Customer Reviews

Night of the Furies

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I wanted to devour this novel as soon as it was published because I'd LOVED Angsten's debut thriller, Dark Gold. But I'm mildly obsessed with saving just the right novel for my Thanksgiving flights, so delayed gratification it was. The book was definitely worth the wait, and made for excellent airplane reading.

Dark Gold was set to great effect in Mexico. Here, Angsten takes us most evocatively to Greece. Note to self: Never travel with David Angsten. In Angsten's hands, even the most appealing destinations are filled with menace and terror. As the novel opens, we are reintroduced to brothers Jack and Dan Duran. Readers of Dark Gold will remember them from the first novel, but I'd have to say quite emphatically that knowledge of their earlier exploits is unnecessary. Prior events are touched on only in passing. This makes sense, of course, so as not to alienate new readers, but I was mildly disappointed that there wasn't more... continuity. More on that in a moment.

Jack and Dan, joined by Dan's girlfriend Phoebe, are on a covert mission. They're quite illegally visiting the historic site of the Oracle of Delphi in the middle of the night. Dan is indulging in one of his strange investigations, and with proper homage to history, and a canister of ethylene (which supposedly caused the original visions) they've got the perfect set up for Phoebe to provide a prophesy. Which she does--along with the warning, "The Furies are coming!"

The warning, however, is dismissed, and soon Phoebe has to return to her archeological dig. Jack, too, is planning to move on, when Dan gets a call from an old roommate, Basri. With a trust-fund, a yacht, and some wildly libidinous ways, Basri makes an ideal stand-in for Dionysus. He tempts Dan and Jack into a wild pleasure cruise on his yacht full of Hellenic beauties. Before embarking, the brothers are given yet another warning, and here I grew frustrated. ANOTHER yacht full of dangerous beauties? Seriously, Jack, will you EVER learn? Surely after the events in Mexico he should have been somewhat more circumspect?

See? That's how you can tell I'm a woman, because basically these guys were being offered an enormous Greek orgy, and pretty much nothing was going to keep them off that boat. I can't tell much more, except to say that there's a whole lot of sex and then things go downhill with staggering speed. I have to imagine that male readers are going to love the more... graphic aspects of the novel. Yeah, Angsten really goes there. For the women, well, I suppose it depends on the woman. There is a lot of eroticism in this novel, but it's meant to be somewhat disturbing, and it is.

Jack and Dan have gotten themselves into trouble unlike, quite frankly, anything I've seen in fiction. The front end of the novel is loaded with a significant amount of exposition. It's slightly unfortunate, but Angsten does a good job of giving readers an education on Greece and its art, history, mythology, and religion. It's quite interesting, and the lessons are put to good use within the plot. Once events get going, the pace moves along at a break-neck speed. Angsten really excels at writing chapters that end on hooks so that you literally find yourself unable to put the book down. It's precisely what I'm looking for on a transcontinental flight.

I waffled over whether to give this novel four or five stars. The plot, while riveting, isn't all that convoluted or complex. However, there were some pretty delightful revelations late in the game. There were ridiculous male fantasy-fulfilling sex scenes, but I can't honestly call them gratuitous. There was a deplorable lack of sea monsters, but, uh, that's my own personal bias. And I guess I can't blame the author if his characters sometimes act like idiots. In the end, a slightly generous five stars for tremendous action, pacing, and sheer outlandish fun!

I pretty much skipped or slept through my Greek history & mythology classes - but because I loved David Angsten's first novel, Dark Gold (pot-smoking brothers, babes, Mexico, sunken ships, treasure maps, monsters), I thought I'd give this one a shot. By page two, I was hooked. David Angsten's books are like mini-vacations for us arm-chair adventurers. With NIGHT OF THE FURIES, he gives us another smartly written, "guilty-pleasure." This time, those same brothers, and a sexy archeologist, are in search of an entirely different "treasure": a metaphysical experience, called the Elusinian Mysteries (your basic drug-induced, pagan divine revelation), sought by Plato, Socrates, Augustus, etc. - and now our heroes. Of course, true to their natures, the brothers find themselves in a whole lot of big, bad trouble: secret-ritual organic drugs, orgies on a yacht, a dead body, and one terrifying night of fleeing flesh-tearing women, unleashed when the brothers discover their ancient ritual. With his terse, engaging prose, David Angsten deftly takes us on this scary-as-hell, tightly-woven, wild ride of a tale, that blows Greek history and mythology right into the 21st century. Girls Gone Wild? No... just your basic Greek history come to life.

Gotta love learning about exotic places and cultures while being entertained with fast action storytelling. Mr. Angsten has become the king of erotic thrillers set in the most exotic of locales. He gives you enough historical anecdotes to feel like you have learned something by the end of the book, yet he doesn't overwhelm the reader or take away from the excitement of the story.

If you want to be taken on a wild ride thousands of miles away from the ordinary read Angsten's books. They won't disappoint.

Night of the Furies touches on everything human: Friends, Food, Recreation, Fear, Lust, Travel, Suspense, Envy, Curiosity, Love, Family, Authority, Riches, Death, Survival. Spin a tale where elements of Greek Mythology weaves in and out of the thread of the story, and you have an exciting book that's a lot of fun to read, and brings the Greek gods into a real, modern context. Mr. Angsten has a knack for putting you into the midst of real settings, and before you know it, you're fighting for your life, trying to escape!!!
This book is a great read, recommended for anyone that needs a fun get-away, is thinking of going to Greece for travel, or that wants to feel the full force of the Greek myths as presented in today's context.
Read it today.

Maybe David Angsten has created a new genre -- the "mythic adventure," where we absorb the fascinating ancient history behind the mythology of exotic places, while running for our lives alongside his protagonists as they flee present-day manifestations. These books are as edifying and dramatic as historical novels, but always suspenseful, and dependably atmospheric with dread and sexual tension.

NIGHT OF THE FURIES makes myth credible, tangible, and finally frightening -- by updating the motivations for macabre ancient Greek rituals, and then reenacting them in full gruesome splendor. The urge to back away battles our compulsion to see it all, like stepping toward an open doorway through which a few drops of blood are visible on the floor.

Once inside, plenty pray they'll live to tell, but no one has. In elegant, vivid, involving prose, this author keeps the outcome very much in doubt, and that keeps us turning pages.

Maybe I should have re-read _Dark Gold_ before reading this sequel... didn't Jack end up with treasure money??

Anyhow, this was a fast adventure in the Greek Isles. It was pretty entertaining - though it, to a much higher degree than _Dark Gold_ - read like a male fantasy. A very phallic book...
But it was entertaining. And a third book seems to be planned, so I wonder if Jack will end up with his brother's would-be fiancee after all... I will probably read his next hook, but I am not in a large rush to do so...

I just finished this book for the second time. I was so anxious when I was reading the last 4 chapters the first time that I wanted to read it all over again. I don't want to be corny but it really does put the "thrill" back in thriller. It is by far the best thing I've read in a long time. I have to admit the first chapter was a little tough to get through but after that it is a wild ride to the very last few pages.

WOW! another great book. Can't wait for the next.Once I started reading I could not put the book down.Stayed up until 3 am to finish. It kept me very interested,afraid,and always wondering what's just around the corner.I would not have guessed it would have ended as it did,but was glad anyway. David sure knows how to keep everyone in constant suspense. Don't miss this thriller!!!

I really liked Davids first book, "Dark Gold", but this one blew me away! From the first page to the last it had me hooked. I want to see him bring Phoebe back in the next book but cant imagine how he can top this adventure!