Cibola

Dane Maddock #3

by David Wood

1539- In a remote Spanish outpost, one man holds the secret to the greatest treasure and deadliest secret in human history. Utah, Present Day- Cave paintings in a newly-discovered Indian site provide evidence that Christ visited the New World. Or do they? Dane Maddock returns in another unforgettable adventure! When Dane rescues beautiful archaeologist Jade Ihara , he joins her on asearch for the legendary Seven Cities of Cibola. Cibola takes the reader on a journey across the American southwest, where the ruins of the mysterious Anasazi hide deadly secrets, and foes lurk around every corner. Dane and his partner "Bones" Bonebrake must decipher clues from the fabled Copper Scroll, outwit their enemies, and be the first to unlock the secret of Cibola.

Genres: Thriller, Adventure, Fiction, Action, Suspense, Audiobook, Ebooks

266 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2009

About the author

David Wood is the USA Today bestselling author of the Dane Maddock Adventures and many other titles and series. He also writes Science Fiction under the pen name Finn Gray and fantasy as David Debord. He is also a book reviewer, podcaster, and a member of International Thriller Writers and The Horror Writers Association. David and his family live in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Visit him online at www.davidwoodweb.com.

Reviews

[Wenzel Roessler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book features non-stop action and some interesting secondary characters. The plot seemed very well-thought-out and there were a few twists, some I saw and some I didn't, made it very interesting.

[Freda Malone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Archeologists Dane Maddock, his buddy ‘Bones, and Jade Ihara collide when they discover ancient relics in the sea. Riddles that appear engraved in these artifacts create enough curiosity to ‘kill the cat’ and almost literally so when Maddock, Bones and Jade find themselves inside a desert mountain full of booby-traps and strange creatures. Greed often turns on a dime and Maddock finds out Jade is not all she says she is. Lies breed mistrust in these characters and before anyone can forgive, it takes a long dead and deadly secret to change a strong willed skeptic.

The second read of the Maddock series has given me an idea of what I can expect from the author in future reads. A big fan of James Rollins, David Wood pales in comparison. Wood seems to add a measure of enchanted and sinister magic or paranormal activity in this one. Let's also add a biblical story and exaggerate it a bit. Wood doesn’t disappoint in the area of adventure though and I enjoy the journey. The endings, so far in this series, are what seems to be an unlikely occurrence, which makes me feel a bit discouraged about reading more of Dane Maddock. I need to find me another James Rollins. Does he have a son, I wonder??

[Paula Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cibola is another wonderful adventure by David Wood. Dane and Bones are back again getting themselves entangled in another adventure involving religious treasures. This adventure seems to be in a very unlikely source - Utah.

Dane and Bones are joined in this adventure with Jade,a professor at a university in Utah and Amanda, a reporter. The enemy in Cibola is a group called the Dominion.

The group has to find certain spots bases upon clues that they have to decipher. Each clue leads the to the next and ultimately to the final treasure. It is here in Zion Park that they have the fight of their live to survive not only the Dominion but creatures that live in the depth of the caverns in Zion Park.

Dane and Bones have a wonderful banter between them which causes the reader to chuckle throughout the story. There is adventure, danger, intrigue and a little romance through in for good measure.

Highly recommend this for anyone who likes mystery and adventure.

[Elizabeth Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great Dane and Bones story. Lots of action and adventure with ancient mysteries and puzzles thrown in. Any Indiana Jones fan will love it!

[Karl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dourado made me a fan of David Wood. But it was only recently that I realized that I had always intended to read Wood, due to Primordial, and just hadn't gotten around to it. Well, I only recently found out that they take place in the same universe (according to Wood's own guide to reading the Dane Maddock universe) so I guess I now have a path to follow!

Regardless of what score I gave this book, I enjoyed it. It had the same feel as the previous book and since it followed (mostly) the same characters, I was engaged from beginning to end. The writing is still as good, minor spelling mistakes aside, and the action well described if a bit... eh, hard to follow at times. Especially during the hand to hand combat scenes. And it put enough of a spin on something from the bible to appeal to my weird side.

