The Ark Files

Eden Black Archeological Thrillers #1

by Luke Richardson

Imagine a secret manuscript that could change the world, and you’re the only person who knows where it is.

Professional treasure hunter EDEN BLACK is no stranger to action. After all, the artifacts she spends her life returning to their rightful owners aren’t always easy to access.

When Eden’s father dies in a plane crash, her life’s turned upside down. Grief turns to fear when she learns that it wasn't an accident. Everyone involved in an archaeological dig twenty years ago has met with a similar untimely end. Everyone that is, but Eden who was ten at the time.

When her father’s house is raided and burned to the ground, Eden’s forced into action. To learn the truth about her father’s death and save herself from sharing his fate, Eden must uncover the manuscript and expose its secrets once and for all.

But this time the world is watching, and not everyone is on her side.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Adventure, Action, Mystery Thriller, Fantasy

386 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2022

About the author

WANTED, adventure lovers for hazardous journey. Must be prepared for nail-biting action, constant danger, fear around every corner, with safe return doubtful.

If that sounds like your sort of thing, in your choice of books at least, then come with me...

Hey there, I’m Luke Richardson, and I’m applying for the job as your next favorite author!

As an Amazon bestselling author, I've had the honour of sharing my stories with readers all around the world. Whether you're a history buff, a travel addict, or just looking for a little excitement in your reading, my books are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat.

I write books that take you on a journey to foreign and exotic places, blending history, adventure, and suspense into a gripping tale.

In my books, you'll find yourself transported to places like the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the glitzy skyscrapers of Hong Kong, or the shady backstreets of Kathmandu in Nepal. But it's not just about the locations; my stories are also filled with fascinating characters, unexpected twists, and edge-of-your-seat action.

It was visiting India for the first time that actually made me want to start writing. The sun had just risen as we landed at Mumbai airport. The taxi journey that followed was one of the most incredible of my life. I watched the city unfold like a story. People washing, children playing, chickens, cows, goats, all beside an eight-lane motorway.

I love sharing my stories and am proud to say that my books have been well-received by readers and reviewers. One of the greatest compliments I get is when people say that my books transport them to a new place. Although people often comment on the loveable characters, intricate plots, and fast-paced storytelling too. And I'm always working hard to bring you even more thrilling adventures.

So, if you're looking for a page-turning read that will take you on a journey to far-off lands, look no further than my books. I guarantee you won't be disappointed!

Reviews

[John Zachar · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nothing here

Spoiler alert, the book's premise is that the bad guys need to use Eden Black to find something but 90% of the book is her running from the bad guys who are trying to kill her. That's the book, chase after chase. Sorry I read it.

[Marilyn Saul · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, that was a pretty quick read. Mostly chase scenes, bad people chasing "good" people on motorbikes or in cars or on foot. Oh, there WAS what was called an "off the books dig", but, other than that, there was nothing the least bit archaeological about it. And, quite honestly, to claim in the least bit that this book has anything whatsoever to do with archaeology is heinous. Now, had the author been honest, he would have entitled this an "illicit antiquities trade" book. In short, I'm disgusted and besmirched and very offended, since I'm one of those REAL archaeologists who specializes in the recovery of graves from grave robbers or that are in direct danger of being bulldozed by development.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read every book by this author ( well am pretty sure I have ) wether as a sole writer or on a joint project and enjoyed every one, this for me is his best yet
Now I have to admit when reading ‘archaeological thriller series’ I did pull a face a bit and wondered if it would suit me….it did and was not as I presumed
Best way for me to explain it is that years ago stone tablets were discovered from thousands of years ago that told the history of earth then, history that if was made public would tear the world apart, these tablets have been hidden but thats all about to change…..however a formidable world Secret Society has no intention of letting this happen and will cut short anyone’s life who tries to bring the tablets to life and share it’s secrets, enter Eden, who steals back stolen artefacts….the adventure begins
As always the authors love of travel is evident as we this time find ourselves in Lebanon ( and Brighton! ) and the pace and action doesn’t really stop from beginning to end
It is part of a series so expect a cliffhanger but not one that ruins this story
A lot of depth to this book, research and description and for me the author has surpassed himself
And as for the ackowledgements, I can bet, like me, you will be open mouthed when reading that part
Really good story and writing

5 Stars
10/10

[PAR · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have the opportunity to read one of Luke Richardson stories you will discover that he writes stories the way artists were meant to, "by immersing themselves in scenes so that the reader feels like they are in the room with the characters.” He writes his stories like a spider spins a web. The story is beautiful, and the web is one with the story. You will find that THE ARK FILES has unending scenes filled with conflict, fighting and suspense. Luke is able to spin his web without swearing, sex or gore. This novel is one that you will not want to miss. I cannot recommend this novel more highly. I received this novel from StoryOrigin. This is my true and honest review.

