Customer Reviews

The Atlantis Prophecy (Wheeler Hardcover)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

When you read the review above and on the first few pages of the book itself - how could any thriller reader not want to read it?
"A thrill ride from start to finish."
-- Clive Cussler

"...one of those books you end up staying up way too late reading."

-- Sandra Hughes, CBS News

Turns out those blurbs refer to his first book - Raising Atlantis. Too bad I didn't realize that when I was in the store. But judging from the reviews on that one - these lines were over-hype even then.

CONCEPT SUMMARY: Conspiracy begun many years ago when the Free Masons were fighting for the survival of the country blossoms in DC for an clue-breaking astrologer and a crypotographer-nun from the vatican. They try to solve the clues to conspiracy before it's too late - while fighting an evil secret group.

Here's what I didn't like this book:

1. ALL TO FAMILIAR PREMISE AND EXECUTION: Look to the back of the book and you'll find a nice little map of Washington, D.C. - that looks VERY FAMILIAR. Read the equally horrible The Book of Fate or seen the better excuted National Treasure (Widescreen Edition) - than you know this tale. Yes, I knew the premise was familiar. But, I did hope for a fast-paced, original execution with charachters I'd enjoy.

2.LOOKING FOR ANOTHER ENGROSSING PAGE-TURNING THINKING PERSON'S THRILLER - LIKE The Da Vinci Code? YOU WON'T FIND IT HERE. If you're going to step up and copy the Da Vinci Codes pattern - you'd best do it well. Here we have "clue-breaking" experts led on a trail of discovery, ties to the vatican, ties to the free masons... and after the first scene - which also gets expectations high - it's just boring. Despite all the great blurbs - in this one I didn't care enough to even want to think of where the clues might lead.

BOTTOM LINE: Nothing original enough or interesting enough in this book to make it worth the time.

Although there are several good thematic points made throughout this story, the character development is poor. Plot development is frenetic and incomplete. Sometimes incompleteness is a technique for driving the story, but not so here....too many loose ends and inconsistencies. The author's vanity plays out on the canvas of this "less-than-beach-trash"-quality story and it is found wanting.

That being said, Mr. Greaniasi is imaginative, but needs much more experience in cultivating the writer's art.

This book was such a pleasure to read after slogging through The Ruins, I'm almost biased a little toward a better review than if I'd read this one after a different book. Still, it had me glued to my chair.

In the first one, I liked his Antarctica story and though the hero, Yates, was a little whiny, it wasn't enough to sway me from reading this sequel.

Though there are a few plot holes and some gaps in logic and sequence, I don't care. I had such fun reading it that that stuff didn't matter. Besides, it is well written, follows the current rules of writing, and the editing is almost top notch (found at least one typo but can't remember where).

Some are complaining because it's a mix of DaVinci Code and National Treasure. So what? Is it any different from all the murder mysteries out there? Geez! How many ways can you kill someone? It's the story itself and the characters that make or break it.

Is this book realistic? Heck no! Could it happen? Doubt it. Does it matter to me? No. It was a fun ride and left me wanting more.

Just one note. I'll be pissed if he doesn't finally get the girl in the third book!

If you want a good fast paced read, I highly recommend this one.

I was a little concerned that this might be a bit of a rip-off of National Treasure, and it was. Everything in the book is so superficial and mostly unbelievable. The characters are not fleshed out at all, and the writing voice itself is pretty lax.

For instance - how does an academic astro-archeologist happen to have "flash pucks" and sonar GPS on him when this whirlwind adventure begins? As some of the other reviewers said, he happens to have exactly the right hardware at hand at exactly the right time, with no explaination for how he got them. And an astro-archeologist outfight Marines, assassins and a host of badguys?

Just to give you an example...the two main characters are tied down and two US Marines are about to give them a lethal injection, and the main character tells them that their boss is going to release a weaponized bird flu at a public event on Independance Day, and tells the marines not to kill them, but rather, to raise the alarm. One of the marines actually listens to him and goes to call in the possibility of this attack when the other marine, who's in with the bad guys, kills him.

