EURO CRIME

Home

Site Progress

Blog

Reviews

Bibliographies

New Releases

Author Websites

Competition

News

Awards

Events

Links

Shops

Email

Reviews


Cole, Emerson - 'GodSword'
Paperback: 395 pages (July 2007) Publisher: Severn House Paperbacks Ltd ISBN: 1847510140

GODSWORD is a clever mix of factual ancient history and fictional current-day economic terrorism. Indeed, its dealings with blackmail, corruption and plans to overthrow 'the West' might not be so far off the truth of today's climate. It follows one man, Temujin Subedei, who claims ancestry to Ghengis Khan and has a life-long obsession with Alexander the Great. His all-consuming desire is to conquer the business world, in a similar manner to the way in which his idol once ruled civilization, and gain complete control over Europe and The USA with his oil cartel. He is also determined to acquire Alexander's mythical sword and the stone set within it, that are believed to give the owner unimaginable power. A murky trail of lies, murder and betrayal follow Subedei and his obsession. He will stop at nothing, whatever the cost.

Following hard on the well-shod heels of Subedei is one Connor Brock: a mysterious, Bond-like character whose job it is, along with his employer, ICE, to get to the bottom of the shady dealings of Subedei Industries and put a stop to them. He is aided by a number of different people along the way, including an attractive, Bond-style beauty with rather powerful family connections and a humorous, Irish sidekick whose inane banter lightens up the worst of the dark situations that they find themselves in.

GODSWORD has just the right balance of humour and tension. In addition to the menace of the very topical economic terrorism, not everyone in the story is as they appear. This only adds to the reader's enjoyment, as the interesting twists and turns of the plot keep your attention fixed.

Its one, albeit minor, downfall is that several of the characters are introduced well but left suddenly hanging after an only too brief part in the plot. Maria, for example, is Brock's good friend and contact in the Vatican. She helps him with some vital evidence, then her flat is ransacked and her life is in danger. Somewhat surprisingly, after Brock visits her to take the documents she has risked her life for, we hear nothing more about her. A little something would have been nice - the same with the rather out-of-place section about the guard that is attacked by the terrorists. We don't know if he survives, and it isn't at all important to the plot, but for a few pages we are looking at the action through his eyes, then nothing. That aside, the book is a pretty excellent, well-researched piece of work. I highly recommend that you read it.

Amanda Gillies, Scotland
October 2009

More European crime fiction reviews can be found on the Reviews page.




last updated 25/10/2009 13:43