That said, I still only gave the book 3 out of 5 stars and why is that? Well, for one the setup was a lot more meandering. Whereas Dourado felt like it always had direction, somewhere it was going (outside a few padding scenes), Cibola really slumped in the middle. I blame this on the artifact being split up in too many pieces, resulting in them feeling very samey and... boring. If it had been like in other stories of this sort, where retrieving each part felt unique and cool and adventurous, then it would've been fine but most of them were very samey. By the third time that they went to a ruin, discovered a rock that didn't belong, I felt like just skipping these parts since they didn't add anything to the story beyond "getting another piece".
Cutting the Macguffin searching by half and making each get feel a lot more adventurous would've helped significantly.

Another thing was that the revelation just wasn't as utterly insane as in Dourado. One of the aspects that made me love Dourado was the utterly nutty reveal that just made me giddy. In my heart, I knew the next reveal just couldn't live up to it and... well, it didn't. Sort of. The reveal is also a lot more drawn out and I felt like the book was trying to make me feel the revelations were cooler than they really were. The characters sure were impressed, falling to their knees and gasping but I just felt "Come on, get to the real reveal already!"

Even so, I enjoyed the book. There were huge parts where I simply couldn't put it down and stayed up way past my bedtime to continue reading. Even when I wasn't enjoying it fully, there's still something to Wood's writing that keeps me going. I'll admit, I had to force myself through the ending a bit since it just kept going but beyond that... I'm still in love with the Dane Maddock universe.

[Julie Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It's a treasure hunting adventure in the same vein as Indiana Jones or Dirk Pitt. Where the hero gets the girl, finds the unfindable treasure and beats the bad guys but like all good action adventures it's the journey of how they got there more than the discovery in it's self. Especially as in the words of "Bones" Bonebrake there aren't going to be many wonders of the world left at the rate that they are going. You have got to love a good sidekick. Dane is a pretty great main character too. The story starts with are two hero's doing there own thing, so the story does jump around following each of them until they discovery they are coming at the same problem from different sides, then the adventure and bullets really start to fly. This is the 3rd book in the series but having jumped around in the series I feel safe in saying that they work well as standalones and it is only the girlfriends or people needing help that changes.
When Jade Ihara gets into trouble while diving Dane Maddock is there to lend a hand. In doing so he get more than he bargained for and finds himself on another treasure hunt, follow clues that have lain hidden for years. His partner and best friend Bones also finds himself in a treasure hunt and running for his life when his cousin gets attacked on a dig site and the Dominion hunting him. The pair join forces and together joined by an archaeologists and a news reporter they travel though the desert in search of seven hidden treasures, which once put together will rock the world. They are close pursued by deadly foes who will do anything to beat them to the secret and the reward.
I like the narrator. He makes the story entertaining and the adventure fly by.
I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntary left this review.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

April 11,1539. Fray Marcos de Niza finds a secret that is powerful even the pope could not be trusted with it. After sending a friend to disappear with it, Marcos leaves one clue for God to choose when it should be found again.

In Argentina, Dane Maddock rescues a marine archeologist Jade Ihara from a dangerous dive into a collapsed well. When she asks him to help her investigate further, they find a curiously marked shield left there by Fray Marcos de Niza.

Meanwhile on a small ranch in Utah, Bones is helping his cousin Isaiah Horsely at a dig. It’s very boring until Bones accidently breaks though into a small cave and uncovers an unorthodox cave painting.

The two finds eventually link up and sets our heroes on a search to decipher clues and find artifacts before the bad guys get their first.

I really liked the Justin character. He was very sweet. But how many dangerous ancient secrets can there be found that must be rehidden again? I hope the author changes up his plot after a while or its going to get boring. And how does the first finder not know that he may be the one God intended to find it?

