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Graham Downs's Reviews > Ark of Blood
Ark of Blood (Arkane, #3)
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I enjoyed this story. It was a nice romp through Africa and the Middle East, and the history appears to be well researched.
It was actually quite nice to read a J. F. Penn again, since she was my first real "author crush" after I published my first book, so for a long time I devoured all her podcasts, videos, emails, webcasts... but it had been a while, so I'd forgotten all about her style. It was sort of like coming home.
And, although this is book 3 in the series, and I read book 2 quite some time ago, it was easy enough to figure out who everybody is again, and what was going on. I'm still not too sure why Jake is injured - I have vague recollections of that happening in the last book - but it's not crucial to this one's plot. You're not going to miss anything.
Something really cool happened this past weekend: I was reading a scene from this book, where the characters are traipsing through the Zimbabwean bush, and at that time, I happened to be sitting under our thatch at home, tending the fire that we were about to braai on. That was a really nice touch! Obviously, I can't give Ms. Penn credit for the timing, but the feeling wouldn't have felt nearly as strong without her expert description.
Speaking of Africa, though, one thing did bug me, and that was the descriptions of the geography. In that particular chapter, characters travel from Egypt, to Ethiopia, to Zimbabwe, and the time it takes is just glossed over. At one point, in Zimbabwe, one of them makes a comment that if they leave now, they'll be in Nairobi by nightfall. With no mention of the fact that they'll have to cross two borders to get there. In fact, creating the impression that Nairobi is actually IN Zimbabwe. It reminds me of the old American stereotype, where everybody thinks Africa is a country. I think the author could have done a bit better at representing the continent I call home.
Another thing is that the language is a bit... dated. Nothing happens "because" of anything; everything happens "for" something, or "as" something (She ate an apple, for she was hungry). And it's not only the narrative, or only certain characters. Everyone talks this way. I suppose that could also be a good thing, as it can make you nostalgic for the language, but it also just feels really out of place. And as I said, I've heard the author speak, and no, she does not talk like that in real life!
Still, this is a believable story, and I think the author's Theology degree, and her extensive travels, does add quite a bit of authenticity and flavour to the plot. And since nobody knows for sure, her own idea of what really happened to the Ark of the Covenent is as plausible as any.
Click here to find out where you can get a copy of the ebook: books2read.com/u/mZNO0R
It was actually quite nice to read a J. F. Penn again, since she was my first real "author crush" after I published my first book, so for a long time I devoured all her podcasts, videos, emails, webcasts... but it had been a while, so I'd forgotten all about her style. It was sort of like coming home.
And, although this is book 3 in the series, and I read book 2 quite some time ago, it was easy enough to figure out who everybody is again, and what was going on. I'm still not too sure why Jake is injured - I have vague recollections of that happening in the last book - but it's not crucial to this one's plot. You're not going to miss anything.
Something really cool happened this past weekend: I was reading a scene from this book, where the characters are traipsing through the Zimbabwean bush, and at that time, I happened to be sitting under our thatch at home, tending the fire that we were about to braai on. That was a really nice touch! Obviously, I can't give Ms. Penn credit for the timing, but the feeling wouldn't have felt nearly as strong without her expert description.
Speaking of Africa, though, one thing did bug me, and that was the descriptions of the geography. In that particular chapter, characters travel from Egypt, to Ethiopia, to Zimbabwe, and the time it takes is just glossed over. At one point, in Zimbabwe, one of them makes a comment that if they leave now, they'll be in Nairobi by nightfall. With no mention of the fact that they'll have to cross two borders to get there. In fact, creating the impression that Nairobi is actually IN Zimbabwe. It reminds me of the old American stereotype, where everybody thinks Africa is a country. I think the author could have done a bit better at representing the continent I call home.
Another thing is that the language is a bit... dated. Nothing happens "because" of anything; everything happens "for" something, or "as" something (She ate an apple, for she was hungry). And it's not only the narrative, or only certain characters. Everyone talks this way. I suppose that could also be a good thing, as it can make you nostalgic for the language, but it also just feels really out of place. And as I said, I've heard the author speak, and no, she does not talk like that in real life!
Still, this is a believable story, and I think the author's Theology degree, and her extensive travels, does add quite a bit of authenticity and flavour to the plot. And since nobody knows for sure, her own idea of what really happened to the Ark of the Covenent is as plausible as any.
Click here to find out where you can get a copy of the ebook: books2read.com/u/mZNO0R
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