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Rossler Foundation #4

The Sword of Cyrus: A Thriller

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That oath “May Allah let me die a death a thousand times worse than this if I do not avenge the deaths of my loved ones on the evil one who did this” has become a refrain in the head of Dalir ( “the brave” ) Jahandar. The great king’s blood ran in his veins. He would restore the ancient kingdom in all its glory, so that they might once more wield the Sword of Cyrus and conquer …In a secret laboratory in the Zagros Mountains of Iran, scientists, under the auspices of the group who calls themselves The Sword of Cyrus, have just developed a nanotech nuclear weapon so small it could fit into a mobile phone, yet it has the destructive power of 7 Hiroshima bombs. This is the world’s most powerful and technologically advanced weapon, developed with the explicit goal to wipe out Western civilization. In the same way that the Great King Cyrus conquered Babylon, while their enemy are reveling in their sin, drinking and whoring its way to perdition, they would infiltrate the stronghold by stealth and conquer them from within. “Allah, I beseech you, please grant me my wish. Allah, keep me alive to be the Sword of Cyrus. If you grant my wish, I will kill millions of infidels for you. Allah, bless me in my undertaking, that the infidels may be wiped from the face of the earth and no longer offend you.” For the second time in less than two years the world is brought to the brink of total annihilation. No one saw this coming, no one expected this, and everyone believed that peace has broken out after halting the catastrophe of the Ninth Cycle Virus. The world’s intelligence agencies were fast asleep. By the time they discover the threat, it is too late. It seems as if there is nothing that can be done to stop another large scale destructive event. This time it would destroy Western Civilization.
The Sword Of Cyrus is a full-length novel, a stimulating techno thriller about the danger of nanotechnology to human existence. This book is a follow up of Genetic Bullets and takes readers back into the Mysteries of the Rossler Foundation which began with JC Ryan’s The Tenth Cycle followed by Ninth Cycle Antarctica.

493 pages, Paperback

First published October 26, 2014

152 people are currently reading
104 people want to read

About the author

J.C. Ryan

47 books149 followers
J C Ryan writes spellbinding mystery suspense thrillers with an archaeological backdrop.

He has been a combat and intelligence officer in the military, practicing lawyer and information technology project manager.

He holds a military as well as a law degree and is married with two daughters and two dogs.

JC currently makes his home on the Gold Coast of Australia.

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5 stars
255 (59%)
4 stars
124 (28%)
3 stars
42 (9%)
2 stars
5 (1%)
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6 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
Profile Image for Satrajit Sanyal.
572 reviews3 followers
May 1, 2018
What a stunning addition to the Rossler Foundation books! I did not think I could possibly be more riveted and engrossed than I was while reading the previous books, but The Sword of Cyrus has impressed me once again. This book was so well-written and perfectly executed that it’s difficult to capture everything I feel in one measly little review. From cover to cover I was unable to put the book down; I was locked for hours within the intriguing pages of this action-packed and suspenseful technothriller.

JC Ryan has a real talent for capturing the reality of the horror and the tension of every plot twist, making you feel like you’re right there with the characters; their struggles are your struggles. I feel like it must have taken a TON of research and hard work to develop this book as expertly as the author has done. The exploration of political conflict and religion fanaticism are masterfully written. What really hooked me were the characters. Every one of them was so real to me, and I was deeply invested in the conflict.

Overall, this was a fantastic reading experience, and I would love to see these stories on the big screen someday. I did like the chapter titles in the previous book a bit more, because I felt they were more lighthearted and humorous, but these ones were more serious. I felt like this book had a much darker vibe, which was part of what made it so captivating. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys any sort of truly intense mystery, thriller, or suspense.
500 reviews8 followers
October 29, 2017
Very Good Adventure/Science/Hidden Heritage/Thriller