Fave scenes: escaping the well plug, the Bones meeting Orley, the fight in the hotel parking lot and Jade’s desert intentions for Maddock.

[Melissa Hayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found I had missed a few books in this series and went back to pick them up. This is one that's early on in the Dane Maddock Adventures. Adventures I really enjoy.

I'm not usually one to listen to books out of order, and I'm fixing that now. But, for Jade Ilhara, that may be a good thing. At the beginning of this book, it feels like Jade is using Dane and his kindness. Not a good relationship cue here. But, I know she's attracted to him too... but, I'm not really a fan of hers in this book.

I enjoy listening to these books as Jeffrey Kafer is great at voicing Maddock and Bones. They have a great friendship where they can banter, pick on each other, and tell the truth and not be offended. Great ones to adventure with.

This story takes on the adventure to find Cibola. What they do find...is amazing. I love seeing how things tie together and they follow the clues. And the people they come across and make friends with.

There's danger, fighting, strange creatures, cliffs, and so much more in this story. All make for daring moments and suspense.

[Siobhan D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the narration of Jeffrey Kafer, he has a great voice, that makes you want to listen to more.

Dane, saves a divers life. Jade who is a professor at a university in Utah and Bones is joined by Amanda, a reporter. There common enemy is called the Dominion.

We have fast paced action, clues to find the final treasure. It is here in Zion Park that they have the fight for their lives to survive not only the Dominion but creatures that live in the depth of the caverns in Zion Park.

There is adventure, danger, intrigue and a little romance through in for good measure.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love David Wood's books. Once I start them I can't put them down until I've finished them. This second book in the Dane Maddock series is just like the first, full of action and mystery. I love the characters. The interaction between Bones and Dane is full of humor and I like that there's a little bit of romance in there between Jade and Dane. If you haven't read any of the series yet, I highly recommend them. They're full of fun.

[Lynn Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good adventure read

This was a fast read and kept me interested all the way through. The story was exciting and it has some humor in it. I like the imagination of the author and the characters that he casts. Keeps you guessing to the very end. Zion and Angels Landing will never be the same to me.

[Tonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really am engrossed with David Woods Dane Maddock series. Cibola gives a new twist on another biblical story and intertwines "Choo choo's", a man by the name of Fray Marcos, and another journal. David does a superb job leading Dane & Bones across continents, terrifying & adrenaline pumping escapes and finding the X that marks the spot.

[Mahesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Wood’s Cibola delivers a pulse-pounding adventure as Dane Maddock hunts for the mythical Seven Cities of Gold, weaving ancient mysteries and modern danger into a high-stakes quest. I found it “a thrilling adrenaline rush that keeps you guessing and amazed at the end”—even though the middle slowed down for a few pages, it quickly turned into a wild ride I couldn’t put down.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brain Candy

No heavy reading here. A fun, thriller that mixes history, fantasy, adventure and mystery. An easy read that you don't want to put down. Maddock and Bones are two great characters and heroes that you root for on every page.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

For what it is its average at best, adventure novel trying to be on the same level as Cussler. Descriptions of women border on sexual assault to my eyes and the flow of the story had me turning back and re reading several times.

[Trevor Denning · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dane Maddock is back at it, globetrotting with another beautiful woman in search of mystical, magical religious artifacts. This one has a few more layers to it and while the story is no great improvement over the previous installment Wood seems to be finding his voice.

[Bekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite a thrill ride with great unexpected twists!

[John McDonnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast becoming my go to adventure novel set in a modern age. Another great read.

[Amber K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun adventure with Dane Maddock & his friend Bones!
Quick read but full of action. Perfect for fans of Indiana Jones or National Treasure.
Very enjoyable audio narration!