[Bruce Jovaa · Rating 1 out of 5]

An archeological thriller that isnt

One long chase scene. what this was. Very little archeological anything, really. If you like chase sequences, by all means, get this book.

[Diana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrible

Wtf did I just read!!? I want my money back.
This book is 99% action and one percent discovery and archeology related.
I literally skipped almost all the chapters just to get to the point.
I brought this book thinking it was gonna tell a story about an ancient artifact that would change the world. I thought it would have clues and riddles and fun codes to decode... NOPE.
All this stupid book did was car chasing, gun fighting, foot chase, more gun fighting, car chase, car chase, guns, fighting, ..etc . you get my point
This was just action people!!! Nothing interesting. Even the ending sucks because it doesn't even explain what the f*ck was so important about the tablets!!!!!
What a waste of my time and money. Don't read this piece of shit book. It's not worth it.
Go watch fast n furious or some wack action movie instead.

[Saundra Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two wonderful authors, one great series.

I loved this series from first reading the prequel The Paris Heist. Eden Black may be mysterious but she comes fully formed to the page. Great character with unlimited adventure possibilities.

Now join her on a quest to find her father's discovery from twenty years in the past. The world then was simply not ready for this ancient knowledge. But now, finding and bringing this discovery into the light has become a life or death issue for Eden!

[Alycia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was very slow to start, I almost gave up on it. But glad I didn’t. I enjoyed the female leading character, she was a little naive and lacked the pizzazz most leading characters have but she was fun. I was a little sad with Baxter’s sending, I could see a love story blooming within the thriller. But oh well.

Great storyline, very believable, especially with the number of unknown and unexplored tombs overseas.
Can’t wait to see where the next adventure takes us.

[Jace Medina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not well written. A lot of typos. Didn't like the characters. Couldn't finish the book.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd heard great things about this series: its enticing premise lured me in but, sadly, failed to deliver.
If you're expecting a tale of archaeological wonders, you will be disappointed as it's more of a formulaic bad guy chases good guy with a smattering of archaeology thrown in.
Ultimately, what irked me most about the book was its implausibility, requiring the reader to suspend any notion of time and what's physically possible.
I can, however,
see a glimmer of the seam that was initially promised and hope that properly emerges in the second book, so I'll give it a go.

[Les]

too silly

[Carmel Armes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ready to start book 2. This is a new author for me. Love the fast paced action and great characters. I enjoy a good archaeological thriller and this book did not fail to deliver. . Very easy and enjoyable read.

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

Misspellings, grammatical errors, sentences with words missing made this book difficult to read. The author needs a better editor or proofreader.

[Sofia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a high octane ride with an intriguing lead, part Indiana Jones part antisocial rebel. The story is a fun read as we follow Eden through various settings as people try to either kill her or get her to reveal a secret only she knows. Or does she?

I loved the international flair that felt genuine and the scavenger hunt type of plot. My only complaints are that some of the scenarios felt a little too unbelievable and while I appreciated the unexpected events i missed the connections between characters that would make me care. Eden is the only character that felt fleshed out but her attitude was a bit much sometimes.

A solid adventure type of story for those who want high action plots and not character driven.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in the series and it was exciting and suspenseful. A little bit Indiana Jones, Tomb Raider and Jason Bourne. I enjoyed the pacing, the story and the characters. I have a few guesses about some characters that I hope will develop in future books. I'll definitely be reading the rest of the series.

[Tina Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

the ark files

honestly couldn't stop reading this book!! i saw,felt, smelled and tasted the experiences...in fact, got up while household slept to finish reading in secret. Fantastic and thought provoking read!

