Seven Ancient Wonders (Jack West, Jr., #1)

by Matthew Reilly

It is the biggest treasure hunt in history with contesting nations involved in a headlong race to locate the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. 4500 years ago, a magnificent golden capstone sat at the peak of the Great Pyramid of Giza. It was a source of immense power, reputedly capable of bestowing upon its holder absolute global power. But, then it was divided into seven pieces and hidden, each piece separately, within the seven greatest structures of the age. Now it's 2006, and the coming of a rare solar event means it's time to locate the seven pieces and rebuild the capstone. Everyone wants it - from the most powerful countries on Earth to gangs of terrorists...and one daring coalition of eight small nations. Led by the mysterious Captain Jack West Jr, this determined group enters a global battlefield filled with booby-trapped mines, crocodile-infested swamps, evil forces and an adventure beyond imagining. "More action, hair-raising stunts and lethal hardware than you'd find in four Bond movies. Reilly is the hottest action writer around." - "Evening Telegraph".

• ISBN10: 1405040955
• ISBN13: 9781405040952
• Publish Date: 6 January 2006 (first published 4 November 2005)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 12 June 2007
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan
• Imprint: Macmillan
• Edition: Unabridged edition
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 480
• Language: English

Reviews

[wyvernfriend]

What a trainwreck, truly exercised my eyebrow this one. The main character is such a Marty Stu, the bad guys are an American team and a "European" team, despite the fact that the good guys have Europeans on their side.

If the Capstone can't be returned to the Great Pyramid of Giza there will be catacalysm and doom, and the country who can put a soil in a right place and say the right things will gain power over the world for a thousand years.

There are some parts that are quite amusing but mostly it's a frenetic race to collect the tokens with cardboard characters. I've played some role-playing games that stunk with more believable characterisations.