As is typical with Berry, it takes a while to set up the characters and situations. He starts with a bang, and then follows with(usually) three sets of characters and situations. We follow them contemporaneously, switching from situation to situation. Usually the early parts of the book are historically based, full of geographic and historical detail, and fascinating if you have any interest at all in history or far-off lands. At some point, the action heats up, and people start dying more often than in the earlier parts. The various lines begin to approach each other, initially overlapping and then coming together completely. From there on out, the pace is fast and furious. Somewhere in the narrative there will be a radical departure from history, but it generally is very plausible - a "Gee, what if ..." moment. "The Alexandria Link" deals with the lost library at Alexandria, Egypt, and poses interesting and somewhat plausible alternatives to what we know of history. There's a huge leap in the book about where the land is that God pledged to Abraham in Genesis, but if we allow him his license (and that's not hard to do in context), the result is challenging mentally, and full of possibilities. It's a good yarn, skillfully told, smoothly written, and for me, about the right length (~400 pages). This is not a religious book, though it deals with all three of the major religions in the Middle East. Plenty of death & destruction, virtually no sex (but you don't miss it, and there are hints), and fast action. The protagonist (Cotton Malone) is believable in many ways. Once the action heated up, I found it difficult to stop reading.
Captain Kirk
The Alexandria Link: A Novel
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Steve Berry writes thrillers for thinkers. My kind of books.I’ve been a Berry fan for years and have read most of the more recent Cotton Malone tales. To see where it all began, I decided to go back to the former agent's roots. A few months ago I read The Templar Legacy, first in the series, and wanted to see how the author would follow it up. The Alexandria Link was next in line.What a pleasure. This one had it all. High stakes, controversy, multiple villains, larger than life characters, family kidnapping, conflict with the ex-wife, fantastical premise, tight pacing, surprising twists, and even a moral to the story. A multi-faceted gem of a tale.The non-stop action begins when the ex shows up to tell Malone their son has been kidnapped. Before he can strap on a gun, the bitter divorced couple is attacked, his book shop blown up, and Malone is pulled out of retirement again. The story kicks in from there, eventually finding three threads. First, there’s Malone’s high-wire quest to find the lost Library of Alexandria. Second, his old manager at the Magellan Billet, Stephanie Nelle, nearly dies several times navigating the dangerous political halls of Washington DC. The last thread follows Malone’s pal, Henrik Thorvaldsen, a wealthy Dane who confronts the plot’s mastermind in a picturesque Austrian mansion.The heartbeat of the story is the first thread, which involves the cat and mouse between Malone and the ruthless mercenary who tricks him into pursuing clues that may lead to the ancient library, and its explosive revelations. Those disclosures would undermine Israel's claim to biblical legitimacy, and turn the world’s three major religions upside down. Worldwide violence would surely ensue. As Malone travels from Copenhagen, to England, Portugal, and into the depths of the Sinai desert, the stakes have never been higher.As a writer myself, I understand how difficult it is to weave multiple facets of a story together. And I’ve noticed how some authors are strong in one aspect of storytelling, but struggle in other areas. For instance, many thriller writers excel at heart-pounding action, but the characters are cardboard cutouts, which makes it hard for me to get emotionally invested. Or the prose is descriptive and interesting, but the story falls flat because it doesn’t build to a logical conclusion. If you’re a discerning bookworm, you’re nodding your head in agreement. You know how hard it is to find an exciting story, with 3D characters, and a thought-provoking premise.Look no further, gentle reader. If you’re tired of finding only plain pebbles at the bookstore, check out Steve Berry. He’s a word jeweler, precisely turning words into fine diamonds. His multi-faceted stories catch the light and shine with a brilliance unmatched in the genre.
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CaroleQ
... experience with the writings of Steve Berry was a happy accident. I downloaded ‘The Templar Legacy’ by accident ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 29, 2017wotcha
Repition, repition......
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 2, 2017J.MUIRHEAD
The Alexandria Link
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 12, 2013Amazon Customer
boring. That is the last Steve Berry i will ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 11, 2016
