The Emperor's Tomb

This is the sixth book in a series featuring retired Justice Department operative Cotton Malone. He receives an intense video of his friend, Cassiopeia Vitt, being waterboarded and knows he has to do whatever he can to save her. This set up Malone for one of his most traumatic adventures. He will travel from Denmark to Belgium to Vietnam and then on to China where he will be tested by ruthless ancient brotherhood.

It turns out several groups are searching for an artifact that is important to the Chinese. They are looking for an ancient winged dragon lamp, originally stolen from the tomb of the first Emperor of China. Both Karl Tang and Ni Yong are just a step away from becoming China's new Premiere, a position of power that will allow show more either man to set foreign policy for their country. Tang is of the opinion that China should remain unwilling to work with any foreign power, believing in the natural expression of totalitarianism. He would also strictly enforce laws and exact severe punishments for breaking them. Ni, on the other hand, would pursue peaceful international relations and permit some local democracy.

I really enjoy this series but for some reason I just wasn't riveted by the action. I felt like Cotton was a secondary character until the last third of the book and it could easily have been edited down a hundred pages for a better flow. Nevertheless, Steve Berry does a great deal of research and incorporates compelling facts into his action novels. While not my favorite, it was still an interesting story and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. show less

The Emperor’s Tomb
Steve Berry
Ballantine Books
2010
Hardcover
464 pages
ISBN: 0345505492

First a word about the main character - Cotton Malone will go down in history as one of the great action characters in literature (Yes, you heard it here first, parenthetically. They say that everything you put out on the Internet is permanent. If that's so then look me up in 20 years so I can tell you that I told you so.) Malone is a thinking man's James Bond, Jason Bourne, and Mack Bolan all rolled into one. Read the entire series just to acquaint yourself with the character. You won't be disappointed.

With that said, The Emperor's Tomb is the sixth book in the series and while not the strongest of the six Berry does not fail to entertain once show more again. His history (even when slightly exaggerated and stretched) is believable and he has a knack for choosing some great off-beat topics and little-known historical events to conjure with. Fast paced, fun, full of adventure and with the occasional gun-fight Berry's Cotton Malone is sure to entertain for years to come. The series was written, I suspect, for the adrenaline junkie hidden in us all. Thank you, Mr. Berry for filling that need.

Cotton Malone Series
1. The Templar Legacy (2006)
2. The Alexandria Link (2007)
3. The Venetian Betrayal (2007)
4. The Charlemagne Pursuit (2008)
5. The Paris Vendetta (2009)
6. The Emperor's Tomb (2010) show less

Falling somewhere between Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon and Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon is Steve Berry’s character Cotton Malone. A retired Justice Department operative, not an active field agent like Gabriel Allon, Malone nonetheless gets involved in intrigue almost as esoteric as Langdon. Malone’s conspiracies are far more believable too. The Emperor’s Tomb may be the best Cotton Malone to date.

While falling squarely into the Adventure / Thriller genre, this installment throws the reader a curve in the form of a mild romance angle. Cotton Malone and Cassiopeia Vitt have been paired before, primarily as adventure buddies and as a convenient way for the author to save his main characters’ lives. It is only natural that after show more sharing so many close calls and great adventures, some feelings must develop between them. Cotton and Cassiopeia start recognizing these feelings in this adventure. These feelings are brought out by the reappearance of another Berry character, a freelancer who enjoys playing both sides against each other. Malone feels the first pangs of jealousy as Viktor, the interloper, saves Cassiopeia’s life several times in a relatively short span and Malone is angry at himself that it was not him saving her. As expected for this genre, the hero and heroine do fade into the sunset at the end of the story, but the journey to that fadeout is not an easy path.

The premise of the book, there are two types of oil, one finite and the other infinite and we are only told of the finite type, is quite a hook. I was extremely surprised to find in the Writer’s Note at the end of the book, this is not a product of Steve Berry’s pen, but there is some scientific backing and debate on this topic. To me, this is more real than Dan Brown’s Masonic Conspiracy theories. Having some grounding in scientific research, the political implications of the plot are all too real a possibility.

