A review of the book "The Emperor's Tomb"

Once again Steve Berry provides his readers with a sweeping look at history and geography while building a plot full of twists and turns.  Followers of Mr. Berry will recognize many of his protagonists from his previous books but such foreknowledge is not necessary to enjoy this one.

China is the centerpiece of the book and the title is derived from the fact that much activity is in, around and about the magnificent tomb of China’s first Emperor, Qin Shi.  Along the way we find that many of the inventions we ascribe to the modern world had been discovered and utilized by the ancient Chinese who, unfortunately, forgot them with the passing of the centuries.

We must not forget the characters filling the story: Cotton Malone, an inoffensive bookseller in Copenhagen, called upon once again to solve a mystery; Cassiopeia Vitt, frequent savior of Malone and, of course, their common enemy, or perhaps not enemy as the plot twists and turns, Viktor Tomas.

If you like lots of false leads, blind alleys and complex plot lines, Steve Barry is your author.  I enjoy his books for the excellent research and the well told tale but I do find it difficult to keep up with him at times.  But The Emperor’s Tomb is a rousing tale and one any adventurer will enjoy.

Tales of the Seven Seas

For those that read and enjoy sailing adventure novels such as C. S. Forester’s Horatio  Hornblower series or Patrick O’Brian’s Jack Aubrey series, TALES OF THE SEVEN SEAS will add a great deal of real life detail that such adventures necessarily omit.  Rough men, working under almost impossible conditions accomplishing amazing goals all driven by the personality and skill of the real life Captain, Dynamite Johnny O’Brien.  And the reader is there with them, feeling and seeing what conditions were like in the old sailing ship days as ocean commerce transitioned into steam.

Very good detail on what life was like in that era not only aboard ship but also a look at conditions faced by the men taking part in the gold rush to Alaska.  Captain Dynamite Johnny came into close contact with a number of well known names of the time and apparently influenced them in powerful ways.  His acquaintance with Jack London, for example, with his tales of his First Mate Wolf O’Malley were apparently used later by London in his story Wolf of the Sea.

I came across several technical errors concerning the handling of the sails but they are of minor import.  However I cannot gloss over the statement that a chronograph was “an accurate clock used to determine direction.”  A chronograph is indeed an accurate clock but its use is far more important; it is used to determine Longitude.

TALES OF THE SEVEN SEAS belongs in the permanent library of anyone interested in the old sailing ships and the men who sailed them.  It ranks along with Last of the Cape Horners, First hand accounts of commercial tall ships, edited by Spenser Apollonio; The Bounty; true story of Mutiny on the Bounty by Caroline Alexander and In the Heart of the Sea Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick.  I know I will enjoy frequently dipping into Dennis Powers’ delightful book.