Customer Reviews

Ancient Rising: Rise of the Ancients Book I

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Ancient Rising
JC De La Torre
Luna Brillante, Sep 2005, $13.95
ISBN: 1411642651

Author Dan Ryan feels euphoric about life. His writing career is a major success and he loves his wife and daughter who reciprocate. This is a happy well adjusted family. That is until the car accident killed Dan's beloved females leaving him distraught and depressed.

Not long afterward a weird stranger visits Dan claiming he is the Greek god Hermes and that the Pantheon is looking to him to release them from a curse that has bound the Gods to sunken Atlantis for twelve thousand years. Skeptical at first Dan assumes Hermes is a lunatic or con artist trying to take advantage of a grieving person, but he soon believes that Hermes is who he says he is and his destiny is to find Atlantis and free the Greek Gods. He travels to Greece where he joins the research team of Aegean archeologist, Theo Constantopolus, now into his third decade quest to locate Atlantis. Theo's rival billionaire Graham Solitaire plans to find Atlantis first and will torture and kill to achieve his goal of turning the legendary island into a tourist paradise.

This exciting fantasy thriller grips the audience from the moment Hermes announces to Dan that he is a god. The tale never slows down as other deities "interfere" in the lives of mortals and the rival archeologists compete for the ultimate prize, but major findings along the way encourage Theo's team though the actions of Graham's thugs dishearten them. This is a fabulous wild ride that readers in search of something well written, quite interesting, and very different will appreciate this fist book in a great epic saga and look forward to more adventures.

Harriet Klausner

This is the first in a a series or may be a trilogy about Atlantis' discovery. The Gods are alive and well living in Atlantis, but need a human( the descent of Hercules, no less) to save them. Enter one of the Gods to provide "guidance". The ensuing tale is light hearted and moves rather quickly ( read the book in a few hours, but then I read alot) I am not sure if I will pursue this series, not enough substance for my taste. Give a whirl and see what you think.

I really enjoyed this book. I wasn't sure what to expect when I got this but I have say I was very pleasantly surprised. The book was very fast past and kept me turning the pages. I was captured by the imagery of the adventure, the exotic locations and the excitement. The ending is left open for an obvious sequel and I will definitely be looking for that one. This was a great discovery! I recommend you give it a try.

reviewed by Angela Wilds for fantasynovelreview.com

Recently widowed, Dan Ryan thinks he may be cracking up from grief when he's visited by the Greek God Hermes. Hermes reveals to Dan the ancient Gods of Greece are not a myth but are in fact real and imprisoned on Atlantis. Only Dan can free them and restore them to their former greatness.

When Dan resists, Hermes gets tough! I'd think this would have touched off warning bells for Dan but maybe his grief incapacitated his thought process. Anyway, Dan goes along with the idea of freeing the Gods just to prove he's not cracking up. He hooks up with some of the best archaeologists in the trade. Together they journey to Greece, Egypt and Spain looking for the keys that will unlock the secret of what happened to Atlantis, how to reach the lost city, and grant the Gods their freedom. Of course, there is a rich arch villain who is racing to beat them to the punch. What follows is a rock `em, sock `em race--full of murder and mayhem--to the prize. Let's hope it's not a race they'll regret running!

Mr. De La Torre has written a powerful tale of man's dedication to unlocking the secrets of the past, regardless of the cost or consequences! Mr. De La Torre seems to have a good deal of knowledge about the Gods and archaeology. He's done the homework and come up with a novel full of exotic places, musty-dusty finds and of course the Gods--those devious little schemers! Follow along with Dan Ryan's quest to appease the Gods. Meet the Gods and find out their plans for Humankind.

This is a thoroughly enjoyable read that will put you in mind of the old Hercules and Xena programs.

I learned of this book after winning its sequel, Rise of the Ancients - Annuna, in an online giveaway. I hate to begin halfway through a series, so I ordered Rise of the Ancients. While the concept is intriguing, the book leaves much to be desired. The characters are one-sided, the plot developments are often too convenient, the dialogue is excessive and inane, and editing inconsistencies abound. The comparison to Dan Brown may have been the intention, but the prose is so tedious and flawed that its greatest gift to readers is a handful of [unintended] laughs. (See sex scene.)

This book seems pretty one dimensional to me and characters lack depth and the events in the plot just seem to work too well with the characters making huge leaps in logic and the rest of the characters just say OK and go with it. This book does have a few interesting ideas , however they are not enough to save it. This is the first book in a series and as such the ending left purposely open, but I am left with no desire to finish the series... overall I would not recommend this book.

JC De La Torre has been described as the "Dan Brown or Clive Cussler of Science Fiction/Fantasy" (nevermind Brown has written Sci-Fi novels) and his first outing lives up to that billing. This novel is fast paced, exciting, and goes out and takes chances. De La Torre's descriptive style sucks you into the story and makes you feel like you're right there with his hero Dan and the team in search for Atlantis. This book has just about everything, sadness, self-doubt, remorse, action, suspense, drama, horror - De La Torre makes you care about the characters and then puts them in harms way, making you turn page-after-page to find out how it ends. A Fantastic novel. I loved it and you will too. Buy this one!

I was recommended this book by another lover of Neil Gaiman's "American Gods" but this is nothing like that one. The common theme is ancient gods, but that's where the similarities ends.

This novella moves way faster and closes all sub-plots and spinn offs quick. A bit too fast sometimes, leaving me with a "u-hu? Was that it?".
It's more like a Percy Jackson for grown-ups or a Clive Custler or Dan Brown without all the "stop and analyzing" parts. Not sure if it's good all the time, there could have been some more deepening of the storyline. Like why the gods ended up being so hostile for instance. (A far cry from Gaiman's conceited but jovial Wednesday)

But over all I like it, and I'm looking forward to the sequel, hoping it to answer some of the questions left in the first book