What US Marine on guard duty, about to execute someone, would actually listen to the prisoner and stop doing his duty to call in the alarm, accusing a high-ranking US Official of treason and attempted mass murder?

C'mon now...

Okay, I have to admit I am a sucker for the subject matter, and that does have a bearing on my review. Despite what Greanias said in his interviews, you really do need to read Raising Atlantis. This will allow you to attach yourselves to the characters.

This book is for pretty much anyone who liked the movie National Treasure / National Treasure 2 - Book of Secrets [Blu-ray]. The pace of the book prevents you from putting it down, and the author is consistent which is at times hard to find in these types of books.

This book is the continuation of Atlantis Rising - and is so much like National Treasure (the movie), that I was having a hard time getting through it. Yes your favorite character is back ... but he is in a hunt through Washington D.C that is so reminiscent of National Treasure - I couldn't enjoy the story line. Why did you do this to us?

Fans of the bestselling Raising Atlantis will not be disappointed by its long-awaited sequel. Once again, the massive amount of action, adventure, and mystery prevents you from putting this novel down.

Eccentric archaeologist, Conrad Yates, takes on the role of an Indiana Jones character who seeks to find a mystery related to America's existence. Yates must journey throughout Washington D.C. with his lovely sidekick Serena Serghetti in attempts to find the mystery of America's existence and an even greater mystery. Greanias does a great job of inserting creative uses of following astrological patterns and deciphering encrypted codes to advance the plot.

I just finished reading Atlantis Prophecy, which came out just last week. I found it easy to read, fast paced and, as is always nice to find in book 2 of a series, better than the first. Aside from quality there is one other vast difference between Raising Atlantis and Atlantis Prophecy. While the first book took you to the edge of the world and immersed you in an other worldly ancient, yet advance Atlantis city discovered in Antarctica, this one takes place in, around and beneath Washington D.C. and involves more conspiracy theories than you can shake a stick at. I can't begin to imagine the amount of research that went into this and its written in such a way that I couldn't tell what's truth and what's fiction.

I do have a few minor complaints. The first of which has nothing to do with the author. When I reached chapter 9, the book literally started falling apart. Throughout, I think I have maybe sixteen pages falling out...and I'm gentle with my books. I'm not a spine killer. This is the first book I've had physically fall apart that wasn't printed and bound over one hundred years ago. But, like I said, that has nothing to do with the author...though I found catching pages and reinserting them quite annoying.

My other complaints are: The relationship between Conrad and the Serena irked me a little. She's a hot nun, perhaps a fantasy for some men, but beyond that, she did little in this novel that I found worth Conrad's attention. They have history from book one, of course, but I don't remember it well enough for me to not think, "ditch her Conrad!" Not a big deal, but I felt they could have had more of a reason to be pining over each other...especially in her direction. But I think my biggest complaint, which could also be a compliment I suppose, is that the novel, at times, read like a novelization of National Treasure, though better than the second movie. If we change Conrad's name from Yeates to Gates we would have been all set. This fades as the novel progresses, but starting out I had to work at ignoring the similarities between the two. The book isn't a blatent rip-off of either movie, mind you. It's just similar enough that I had to try not to picture Nick Cage as Conrad.

Minor stuff, though. A final note of appreciation. I very much enjoyed how Greanias worked in issues of faith, having no fear of mentioning God and Jesus is positive ways rather than negatively, which has become so common in the genre. 4.5 over all. Can't wait for book 3!

-- Jeremy Robinson, author of Pulse (A Chess Team Adventure)and Kronos

I read & thoroughly enjoyed the prequel to this novel, Raising Atlantis. Thomas Greanias' story & characters had me hooked. I am a huge fan of ancient mysteries, so much so that I also write them. The Atlantis Prophecy delivers for anyone who enjoys stories where modern-day characters struggle against nearly insurmountable odds to uncover ancient secrets hidden in, and woven amongst, well-known places and monuments. I have read, and agree with, the comparisons with the first National Treasure movie & The Da Vinci code - I am a huge fan of both. As I mentioned in my review of Raising Atlantis, Thomas' writing & storytelling style is also reminiscent of James Rollins books in its non-stop action, high-tech elements and military ops.