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cibola by David Wood is the second book in the Dane Maddock Adventures and it continues in the same fast moving action we found in Dourado . A slightly new cast is brought in, new locations are explored, and a hot fire romance is in the air. Twists, turns, and everything in between are brought into this new adventure but,with Dane and Bones around, there's nothing to fear - unless you work for the Dominion.

Dane Maddock and Uriah "Bones" Bonebreak, ex-Navy SEALs turned marine archaeologists, are back and they seem to like to accidentally fall into great adventures. Maddock starts off by rescuing the beautiful Jade Ihara from an underwater dig where she has found a Spanish breastplate that's more than just a historical artifact. After close examination of the breastplate, and a little of each other, they discover that it gives clues to the legendary Seven Cities of Cibola. Bones is out in Utah, far from the ocean, helping his cousin at a dig when they suddenly make a startling discovery that Jesus may have visited the New World during His ministry. As more information is uncovered, the dig comes under attack, Bones finds a gold disc, and, with the help of reporter Amanda Shores, Bones escapes. The highlight of all this is that they learn who was attacking them, the Dominion. While this has all been going on, both Dane and Jade set off to follow the clues but the Dominion follows them at every turn. Maddock, Bones, Jade, Saul (Jade's assistant), and Amanda all get together to collaborate recent events and find that their separate digs actually work together! They also discover that someone is feeding information to the Dominion as they go and this starts to create stress throughout the group as they begin working on the last clue. It's a roller coaster ride as they fend off attacks from the Dominion, find and decipher the clues, and work together (or against each other at times) to find the Seven Cities of Cibola.

There is a lot that goes into this series and I believe that David Wood has done a fabulous job in not only telling a cool story (that could be made into movies, ahem) but also developing the characters into people you care about and want to know more about. They are rich characters and each has their own unique personalities that clash or compliment each other well. Bones gets on my nerves a bit but A) that's his personality and B) I'm more like Maddock anyways and his reactions pretty much parallel mine. I actually get the relationship they have and it's a perfect match. The love interests take us into a different area of their personalities as well and it helps to break up the testosterone levels a bit. It's a nice twist and definitely made Cibola a very enjoyable read.

[Gucifi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very awesome.

[Michael Kott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm usually of the camp that says IYCSANDSAAA, however I felt I must explain my rating. I think the author owes the reader reasonable explanations for the why of things and not just throw out things to make the story flow. The underground descriptions ignore plausibility. He describes the characters barely squeezing into the space then tries to elaborate on a treasure stored in barrels! Really? How did they get in their. The relic he describes gives off dangerous radiation yet he has creatures living their for millenniums without being affected. The ended seemed to border on being impossible. It's fiction, I know, but this falls in the realm of impossible and unexplained fiction.

[Kristjan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have always been a fan of the adventure stories told by Alister Maclean and Clive Cussler … and the Dane Maddock Adventures are definitely along the lines of Cussler’s Dirk Pit (especially toward the later part of the series when the quality dropped a little). These are all what I generally refer to as airport novels (fun entertainment to while away the time while you wait for something else) or perhaps a beach read. Cibola is the 3 book of the series (and I would recommend getting the volume 1 audible collection to get the most for your credit). It introduces Jade Ihara who eventually gets her own spin-off and a shadow organization known as the Dominion (they appear to play the part of Belloq from the Indiana Jones series). Cibola plays on the 16th century myth of the Seven Cities of Gold and centers the action in the American midwest. It is basically a race to unravel the clues and discover the treasure trope that gets a little silly toward the end bringing in Egyptian myth and a wild stretch toward a few well known biblical events. While over all, the story was interesting and fun as a diversion, in the end it tried to do too much and didn’t feel as satisfying as the other stories from Wood.

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

#Cibola #AudibookFree

[Jamey Goodyear · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cibola is the 2nd in the Dane Maddock Adventure series that is written by David Wood.