Hard hitting, this novel's action starts early and continues until the final pages. Although I have given each novel 5 stars to this point, I can only give this one 4 stars because of the geopolitical omissions and inaccuracies within the text. However, the tension of the protagonists struggling to find answers to unmitigated evil was palpable throughout this entire volume.
Ryan does a fantastic job of weaving dozens of plot lines: like the Norn, each line gets tied off appropriately.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED AS BOTH AN INDIVIDUAL BOOK AND AS A SERIES
Profile Image for Anne.
Author 1 book8 followers
September 22, 2018
Oh, and I thought book 3 was an edge of the seat read... after this one I have no fingers nails left to chew on! The world as we know it is under threat of annihilation and the Rossler Foundation team have to try and prevent it happening. Plunging into the 10th Cycle library once more for help, using the information of advanced technologies to help prevent the catastrophe they are facing after info is stolen and leaked to the bad guys. The countdown takes the reader to the very brink of disaster, will they manage to stop it happening? I had to keep reminding myself to breathe whilst reading this book, JC Ryan does it again! A cracking tale.
506 reviews3 followers
February 1, 2020
AN ABSOLUTELY AMAZING READ!!

YEPPER!! AGAIN, I'D GIVE THIS BOOK 10
🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩 STARS, IF I COULD!! What an ABSOLUTEY, AMAZING READ!!
A total mad man has decided, he will rule over all the countries in world!
He's crazy enough, to think he can. Daniel and the Rossler Foundation are partially caught unaware, of the dealings going on. Working night and day, they figure out, when it's all supposed to happen. The countdown begins, to stop this mad man, bent on world wide dominance.
644 reviews
March 24, 2018
INCREDIBLE!

I am getting hard pressed for exclamations of enjoyment of this series and appreciations to JC RYAN. He writes a great story, that allows me to sit on the couch as I read it but to push myself to exhaustion to reach the finish, which then wish l’d not been in such a hurry. Well, the only solution is to proceed to Book 5 .. see ya later
Profile Image for Anne Wingate.
504 reviews16 followers
July 29, 2018
Breath-Taking Fiction at its Finest!

This entire series should be on every bestseller list in the free world. Plot, characters, and use of locations as if they too were characters combine for an unbeatable and unputdownable reading experience. I do not know how many times I've have already read these books. But I do know that I will surely read them that many more times.
591 reviews6 followers
October 22, 2019
Amazing

What an amazing series! I find myself telling others about this crazy but somewhat believable sci-tec thriller. Ryan takes the reader up and down on a rollercoaster ride from hell. You never know which way you will be headed next, and sometimes you may not be sure if you are even right side up. Great cast of characters with great strength of conviction. Wonderful series!
651 reviews1 follower
February 24, 2021
The science is wonderful, the political plotting realistic. The Sword of Cyrus has a Persian wanting to conquer the world like his ancestor almost did, using technology revealed in the Great Pyramid of Giza to do it. Other technology warns this cycle of the destruction.
Furious pace, awesome technology, not the best writing.
358 reviews2 followers
October 21, 2017
Silly, superficial

Total crap. Really poorly written and based on an idiotic premise.
The entire series is a "one-trick pony" with more and more poorly written, superficial nonsense heaped on the previous pile of garbage.
404 reviews2 followers
August 2, 2020
Sword of Cyrus

A fabulous, exciting read! I finished the book in two days.I had to charge my Kindle twice. This was by far the most suspenseful book of the series. Keep up the fabulous work! I look forward to reading and all of J. C. Ryan's books. Keep up the good work.
74 reviews1 follower
August 16, 2018
The Sword of Cyrus

If you are looking for a sci-fi thriller then you will not be disappointed by reading this book! Keeps you on the edge of your seat!
67 reviews
February 2, 2020
Seems like the author was in a rush to finish this series. This book was not as good as the rest of the books.
Profile Image for Stephen Cruickshank.
35 reviews2 followers
December 2, 2020
The Sword of Cyrus

Another fantastic book from JC Ryan it keeps you totally engrossed all the way through you will want to read it again and again
Profile Image for Jean.
404 reviews
May 4, 2021
Good series. Lots of twists and turns. Cheering for the good guys,booing at the bad guys. Yea for the USA
48 reviews1 follower
December 23, 2022
Sword of CyruS

Fast paced, intrigue. Well told and heart pounding. Loved the characters and villans. Great series looking forward to the next
358 reviews1 follower
February 18, 2023
Great Read

Great read as usual from this author in this series. Ryan's imagination and research into the science in his stories are phenomenal!
Profile Image for Claudette Richardsons.
24 reviews
April 16, 2023
Amazing!!