Thomas has obviously put in an immense amount of research into this book, explaining and describing much of the history of American politics and the places they are rooted in. I found it very interesting and I learned a lot, the story keeps you thinking & on your toes. This type of novel has the highest of stakes in its story, and the main characters lead extraordinary lives and manage to do extraordinary things. It's not always grounded in reality, but that is not what I seek in these types of thrillers. There is also a supernatural element that pulls the story out of just a thriller category, which for readers like me, is like catnip. I am eager to read more, learn more, and see where this fascinating story will lead. I will definitely be buying the upcoming third installment to this series, The Atlantis Revelation.

Rai Aren

First of all, let me say that I found this an enjoyable and fast read. Like others, I was worried this was going to be too much of a knock-off of National Treasure. Luckily it wasn't.

The plot involving the star map design of Washington D.C. was original but only in the sense it hasn't been published as fiction, yet.
I was obvious that the author used THE SECRECT ARCHETECTURE of the NATION'S CAPITAL BY David Ovason as a source for the plot.
However, the author's secret cabal's roots are never really explained or fleshed out. The prologue takes us back to the time of George Washington, but Yeats and his father's nemesis is labeled an ancient organization. Later, he should have given a more detailed explanation of the origins of this secret lodge.

My main rub or dislike was much of the fast and loose factoid details about Washington D.C. and the inner workings of the government. Secondly, that the main two characters were not fleshed out enough to suspend by disbelief.
In order to suspend disbelief, when writing an inside-the-belt-way thriller, the author should be sure of all the inner workings of the government. One glaring mistake was his reference and device of having the Secret Service protect the secretary of defense and be involved with the secretary of state. In reality, the DOD has its own protective detail on the secretary of defense and the State Dept. has its own division.
Also, the main character, Conrad Yeats, went from absentminded professor to master spy/agent without explaining us how he came by his skill-set.
The premise is that Yeats is a Hitchcock-like everyman, thrown into harm's way by happenstance, a man who must use his cunning to outwit the bad henchmen who are hunting for him.
Without explanation and somewhat miraculously, he produces a shape-charge device to set off in the Library of Congress, almost like a magician who somehow produces a rabbit from his hat. If Cary Grant had done this, people would have laughed out loud.
Yeats is thrown into a ticking time bomb chase scenario, where he's only a step ahead of his pursuers every second, yet without explaining how, he is always armed with the exact sophisticated tools needed to accomplish his mission. Did he somehow duck back to the Batcave in between scenes to gather everything he needed?
I think the author should have used a techno-geek sidekick, similar to National Treasure, to explain how he comes by these gadgets etc.
Yeats is also somehow proficient enough in hand to hand combat and weaponry to overpower trained agents and black ops special forces types and disarm an armed trained assassin on the train. He recognizes weapons and understands tactics that would be far beyond his background as an academic.
Unlike Indiana Jones, who has a similar background, Conrad Yeats just doesn't come off as being able to morph from a tweed wearing professor into a ruthless man of action.

Although I haven't read the first installment, one shouldn't have to in order to accept the love interest between Yeats and Sister Serena. Even in a series, the author must assume that the reader is meeting these characters for the very first time and buy into the plausibility of the sexual tension between the characters, especially a nun. This was sadly far to underdeveloped to work for me.

I hope that if this series continues, the author will work harder on these details for us.


For similar reading of action adventure conspiracy I recommend:R. Douglas Weber's
SOLOMON'S KEY THE CODIS PROJECT: A CONSPIRACY THRILLER (Solomon's Key)

And Steve Alten's Domain (The Domain Trilogy) Domain