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kelseyb86's review against another edition
4.0
Overall a good book. Not my favorite by Berry, but that might be because I don't know a lot about Chinese history. He did a good job explaining important things though. The book was hard to put down, just like all of his novels. Looking forward to the Jefferson Key.
p010ne's review against another edition
3.0
As a child I did not play with toy soldiers so that may be why I had no interest in seeing the "The Terracotta Army" excavation Southwest of Beijing although we had visited such as "The Great Wall" and "Forbidden City"! The author goes to great lengths to describe the terracotta tourist attraction and imagines other archaeological treasures in that area.
My father was a laborer at Coffeyville, Kansas and Whiting/East Chicago, Indiana for Sinclair Refining Company that was headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. In the mid to late 20th Century they prominently featured a dinosaur in their advertising and intimidated that petroleum was of ancient fossil origin but I always wondered how that could be the case when so much of the commodity is found at great depths and inconvenient locations throughout the globe? This novel supposes that contemporary consumers are being brainwashed and subjected to propaganda that petroleum is a nonrenewable biotic commodity whereas in reality it is an abiotic/abiogenic renewable product within our Earth!
My father was a laborer at Coffeyville, Kansas and Whiting/East Chicago, Indiana for Sinclair Refining Company that was headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. In the mid to late 20th Century they prominently featured a dinosaur in their advertising and intimidated that petroleum was of ancient fossil origin but I always wondered how that could be the case when so much of the commodity is found at great depths and inconvenient locations throughout the globe? This novel supposes that contemporary consumers are being brainwashed and subjected to propaganda that petroleum is a nonrenewable biotic commodity whereas in reality it is an abiotic/abiogenic renewable product within our Earth!
minniscool's review against another edition
2.0
Had potential but ended up being boring and pedantic.
tirio's review against another edition
3.0
Loved all the historical information about China's first emperor, the political system there, Mao, & such. The story was good too, but I feel it suffered a bit from a little too much educational material.
jenniip's review against another edition
3.0
Not one of my fav Steve Berrys. Not as easy a read as some of his others, either - lots of details about Chinese history. Interesting POVs about Tian'anmen Square though.
kimlynne's review against another edition
3.0
He comments in his afterward about the challenge of writing a book a year. Maybe he should rethink that contract because the challenge is showing up as a reduction in quality of story.
lisaloo27's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed the fast pace of this book and the characters that were conniving their way throughout.
mdpistilli's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
beckmank's review against another edition
4.0
Another great Cotton Malone mystery by Steve Berry. As this series goes on, the puzzles become smaller (to pretty much non-existent in this one), but I think the character arcs really drive the series. This story focuses on Cotton and Cassiopia Vitt. She has gotten herself into some trouble with the Chinese. There are so many double crosses going on, it's hard to keep the stories straight. It was a fun adventure, and a great read.