[Chrys Minter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved

Very good read. This author is a great writer. I enjoyed this story. This is an author I will add to my lists.

[Jake Murdock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book initially because I wanted a book that would keep me awake and would take me on an adventure. This book did just that, but I will say I feel like there were parts that weren’t necessary. The author could have dove more into the overall backstory of the plot and I think that would have pushed this book to 5 stars for me. The end is quite the cliffhanger, but honestly could’ve been written better. I was too big a fan of how the internal narration of the story swapped perspectives at the end. Overall a good book and I want to read the next one. When it comes down to it, what more could you want from a book.

[Gilbert G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just one question for my fellow readers. “Do you like Indiana Jones”?
If so I think you will this book which is one of a series.
Picture this, a young girl (Eden) goes with her Archaeologist father to Lebanon to search for a burial site which contains tablets written by Noah’s daughter.
Then 20 years later Eden wants to follow in her Fathers footsteps in order to find relics and return them to their rightful owner.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, if you read this book you will see tons of deceit and action.
I enjoyed so much that I attend to purchase the entire series of Luke Richardson his other books.👍👍

[Scot Holmberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

I couldn’t put the book down. It was so good it carried me right through to the end.

[Tom Boyer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like it and in fact, I didn't finish reading it. I like my fiction to be somewhat reflective of real life..except for sci-fi which obviously cannot be like real life. Every paragraph in this book seemed to have had some intense action element that just made me tired of reading.

[Chase McKinney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have you ever used a treadmill and decided to try the “Rolling Hills” workout? It consists of alternating periods of flat and inclined walking or running, which can quickly become exhausting, leaving you in need of a breather and some water. This is akin to the experience of reading Luke Richardson’s The Ark Files, a book that combines elements of National Treasure and Lara Croft.

The book opens with two flashbacks (prologue and ch.1) before the main story kicks off in earnest. What follows feels as though it was lifted from a Mission Impossible script and stretched out over several chapters. The protagonist, Eden, is on a quest to uncover the mystery of her father’s death while pursuing something that could fundamentally alter humanity's history. Along the way, mustache-twirling villains appear, and trust issues arise.

As a reader, I found the structure and pacing of the book exhausting. Like the aforementioned rolling hills, there’s a lot of action (running) with only brief moments of respite (walking) before the intensity ramps up again. While The Ark Files is marketed as a thriller, it lacks the charm I expected from a crossover, as imagined in my head between Nick Cage and Lara Croft.

The resolution felt rushed and disappointing. After all the build-up, the climax fell flat, and it seemed as though the author used the final chapter and epilogue as a hasty wrap-up.

Some of my favorite parts of the book were the moments of genuine discovery, such as a key moment with Eden and her father. Additionally, Baxter, for the most part, is about as resilient as a Timex watch…he takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’.

It is worth noting that I discovered this book through Facebook and Instagram ads, and I was genuinely interested in reading it. I even enjoyed the author’s updates via his mailing list. However, after finishing the book, my enthusiasm waned. To be fair, I plan to give the sequel, The Giza Protocol, a chance, as initial entries in a series can sometimes be hit-or-miss.

Overall, if you’re looking for a fast-paced book with quick, breathless pacing and occasional dodgy developments, The Ark Files might be for you. Otherwise, I’m not sure I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

2.5/5 Stars

[rory · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am currently reading this book for a read-aloud in my class, and am actually writing this while in class with the book sitting right next to me right now, and I am not even halfway through it yet and I just want to write this review to say that I HATE THIS BOOK WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING. I have never been a fan of read-alouds because it is really hard for me to pay attention to a book when it is not in front of me, but this book just really makes me mad. Firstly, the cover of the book reminds me of L. Ron Hubbard Dianetics of mental health and if you know what that is, you know what I mean and that says a lot. Every sentence is so stupid and makes me so mad I want to scream and wow now that I really think about it I can't really come up with a lot but my point is is that this book is so dumb and extremely boring and I don't know why this has so many good reviews and if this wasn't a read-aloud and no matter how many people would recommend this book to me I don't care I would NEVER READ IT. This book is so boring and I am being so real when I say this is one of the most boring books I have ever read/had read to me in my life. If a book is just a read-aloud I already hate it. Having a book read to me through somebody else's voice already fills me with rage. But having this book, THIS BOOK, read to me through the voice of somebody else makes me violent to a point I never thought I would reach again after reading Dork Diaries from her mention of a sentence that I don't care to read again. Anyway, I partially wrote this review because I hate this book with every fiber of my being and also because I'm bored in class so don't take this personally or anything like that I am/was just bored. Thank for reading! :)

[Alan · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the interests of being forthright, maybe I'm getting grumpy, or just plan old mannish about somethings.

