I am a history nerd. An unashamed, unabashed history nerd. And so ever since I read Dan Brown's "The DaVinci Code," I've been searching for a book to live up to that thrill. For years now, I have been unsuccessful; but this week I finally found a book that hit my expectations dead on the mark. Will Adams' "The Exodus Quest." Read it. You won't be disappointed.
The second book in Adams' Daniel Knox mysteries, "The Exodus Quest" takes readers on a thrilling adventure through Ancient Egypt. Gunfights, ancient puzzles, a charming hero, and some very bad men. This book had it all and then some.
The Specifics:
"The Exodus Quest" by Will Adams
April 2010
326 Pages
My Review: Buy it. Read it. Don't put it down. Definitely worth the money.
Who'd Love It: History Nerds/Action Junkies (Spoiler Alert: This is not a romance novel.)
What's It About: Ancient Egyptian History and a Badass Archaeologist
When's It Set: Modern Alexandria
What I Thought:
Full disclosure: I did not know that this book was number two in the series when I first picked it up. Normally, you'd think this would be a problem: Like only watching season two of True Blood and wondering why I was confused. Clearly, there was some history between Adams' characters that I'd missed by skipping to book two. Will Adams, however, is an excellent writer. And while I wouldn't recommend skipping the first book intentionally, book one wasn't necessary to fall in love with "The Exodus Quest." Dan Brown step aside, I've found a new series.
That last sentence is written mostly in jest. (Mostly. Interjected cough. "The Lost Symbol" was disappointing). Yes, "The Exodus Quest" was every bit as good as "Angels and Demons," but Will Adams is not Dan Brown, and nor should he be. So if you're looking for a carbon copy of a Robert Langdon mystery, "The Exodus Quest" is not the book for you.
Spoiler Alert! Daniel Knox is sexier than an old Harvard professor.
Superficiality aside, unlike Dan Brown, Adams does not spend as much time on the puzzles used in "The Exodus Quest." And while, yes, this does mean that the reader doesn't get that puffed up ego boost for figuring out the answer, Adams more than makes up for it with historical context. Facts in "The Exodus Quest" are presented as if they are the most natural things in the world. By the end of the book, I was feeling like an Egyptologist.
My only critique is that Adams might have tried to fit too much story into this novel. While on the hunt to rescue Gaile, Knox discovers a mural that has explosive implications for Christianity. For a history nerd, plot lines like this are pretty close to crack. This story element is, however, dropped, leaving me to wonder at what the hell happened. With a suggestion this scandalous, you can't just leave me hanging.
But Adams' characters and his original plot line were strong enough to carry me to the very last word (perhaps even strong enough to do without the extra information). In the end, I still fell in love with the book. I give it five stars, two thumbs up, a blue ribbon, and a gold trophy. I will definitely be reading the whole series -- including book one.
"The Exodus Quest" by Will Adams. Read it.
For a summary of the exodus quest (plus a little gossip about the author) read my Up Next post: "Up Next: The Exodus Quest."
