The Lost Island (Gideon Crew) by Douglas Preston (Author), Lincoln Child

Review published on June 9, 2016.

Gideon Crew works for Effective Engineering Solutions and his enigmatic boss, Eli Glinn, has a new mission for him. He has to steal a page from the illuminated manuscript, the Book of Kells. But this one page holds a strange secret. Hidden on its surface is an ancient map that holds the key to a treasure more precious than gold or glittering jewels.

Gideon and his fellow companion, Amy, set off on a trail that takes them to islands off the coast of South America where they jump from one exciting encounter to the next. Dealing with other violent treasure seekers and angry indigenous people are the least of Gideon’s worries when they finally track down the place where the map has been leading them.

The Lost Island is a great action-packed adventure story. It takes elements of ancient history, myths and legends and mixes them up with a cast of modern-day James Bond/Indiana Jones style characters that will certainly entertain most readers. Although a little far-fetched in places, there are some serious points that a reading group could find interesting to discuss, particularly the potentially devastating effects westerners can have on native tribes and rare wildlife that have hardly been touched by the modern world. This is a fun read for anyone who craves a bit of escapism.

Christine Rolls 4/4

The Lost Island (Gideon Crew) Hardcover – 5 May 2016 by Douglas Preston (Author), Lincoln Child