Customer Reviews

The Last Secret (The Cotten Stone Mysteries)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I rarely am interested in sequels because I discount them as marketing ploys. It was a rare treat therefore to read The Last Secret. Not only was it, in my opinion, a story that stood on its own, but this fast paced thriller far exceeded the 1st of the Cotten Stone trilogy (The Grail Conspiracy). I read it in one sitting, and it blew my mind.
If you are like me alternatively cursed and blessed with a wild and hairy imagination and the kind of mind that is always asking "Why not?" then this is the book for you. Can you imagine quantum physics meets the struggle between good and evil set in play by an impossibly old relic that could change the course of history? Not many people can. My gratitude and kudos to Sholes and Moore for this truly original read. This story was made to be a movie. Before Hollywood can ruin another fabulous story, go out, read it, and imagine it for yourself.

Journalist Cotten Stone is back in The Last Secret, the second installment in Lynn Sholes and Joe Moore's series of religious thrillers. (Read my review of The Grail Conspiracy.) The book starts with a deliciously suspenseful chapter: the pilot of a Virgin Atlantic Airbus announces his suicidal intentions mid-flight, prompting scrambling on the ground as a criminal psychologist tries to talk the pilot out of it, and scrambling in the air as two F-18 Hornets prepare to shoot the aircraft down. But the pilot's death is just the first we hear about in a world-wide rash of suicides, a phenomenon connected with an age-old battle between good and evil: the Nephilim, the fallen angels who signed on with Lucifer back in the day, are preparing for the Final Conflict and attempting to bolster their ranks with the souls of suicides while they can.

While the death toll mounts, Cotten Stone finds herself at an archaeological dig near Machu Picchu in Peru. An unusual artifact is unearthed, an elaborately incised crystal tablet which, evidence suggests, may have been inscribed by the hand of God.

Readers coming to the series for the first time will be curious as to what makes Cotten Stone so special, a woman who has destroyed her career and her credibility with a stunt on a par with Geraldo Riviera's opening of Al Capone's vault. The authors do fill in Cotten's back story eventually--let's just say she's unusually suited to the task of fighting evil--but they take their time doing so. Readers will have to wait some 150 pages to find out why Cotten is the Chose One. But that's one of the things I liked about the book, that information revealed in The Grail Conspiracy is dribbled into the new story rather than dumped on readers in chunks of explanatory prose.

The Last Secret is told from multiple perspectives, among them that of the intriguing Lester Ripple, a nerdy, obsessive compulsive scientific genius, whose story is woven through the book until it intersects with Cotten's. I'm hoping Lester figures somehow in the next book in the series, Indigo Ruby, which is due out in September 2007.

Needless to say, I enjoyed The Last Secret. Like its predecessor in the series, it's a skillfully crafted page-turner with likeable characters. I hope that Cotten Stone and her demon-fighting cronies are in for a long run.

Debra Hamel

WOW, Cotton Stone is glamorous, smart and like any good reporter she needs to uncover all the secrets. I read the "The Last Secret" in just two sitting. You just have to keep turning the page to find out what Cotton will do next. And she goes to some very fascinating places. This book moves right along like an action adventure movie but better because it has a wonderful message for all. These two authors know how to tell a really good story. I loved the "The Grail Conspiracy" and now I can't what to see what happens to Cotton and Father John next.

I read THE LAST SECRET in two sittings. Sholes and Moore have penned another exciting thriller. I'm not sure how to identify the audience, other than fans of Dan Brown, James Rollins, Douglas Preston and a few others. THE LAST SECRET is a story that doesn't center around the Templars (and aren't they overdone now!) or the Grail, or Jesus and Mary Magdalene. But there is a religious, or rather a spiritual core, that spins around quantum physics, bringing the two together. Instead of there being a divide between science and religion, THE LAST SECRET has a premise that does just the opposite. It is an original idea told with a fresh voice. I read THE GRAIL CONSPIRACY by the same authors. For whatever reason it seemed to slip past a lot of readers and movie agents (it could be a blockbuster). I hope that it will find its way by word of mouth to many more. Anyway, I can't say enough. I think Sholes and Moore are still on the top of their game with THE LAST SECRET. From Texas to the Andes to the desert southwest, Cotten Stone is embedded in intrigue and the constant fight between good and evil. She is a deftly drawn character that will stay with me for a long time. THE LAST SECRET gave me a lot to think about even after I finished reading it. I can't wait to see what Sholes and Moore have up their sleeves, or on their computers, next.

Took a minute to get into this one after reading The Grail Cons. but was well worth it. Enjoyed the book...now waiting on the 3rd to be published

The Fallen Ones, the angels who sided with Lucifer are called Nephilim and they were ordered to walk the earth with men and never again know Paradise. One of the fallen repented of his sins and was made human. God gave him two daughters, one who take his place in heaven and one to do God's work on Earth. Her name is Cotten Stone and until three years ago the reporter knew nothing about her heritage. The Nephilim have done much to discredit her so it is hard for her to get a job.

In Peru, an out of the way ancient city is found by a team of archeologists. A crystal tablet is found there warning of the cleansing of the earth by water and how to make the Ark. The second half of the tablet describes the second cleansing, the end of days and how it will be led by the daughter of an angel. A horde of demons take the tablet away because the Nephilim want the end of days to come and mankind destroyed. An earthquake in New Mexico leads the Nephilim to another tablet, beating out Cotten and her ally who want to decipher what her role is to be in the end times. The Nephilim know about Cotten and that she is the one person who can threaten their plans. They do all in their power to stop her from finding the last tablet, short of killing her because the Nephilin are forbidden to do that.

Lynn Sholes and Joe Moore write some of the best apocalyptical thrillers on the market today. Cotten Stone is a heroine who though she would rather be ordinary accepts her role in the world. The forces of malevolence that surround her are evil with a capital E, Satan's followers who look and pass for human. There is a lot of action in this superb thriller but it is the protagonist and the antagonist who make this a work to remember. This is a work that definitely is going on this reviewer's keeper shelf.

Harriet Klausner

I'm tempted to give this book five stars, but I wish it lasted longer! I feel for the main character, Cotten Stone, who questions her path, her choices, her destiny but through it all searches for truth. This is number two in the series and I look forward to reading the next books!

Lynn Sholes and Joe Moore are genius! The Cotten Stone series is wonderful in its plot and suspense. I love the religious mysteries and the tie in with her other Cotten Stone books. I have read them all and will definitely read their latest, Phoenix Apostle.

I stumbled upon this series and have been hooked. I really like the mix of (somewhat)realistic religious story telling with a twist of the fantasy. Cotten, Daughter of a forgiven fallen angel, once again facing off with the actual Fallen Angels as they try to win the war with heaven. This is a great series where the plans of the Fallen have long reaching impact and the characters have longevity and several make appearance in more than one book.
I cannot wait for the next one.

It was a great book. I read till 4am in the morning.
BUY IT!