This book kind of started out slow but it picked up and was so great. I look forward to reading the next one.
6 reviews
July 7, 2024
I am on my second reading series even better second time around
336 reviews13 followers
February 17, 2016
Okay, here we are at the fourth installment of "The Rossler Foundation" series. The plot involves how the Rosslerites handle having unleashed an ancient virus that, because of genetics, only kills most people of Semitic ancestry. It is due to an old bit of "junk" DNA. Even though they created the vaccination and cure, certain Muslim Jihadists decide that the time has come for them to take over the world. One cleric, well, actually two, declares himself the prophesied "Twelve Imam." One of them dies from the virus so we are left with the worst of them. While I found myself intrigued and enjoying the way the story unfolded and the way certain characters developed, I found this to be a bit of a predictable story. If you have read the previous three books in the series, you are likely to enjoy this one. One aspect of the story is after the Rosslerites realize what a threat the ancient order of behind the scenes manipulators, the Orion Society, is, they dispatch all of its members in a rather quick and somewhat hard to believe manner. After all, they have been manipulating world events from behind the scenes, anonymously, for a very long time. Yet the Rosslerites, with the help of law enforcement around the world, eliminate them. Odd.
Anyhow, this is a decent read and if you are caught up in the series, this will come as a nice continuance of the story arc.
Profile Image for Jeff Parker.
104 reviews
March 30, 2015
The third entry builds on the third book. New characters are introduced and follow a very similar pattern as the previous works, I.e. new guy and a love interest that becomes his muse. For me Mr. Ryan's romances fall just shy of the mark. Since I don't pickup a thriller for the romance that's not a major concern for me.
I like the twist on the antagonist. Rather than using the current religious unrest Mr Ryan takes a very old world turn and brings back Persia.
As with the other novels in this series, and to be fair almost all thrillers there are plenty of last minute saves and improbable events. But that is the allure of a good thriller. The hardest element for me is the ease of which the heroes get all of the various governments to cooperate. Maybe I am just too cynical to accept that even in the face of extinction our world's leaders would pull together like they do in Mr. Ryan's works.
Profile Image for Deb.
179 reviews
October 23, 2014
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the fourth and I believe the best book of the series. The previous books were a bit slow to take off, spending a lot of time either reminding the reader what had happened before, or filling in the background for someone reading the books out of sequence or as stand alone books (speaking from experience, I highly recommend reading this series in order and not as stand alone books.) There was a bit of over-explaining the past stories in this book as well, but the author pretty quickly brings the new story line front and center. Once the conspiracy is discovered then this book takes off, and it becomes next to impossible to put down.
11 reviews1 follower
December 19, 2014
Great series

The series is on sale for a short time, do yourself a favor and get all 4 books! They are all a great read, fast moving, and keeps you reading to find out what happens next. Get the series for those cold winter nights with a hot beverage and prepare to be entertained! The sword of Cyrus is a great ending to the characters individual stories beginning with the first book. Enjoy!
133 reviews
November 7, 2015
Ripped From Today's Headlines

This book will grab you on page one & hold you to the end. The premise is frighteningly believable. This series should be read in order to get all the details & innuendos. These books are meticulously researched, tightly plotted, well written & thoroughly enjoyable.
39 reviews
January 9, 2016
Exciting

The Sword of Cyrus was as exciting as the first three books in this series. I have already downloaded books five and six and am looking forward to the Rossler's next adventure.
Profile Image for Maggie Deaton.
748 reviews4 followers
May 10, 2024
Another heart stopping barn burner! From certain destruction to a fizzled denouement, once again the knowledge gleaned from the library of the Tenth Cycle saves the day... and the world inches forward one more baby step to peace.
10 reviews1 follower
October 21, 2014
Another good book

I'm hooked on this series of books. Good characters, good plot and a fast pace. I would recommend them to my friends.
Profile Image for Laura.
47 reviews1 follower
January 17, 2015
Wow, what a ride! The series got better with each book, and ends on a great note. Thank you!!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews

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