The Exodus Quest

February 1, 2010
At the start of Davis's fast-paced if exhausting second antiquities thriller to feature archeologist Daniel Knox (after The Alexander Cipher
), Knox is strolling through a market in Alexandria, Egypt, when he spies what appears to be a valuable artifact, an earthenware bowl, which the young hawker claims is the “fruit bowl of Alexander the Great.” The bowl, which turns out to be connected to the Dead Sea Scrolls, leads Knox to a dig being conducted by the Rev. Ernest Peterson and his team of earnest young theology students. Peterson, a raging religious maniac, is on the trail of a portrait of Christ and will stop at nothing to possess it. Several corrupt Egyptian policemen, each with his own agenda, create too many subplots to keep track of or care about. Egyptian antiquities aficionados will be happy with the historical material, but those with less specific interests will find the frenzied chase confusing, tiring, and something of a letdown.

March 15, 2010
American archaeologist Daniel Knox, introduced in The Alexander Cipher (2009), is closing in on a magnificent find, a previously unknown Dead Sea Scroll. Instead, he stumbles on something even more startling: an ancient temple near Alexandria. Soon Daniel finds himself on the hook for a murder he didnt commit; meanwhile, his partner is being held captive hundreds of miles away, and Daniel is her only hope of rescue. This is the kind of thing that Matthew Reilly and James Rollins do really well: mixing entertaining characters, action, and ancient mysteries. Adams clearly demonstrates the imagination and the storytelling prowess necessary to compete with the established veterans. Fans of thrillers that take readers deep into the past should be enthusiastically urged to read this novel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)