Jade Ihara has spent her life searching for Cibola, or more accurately, the legend of the seven gold cities of Cibola that Coronado tried to find. She gets a lead which sends her to Argentina and an underwater well. She meets up with Maddock when she almost drowns in the underwater caves that lead to the well. He saves her life. She then talks him into going back down with her and they find a shield with a map on it. Thus beings their race against and organization bent on world dominance.

Bones is off helping his cousin with an archaeological dig in Utah and uncovers two very curious cave paintings and a gold artifact. The finds end up tying into the search that Jade and Dane are involved in. Bones and his girlfriend join up with Dane and Jade.

David Wood weaves history and myth from various cultures and time periods into an adventure that leads to a great treasure that must never come to light. Cibola is great addition to the Dane Maddock Adventures.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second outing for underwater recovery expert Dane Maddock (following Dourado). He's like a fish out of water in this novel. Most of the action takes place in the desert.
Dane teams up with Jade Ihara, a young archaeologist who has devoted her career to the study of Cibola, the Seven Cities of Gold in old Spanish legends.
What starts out as strictly a run for treasure turns into a profound religious experience for all of the treasure hunters.
Their main adversary is the Dominion, paramilitary proponents for founding Deseret, a state comprising the former Mexican colonies in the US. Interesting religious background there, too, - Mormons. (First time I've seen any of them as the bad guys.)
This was much a much better story and better written than the first novel.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cibola, the Seven Cities of Gold, El Dorado... names that conjure up images of gold, Spaniards, and the beautiful American Southwest. What David Wood does with these elements is to weave a story that will fascinate the historical buff. It will make you go..."Now how in the hell did he make that leap?" And then when you understand it, you might find yourself saying, "Now that might be plausible..." I'm truly enjoying this series.

Wood's style is a little rough and the characters seem to get out of trouble a little too easily. However, these character have GREAT potential. Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt series was very rough at first, but he eventually found his stride. I have no doubt that one day these early Dane Maddock books will be well sought after treasures.

[Jenny Clifford · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book Maddock and Bones are searching the American midwest for Cibola, the legendary seven cities of gold. It is a little bit weird that I like these books as much as I do, but I think they are a kind of guilty pleasure. Also, they are potato chips books, as in you always want one more. The characters of Maddock and Bones are very, very stereotypical ex navy seals, and somewhat one dimensional. Each book is based on a historical myth, and they are sometimes a little bit repetitive. But the action and adventure is great and very fast paced, and the books are enjoyable.

[Chris Bauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

More excellence from David Wood. This is the second book in the Dane Maddock series and picks up where the first left off.

Great pace, incredible action and suspense with interesting characters (both the protags and minor characters) in fascinating places.

The thing I'm beginning to get really impressed by is the author's method of avoiding the well trodden paths set before in thrillers and forging unique MacGuffins I've never heard of and creating a very real sense of dread and tension throughout.

And yet the climax of his book ties all the components together nicely and moves a major sub-plot element further along.

Very enjoyable reading.

[Alex Van De Wiele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid Dane Maddock adventure. This time Dane accompanies Jade Ihara, an archaeologist professor, on a trip across the american southwest looking for clues left by the spaniards for the lost cities of Cibola.

Bones and Dane get 2 seperate plotlines for the first chunk of the book, which was neat. Hit all the usual pseudo biblical plot points, and introduced the over-arching bad guys in the dominion.

They ultimately find themselves in a massive crypt of treasure left by the church; the staff of moses and the ark of the covenant make an appearance, as does the chupacabra. Dane and Bones use the staff to escape as the city of gold crumbles behind them.

[Julie Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know that I am late to the party in discovering this series, but now that I have, I can't get enough. This story takes Dane and Bones across the American southwest, visiting landmarks such as the ruins of the Anasazi. Of course they have two beautiful women working with them, one of them being Jade Ihara.
I listened to the audiobook version of this story and I have to admit that there were some laugh out loud moments for me with the comments made by Bones. Jeffrey Kafer did a wonderful job with the narration, and I am heading to Audible to see which story I want to listen to next.