Customer Reviews

Dourado

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Monsieur le Chevalier Louis Domenic de Rienzi is the unluckiest man I know - or at least know of. He has made a discovery that will literally shock the world. It's 1829 and de Rienzi is sailing back to France with a hold full of precious artifacts, including one in particular that will reshape our knowledge of history and of the Bible.

I'm no historian, but I know enough about the power of the early church in Rome to know that anything threatening their stranglehold on religious power would have been met with swift (and often violent) action. In this case, it appears that no action was necessary as nature took a hand in the game and gutted the Dourado, ripping it's hold open with submerged rocks and sending her to the bottom of the Indian Ocean.

And there de Rienzi's treasure lay; undisturbed; until...

Dourado is the first in a series of Dane Maddock adventures. I am a fan of Clive Cussler's 'Dirk Pitt' novels and David Wood's debut is a worthy addition to my list of favorite swashbuckling heroes. There's the hero, Maddock, his irreverent partner Uriah 'Bones' Bonebrake, and the beautiful daughter of a fallen comrade. Oh, and of course, the treasure.

The plot may be somewhat familiar: ex-Navy seals running an underwater salvage team run up against some hard luck on their current project and along comes a beautiful stranger with a tale of fantastic treasure to take the edge off their disappointment. The excitement of this new mission soon wears off though, as more than one mysterious group of very dangerous adversaries begins to take an unhealthy interest in Maddock's business.

Wood's characters in Dourado are fully developed and fit into a believable and entertaining plot very nicely. Maddock has his own secrets that often haunt him at night but the flawed hero is not one to shirk from challenge - or duty. The global locales portrayed in Dourado are three dimensional and inviting, and add an authentic and adventurous spice to the tale.

As the plot builds, the main characters - and a few others - are swept up into an international conspiracy, the pages of Dourado turn as swiftly as the water filled her cargo hold nearly two hundred years ago. The final scenes take place in Petra and could only have been written by someone who has been there - or at least has done a tremendous amount of research.

I can't discuss the final scenes without giving away too much of the story. Suffice it to say that Mr. Wood has crafted an amazing story that combines adventure, faith, history and excitement in equally fascinating measure. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series - Cibola - already available at Amazon.

Dourado is published by Gryphonwood Press.

"A sunken treasure. An ancient Biblical artifact. A mystery as old as humankind... a lost Biblical artifact, the truth behind which could shake the foundations of the church, and call into question the fundamentally held truths of human existence."

...yawn...heard it all before. The ubiquitous faith-destroying archaeological discovery plot certainly didn't start with Dan Brown, but his success with it has made it seem almost cliche. The basic premise, that traditional religious beliefs are but a curtain concealing something much more mysterious, no longer seems quite so controversial.

I'll admit, my cynicism held me back from reading David Wood's Dourado for a long time. That's unfortunate because Dourado is a lot of fun.

Wood's heroic but very human (and even slightly flawed) protagonists romp around the world, squaring off against the mysterious baddies who are the self-appointed guardians of the aforementioned secret. Dane Maddock, former-Navy SEAL turned salvage diver answers a call for help from Kaylin Maxwell, the daughter of his old CO, and is thrust into a treasure hunt that begins in the sunken wreck of a ship called Dourado, and ends--almost literally--at the gates of Hell. Along the way, Maddock battles a team of killers and wrestles with his own personal demons, but he's not alone. He gets some help from his long-time friend and comrade in arms, Uriah "Bones" Bonebreak, and equal parts help and trouble from the lovely Kaylin. Wood keeps his characters in the forefront, and lets the relic and the mystery surrounding it take a back seat, which is really what fans of the action-thriller genre want. When he finally does pull back the curtain a little, the secret is a whopper.

Dourado is a brisk read, reminiscent of early Cussler adventures, and perfect for an afternoon at the beach or a cross-country flight. You'll definitely want more of Maddock.

Two ex-Navy SEALs search for a lost Biblical artifact. That's the plot of David Wood's Dourado, a gripping action-adventure that leaves you wanting more.

Dane Maddock and Uriah "Bones" Bonebrake are former Navy SEALS who are hired by the daughter of their former commander, to find the wreck of the Portuguese ship Dourado, upon which a Biblical artifact was thought to be lost. The story begins with the unraveling of the mystery, followed by the search for the ship, and then takes off from there.

Wood's work is reminiscent of a couple other authors in the field. The opening historical prologue and the mystery centered around a shipwreck are akin to that of Clive Cussler, while the almost non-stop action is akin to a Matt Reilly novel.

