpsiriertes Actionabenteuer aber völlig in Ordnung.
Die Figuren und ihre Beziehungen zueinander waren mir an mehreren Stellen zu hastig ausgestaltet. Hier wäre viel mehr drin gewesen, denn die Ausgangsideen waren durchaus spannend.
Die zusätzliche Komplikation mit den Israelis hätte es für mich überhaupt nicht gebraucht. Vielleicht wäre die Geschichte durch einen Handlungsstrang weniger koheränter geworden…

Bᴇᴡᴇʀᴛᴜɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕
Eine solide spannende Actionreise nach Süditalien für zwischendurch. Mafia, Verfolgungsjagden, heldenhafte Juristen und skrupellose Politiker… Eine wilde Mischung, die man mal mitnehmen kann.

[Laura Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Perfect blend of action, adventure and thrill. Love archaeological thrillers. Love the Carmen and Cesco relationship and story

[Xerxes · Rating 5 out of 5]

What the bottom line says on the title of this book, it delivers in buckets of oozing action, mesmerizing landscapes, swords, treasures, you name it.
From the start of this novel, you will be pulled into an exotic adventure featuring Italian food, more Italian food, and breath-taking landscapes. There’s a lot of summer in this novel. It will feel like a cookbook and a tourist guide wrapped into an exciting thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. You will be embroiled into a family drama that spans decades of conflict. You will encounter the viewpoint of the Ancients, hidden tombs, and secret conspiracies, corrupt warlords, corrupt mafia.
This has all the standard elements of a thriller fantasy. I’ve read Clive Cussler, Matthew Riley, Andy Mc Dermott, Steve Berry. Dan Brown popularized the genre of course. But this is where I started reading properly.
The amount of research is staggering. The amount of attention and love each character is given throughout this novel makes you feel that there heroes and villains. But each hero and villain in this novel sees themselves as the hero. Cesco, the affluent conman who wishes to run from a terrible post and purge all memory of it, is a character that has the characteristics of thieves, rogues. I could imagine him time-traveling to Venice or Medieval Tunisia or the Ottoman Empire. He’s that type of character. I did feel sometimes he was a bit over the top, and sometimes didn’t control too much of the consequences, but that’s my nitpick.

Without going into too many spoilers, I feel the chemistry between Zara and Dov will be for the reader, very volatile. Both have different professions. One’s a commando in Israel’s most special unit, and the other is a history professor that loves history and to be honest, who doesn’t?
The main star of this novel is Carmen. She is naive, but as you read this novel, you get a sense of maturity. She’s strong, pretty, and any man would be lucky to have her as a girlfriend. That said, there’s a lot of romance-esque foreshadowing but you never see it until the end.
The novel has a lot of characters that would be too much for me to describe in detail. Sometimes I did feel the novel’s pace dragged a bit, and some scenes weren’t needed. Without going into too much spoiler mode, some parts with the Neo-Nazi’s gang could have had some more additional scenes. Their POV was interesting, and I felt we needed to see a bit more of them. This is full of Government conspiracy, exciting plots.

And if you’re wondering well, in 2011, thrillers were all the craze. Why should I buy another one that has the same plot/trope? Well, I won’t convince you as that’s your reading taste. What I will say, this novel is a fun ride. You’ll be going through Italy’s famous landscapes, you’ll be discovering hidden old centuries conflict of Mafia drama, you’ll be going through a tour guide of Italian food, you’ll be on motorbikes, you’ll be on farms, hidden tombs. That dear reader is why you should buy this. Let this novel take you at the edge of your seat as you drink coffee, and have a few snacks in between. Or whatever you prefer. I rate this a great book, which could easily be adopted into a movie. My rating is 5/5

[Andy Wormald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starting out with two seemingly different story threads, Historian Carmen Nero is in Southern Italy searching for treasures, however, her fortunes soon take a turn for the worst when she is caught up with the local Mafia, circumstance will soon make her meet up with Cisco Rossi a conman on the run.

Meanwhile Zara Gold is in Israel searching for relics

Without giving any spoilers or plot lines away, they will meet up to search for the tomb of Alaric, the Visigoth king who looted Ancient Rome and what secrets maybe revealed.

This is the first in a news Archaeological series for our main protagonists Rossi and Nero and one which I am eagerly looking forward to reading more of.

It has a wonderfully complex, intense plot line, slick and fast paced, the action moves seamlessly. Danger lurks round every corner for our heroes in what becomes a race against time, who can you trust.

It has all the hallmarks of a top notch thriller, with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing as to the final outcome

Although there are numerous characters they are all engrossing and written in a way which makes them believable, the relationship between Rossi and Nero is at times strained, however there is a certain respect for each other, it will be interesting to see how the characters are developed and which direction the partnership is taking in future books. The landscapes of southern Italy are evocative and add superbly to the story.

I am no historian but the storyline seems to be well researched and is told in a way to keep the reader entertained and engaged which is for me vital is this type of thriller

Thanks to the authors writing the storyline had me hooked and engrossed from the opening page’s

[Vivienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to Canelo for an eARC via NetGalley of Will Adams’ ‘The Sacred Spoils’ in exchange for an honest review.

The sacred spoils of the title is the lost tomb of Alaric I, the Visigoth king who sacked and looted Rome of its most fabulous treasures. It has been sought for many years.

There are two main threads in the narrative. The first involves historian Carmen Nero, who has come to southern Italy to help a friend search for ancient riches. Yet she is quickly caught up in the murderous schemes of the Calabrian Mafia.

Her friend had also invited Cesco Rossi for the weekend. He is supposed to be an archaeologist but is actually a conman, who is currently on the run from a gang of neo-Nazis.

The other thread involves Israeli Professor Zara Gold, who is on a mission to find Judaism's most sacred relic.

Eventually Zara and Carmen meet up in Italy, having both been part of an academic message board interested in Visigoth artefacts. There are also a number of baddies with different agendas but all threatening the lives of our protagonists.

I quite enjoy treasure hunt thrillers and this had relatable characters, lots of action, and was well researched.

I was pleased to see that it’s the first in a series. This was my first encounter with Will Adams’ writing and I likely will look at his other archeological thrillers.

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced and action packed historical thriller, entertaining and gripping.
I liked the well crafted and complex plot, the realistic description of the location, and the well researched historical background.
The plot kept me hook till the end and it was a fast read.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last
A good read, recommended.
Many thanks to Canelo and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.