James Douglas (10)

This was a more plausable than Da Vinci Code book from the same trope farm. A trope farm I enjoy visiting, this is one of the better products of this mix of thriller with hints of supernatural and that the Nazis were investing things beyond their ilk and beyond their capacity and that there are some remnants that want to revive their experiments.

Jamie Saintclair thought he knew his Anglican Clergyman grandfather but after that man's sudden death he finds a diary and this lands him into a search for hidden treasures. His father served in the Special Air Service during the Second World War and his last mission was to accompany some Nazi's to freedom as part of something similar to Operation Paperclip.

It's a romp of a story with a lot of complicated derring-do and multiple double-crosses and villains. I did like the end.

It pulled me along and kept me reading, even though it stretched my plausability quota a bit occasionally. The relationship needed work but I suspect things may not be too good there anyway.… (más)

Yet again Jamie Saintclair is in pursuit of a desirable artefact, though whether you or I would wish to own a shrunken head is very much a question of taste! On this occasion the love of his life is used as a bargaining tool by a greedy Australian mining magnate. His journey takes him to Germany, reconnecting him with previous adventures, Japan and finally the island of Bougainville, rich in minerals that a number of parties would like to get their hands on.
Again James Douglas carries us along at quite a pace, with Jamie's usual slices of luck playing quite a part, to say nothing of another glamorous lady, Dr Magda Ross, that he acquires along the way. The tortuous trek through the jungle is particularly well described, although I was amused by the fact that having reached his destination, the natives there were able to summon up a medevac helicopter within an hour!
This is the last in the series at the moment, though I hold out hope for more, especially considering the interesting ending to the novel. I have discovered, however, that James Douglas is a pseudonym for Douglas Jackson, quite well known for his novels about Ancient Rome, but he has just brought out what is at present a standalone called "War Games" - a mystery thriller which has had some very good reviews - might be worth considering as a future group read?… (más)