Dourado has a strong back-story, and the pacing is good. The setting changes frequently, with a battle with modern-day Caribbean pirates, a shootout in the streets of Charleston, a dive in the Pacific, and an adventure in the Middle East to name a few. The Biblical archaeology and speculative angles add depth and interest to the story. The main characters are good, especially Bones, who is tough and funny and altogether believable.


The pacing of Dourado is also its weakness. There were times when I wanted the author to slow down and give a little more explanation or more development to secondary characters. There is a suggested love interest, but nothing really happens.

Overall, I would recommend the book for those who love the action-adventure genre. Dourado is a fast-paced adventure with action to spare. Dane Maddock is a hero cut from the Dirk Pitt mold, and "Bones" Bonebrake is the best sidekick around. If you like your thrillers with a touch mystery and Biblical archaeology, Dourado is the book for you.

This is fast paced and is an "I simply cannot put this book down until I know what is going on" kind of book. I kept thinking, okay next chapter I will take a break and get busy, then come back to it later this evening; but as one chapter ended I had to go to the next. It is an excellent read and it is superbly written!

The success of Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code has revealed the presence of a rich vein of material buried in the fringes of Christian history and belief. Now others seem to be looking to mine this material as well. Dourado is David Wood's first book, and overall it is a pretty good effort. The main characters are just quirky enough to be interesting, and the premise is intriguing. There is sufficient action to keep the story moving, and the ending isn't telegraphed too early in the story. While this doesn't have the depth of detail or the extremely intense pacing that is found in The DaVinci Code, this book was very easy to read, and provided an interesting new twist on the source of our biblical stories. This is a great first effort, which hopefully will be followed up by even better works.

While the plot is absorbing, and the action on-going, I was disturbed by the several inconsistencies of the plot. Without revealing them to future readers, there were a few occasions where one character was doing something, and two sentences later, that same action was attributed to a different character. The editing, also, left a great deal to be desired, in that the book was riddled with typos, incorrect grammar, and incomplete sentences, all of which should have been picked up by the editor at the time of the book's review. All in all, while I enjoyed the plot and story action, I was held back from full absorption in the book by these errors. Hopefully, Mr. Woods, who definitely has a talent for writing, will turn out better-edited books without glaring character errors in the future.

If you like Clive Cussler, James Rollins or Andy McDermott, you will enjoy this page turner. Non-stop action, great locations and hunting for a Biblical relic added up to an entertaining adventure tale. I puchased the next book, Cibola as soon as I finished Dourado. I look forward to more adventures with ex-Navy Seals Dane and Bones.

I acquired this book after reading some reviews and was pleasantly rewarded. David Wood has an engaging style and his characters are fun, likeable people I want to visit again. Dane Maddock has everything I look for in an adventure hero, and his sidekick Bones stands out as much more than just a sidekick.

Their adventure begins when an old friend is murdered and they agree to assist the man's daughter in finding his killers. This also puts them on the trail of a shocking Biblical relic, and in the sights of some very dangerous men. They also dodge danger every step of the way as they hop the globe on their quest.

I'm always on the lookout for a new adventure writer, and most of them disappoint me, but not David Wood. This book was pure, fast-action fun from beginning to end, and I will definitely read others by this author.

David Wood's first novel, Dourado, is long on action, but comes up a bit short on originality. The hero of the book, Dane Maddock, could easily be the offspring of Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt and Laura Croft, Tomb Raider. But despite characters and plot that will sound familiar to anyone who's read an adventure novel in the past 20 years or so, Wood manages to keep the action moving at a fast enough pace that makes some of the creakiness of the plot less apparent.

Readers of the genre will find much that is familiar: a hero with tragic past; a quick-witted sidekick; a "damsel in distress" who needs Maddock's help; lots of high-tech equipment; exotic locations; and, finally, an ancient mystery with biblical overtones.

While Wood occasionally falls victim to some of the same problems as other first-time novelists (clunky exposition in a few places, action sequences that can be hard to follow and an over-abundance of spelling errors throughout the text) his book is very much a light and enjoyable read. For genre fiction, Dourado is a decent debut from an author who I'm sure will grow in talent and popularity.

This thoroughly entertaining book is very much in the Dirk Pitt mold. Complete with a sidekick and underwater exploring, not to mention women! Of course, as a Cussler fan, that's a formula that works for me. Well written, a fast read, and highly enjoyable.

The Kindle formatting was excellent, as was the price.

I'm along for the ride with this series. Give me more.