Do I expect a lot of running and jumping in search for the long lost object(s) movies and books? Of course I do, I understand the tropes of the genre. The grumpiness is about cliches, and their execution, and an ending which pretty much says, aha! now you have keep reading the series.

The Robert Langdon books can be accused of inventing vast conspiracies and having an out matched lead. But, from the few I've read each installment put that book's conspiracy to rest. IMO Langdon often appears to be in over his head, and its hard to believe he isn't dead yet, but he never comes off as a damsel in distress.

And, at the start of this book Eden Black comes off more as Lara Croft than Penelope Pitstop (feel like dating myself again). Black executes the artifact's recovery quite well.

But in the latter third of the book it felt to me that she was relying on the male lead, Baxter, or just plain old luck, to haul her out of trouble.

Add to that the the worldwide conspiracy group lurking in the shadows (brought forth images of Blofeld from Sean Connery Bond movies) and no resolution regrading the artifacts that Eden does recovery that lead to her father's death leaves me uninterested in picking up the next book.

For its fault I much preferred the one Rogue Angel I listened to. One, done, and a payoff for the treasure search.

[Neka · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm gonna be honest here, this is me from the past, because I haven't yet finished the book, I will by the time I post this. I'm at 91% and I know who's who and what's going to happen and I want to drop this book (I've been wanting to drop this book since page 1, next time I won't convince myself "to give the book a chance") and the only thing that's good about it is that it was free. But it's not. So let me be perfectly clear. SAVE YOURSELF FROM THIS BOOK. IT'LL TAKE TIME FROM YOUR LIFE. PRECIOUS TIME. SAVE IT. DO NOT READ IT. IT'S SO NOT WORTH IT.

Okay, finished it. Predictable, repetitive, boring, repetitive (see what I just did there? He does this over and over and over again in the book. He repeats the name of a character so many times in a single page you actually want them to die so you stop seeing their names), stupid, in a desperate need of an editor, or two, or someone to rewrite it entirely. No Archaeology. No thrill. No stars. Except Goodreads forces me to give it one. But it deserves none. Minus 100, that for sure. Time of my life I'm never getting back. Yes. It was that bad.

[Kent Archie · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is a super secret group that controls the world. Think the Illuminati but more secret. It's so secret that the members don't even know each other. But somehow, everybody knows that they must be obeyed.
It's been controlling everything for thousands of years. The only way they could be discovered is to find a collection of thousands of stone tablets that contain a diary written 5 thousand years ago.
Anyway, somebody found them and is going to reveal the TRUTH.
So the good guys are trying to outrun the bad guys to find the diary.

Pretty predicable and a little tedious. And really, if somebody cam to your door and said they secretly ran the world and they wanted you to start developing a way to increase or decrease food production, would you do it or just laugh at them.

[Shiva Shakthi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can i give a book no star?
Utter stupidity this book is. I mean my favourite like all time favourite genre has a very very disappointing book.
No archeology whatsoever.
Chase after chase what kind of action book is this?
I literally wanted this book to finish.
Such an disappointment for an archeological thriller.
Please for unwanted and unasked action scenes read this book but if you go by the archeological genere nothing is there you will be absolutely devestated.
0 stars.

[Larry B Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Adventure

This is an excellent tale of action, adventure and intrigue. The plotline is full of twist and turns which kept me glued to its pages. I found the characters well developed and easy to identify with. I really like this book and I highly recommend it.

[Sue Hayes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Predictable

Disappointed, poor narrative, sentences repeated two paragraphs later, not sure how a proof reader missed it.

A forgettable book...I won't be reading the next in the series.

[Bonnye Reed]

Complimentary electronic copy from the author, Luke Richardson. Series now on KU