02 March, 2017

REVIEW: ALEXANDRIA RISING by Mark Wallace Maquire


Title: Alexandria Rising
Author: Mark Wallace Maquire
Series: Alexandria Rising Chronicles #1
Genres: Thriller, Mystery
Publisher: Speckled Leaf Press
Release: October 15th, 2016
Source: Paperback
Pages: 376

// Goodreads /Amazon //

BLURB:
For fans of The Bourne Identity and The Da Vinci Code, comes a new edge of your seat adventure. Rand O'Neal, an ambition-less newspaper reporter, is given a single task upon the death of his grandfather: Destroy a mysterious map. What should be a simple errand thrusts Rand into a journey across three countries chased by unknown pursuers and leads him into a world he never could have imagined existed. This book is labelled an action adventure, but contains elements of science fiction, suspense and mystery. It is also the first in a trilogy and a series of prequels. It is also linked to a multi-media website which allows readers to engage with the experience in video, images and interactive appendices



I received this book for an honest review from the publishers!

EXPECTATIONS:  I have to admit, going into this book, I didn't know much about just that it probably will have something to do with journey and war probably. I read the blurb but for some reason do you know how you think one thing and then you are absolutely sure it's the truth? So I thought this book was about the medieval times :D Like Alexander or whatever would be avenging his grandfather or something like that. Boy was I wrong! I have to just say, Mr. Mark, I cannot thank you enough for giving me an opportunity to read your creation and becoming a part of this world!

THE WORLD: The world in this book is actually pretty much our normal world with normal things happening. The majority of plot takes place in Unites States, but our main character also travels to countries like Ireland and so on to get the clues and solve the mystery, so I wouldn't say you are stuck in one place! Now what I enjoyed and liked immensely about the book was the description of things. It was light, easy to read not too short or too long.

CHARACTERS: Our main character is Rand O'Neal. He is a journalist and when we meet him he is attending his grandfathers funeral. Guys I am telling you Rand is the young sexy version of Professor Langdon, now I'm not saying they are identical but the two characters do share similarities. So Rand is smart, he knows many stories about the world, which his grandfather told him and most importantly he is quick! He was so snarky and sarcastic, I loved it!


To be honest, since this is an adventure book, with a moving scenery change, a lot of characters appear and dispensary but just few that take a more important role is Kent Saint James, a friend of Rand's grandfather, who basically explains what is happening. Then we also have Dr. Hope Lightfoot, who is just a badass! She was so funny and just a strong female character! 
  
And I also have to admit that the grandfather, Henry, played a big role in this book for me. He was constantly mentioned, Rand thought about him majority of the time, and I enjoyed the letter he wrote to Rand and the connection these two shared.

ROMANCE: We have romance between Rand and Hope, but trust me it does not overshadow the story. We have cute flirtation, some kissing, a little something more, but what I enjoyed was that Rand and Hope seemed genuinely interested of each other and they seemed to care for one another.

GOOD: I liked the plot, the twists, the little secrets coming out! I did enjoy the aspect of secret societies protecting the old, so it could help the new. I do believe that the world is falling apart and modern societies should learn from our ancestors and this book, I felt, shared my opinions as well! 

Also when I mentioned that this book reminded me of Angels & Demons, I didn't mean it in a bad way. So what that the books are similar or Rand and Robert are alike. This book has its own thing going and it was interesting, intriguing and I am so happy I read it!

BAD: Nothing comes to mind

OVERALL: I would highly recommend this book for anyone who likes adventure and mystery books! Will definitely check out the sequel (cough, cough)!

What do you think about ALEXANDRIA RISING?