As an Adventure / Thriller story, Berry delivers. Using the time honored tradition of starting with a cliff hanger, literally, from somewhere near the end of the story, then using a the rest of the book as a flashback to explain how the main characters got there, Berry hooks the reader into the plot with a major shot of adrenaline. The action slacks off just long enough for the reader to absorb important background information, then back to the rapid paced action. It is also appealing for Political Intrigue fans as other than Malone and Vitt, you are never sure of who the good guys or bad guys really are; lots of allegiance twists along the way. Another notable aspect to the style is the descriptions of the locales used as the backdrop for the action. I found myself especially enthralled with the descriptions of China.

Not ground breaking, but I’m giving some extra credit for having such a believable plot and for the travel guide thrown in for free. Enjoyment far exceeds the effort to read this. I actually could not wait to get home from work so I could continue reading, a privilege usually reserved for audio books on my commute home. I have no trouble giving this a four and a half star rating. show less

I've been lucky lately in that Rollins, Thor, and now Berry have put out their best work in their latest releases (next to last for this Berry work). I enjoyed this Berry novel more than any of his others. The characters were much stronger and easier to identify with in this book than other Berry books and the plot was, in a word, fascinating (infinite oil, wow!). Cotton Malone just gets better and better with each book.

I found this installment of the Cotton Malone series to be.. slower than usual. I'm not overly interested in Chinese history, so the details of governments and dynasties just didn't work for me. Despite that, I loved the book. Steve Berry makes his characters extremely real. The evolution of relationships was a lot of fun, too. I have to admit that my opinion of Stephanie has dropped considerably - it makes me anxious to read the next book!

This was not my favorite book in this series. It was riddled with Chinese politics and... for me at least... it was like wading through mud at times. The saving grace for the book was when Cotton and Cassiopeia were involved in the adventure taking place in the story. Thus having been said...that brings me to the main issue I had with the book. Cotton Malone was almost a secondary character here except for the Prologue...which I thought and hoped would be the setting for the entire book. It wasn't. Cotton seemed to have been incorporated into the story to make it a part of the Cotton Malone series. While the historical information was interesting, I found that something was just lacking in the story. I will certainly continue this show more series but I hope that Steve Berry brings Cotton out of where ever he had him hiding. show less

Similar to another audio book, I just heard (The Ghost War, by Alex Berenson), this is a twelve disc audio book with a wonderful reader who has mastered accents and inflection so that the book keeps you on the edge of your seat and alert as you drive!
From a child’s kidnapping to foreign intrigue about a new scientific discovery, this book is filled with excitement. There are so many sub plots, but underneath them all there is the additional plot of several competing leaders in China, each of whom wishes to take over the government. Russia and the United States are involved in the intrigue, with each employing agents who may not be all that scrupulous.
Murder is simply a means to an end, viewed almost casually. Torture is acceptable show more in the Asian prisons. Maoists and Liberationists go head to head in their fight to take over the government and in the background, the “Ba” and the Eunochs also vie for power, aligning themselves with competing, powerful people. The "double cross" is routine, as ethical behavior is not of the slightest concern. The winner will determine whether or not China becomes a threat to, or a peaceful participant in, world affairs.
Underlying all of the varied sub-plots and side issues, is the theme of an undying source of energy, for which all three countries are searching; the key to its secret existence is thought to be hidden in China. Often the bad guy wins. China, as well as Russia, is a country with vastly different rules than the United States, and their tactics are sometimes appalling as are those of their agents. However, none of the participating countries is guiltless when it comes to reprehensible behavior. Greed and the desire for power appears to be the driving force and in its wake, valuable antiquities are destroyed and people are sacrificed with little or no reason other than expedience rather than justice.
This book is action packed; undercover agents and double agents go head to head. They sneak in and out of several countries to search for answers, often with violent outcomes. There is an abundance of characters, which sometimes makes it a little hard to figure out which one is being featured. There is definitely murder and mayhem and while the book may not keep you guessing, it will certainly keep you interested for many hours. It is worth the “road trip. show less