The Sacred Sword (Ben Hope 7) [Kindle Edition]

Review:
I came late to the Ben Hope party, there are just so many fun action packed writers in the action thriller genre, and its not easy sorting all the Dan Brown bilge from the truly excellent thrillers. It took a quote from Andy McDermott to make me go buy a copy.
And now in a very short space of time I have powered through 7 novels and a short story, each book getting better in style , plotting and pace. Add to that my amazement at Scott and authors like him capacity for imagining so many bizarre scenarios linked to the past.
As usual I give no spoilers. Suffice to say our hero is still real, still a flawed man (I hate perfect story book heroes) and Scott kept me the reader hanging on for every page and rushing towards the end, and yet when I arrived at the thrilling end...gutted that it was over.
Has it been done before, yes probably, has it been done this well? probably not.

Have to say although this contains an extract of the armada legacy I didn't read it, I cant read teasers its just not enough. But for those that like that sort of thing it's a great idea and a little bit more for your money.
A perfect book for the summer holiday pool side relax.

(Parm)

In the seventh bestselling Ben Hope conspiracy thriller, the action shoots back in time to the days of Jesus Christ - and a buried secret that has staggering implications for the world as we know it...
Returning to the UK to try to sort out his stormy personal life, Ben runs into two old friends. Simeon and Michaela were once his fellow students at Oxford - now they are The Reverend and Mrs Arundel.
Ben senses that Simeon is deeply troubled and frightened, but before the truth can emerge about his secretive research project concerning a mysterious, ancient `sacred sword', both he and Michaela are killed out in a devastating road crash. Convinced that his friends' deaths were no accident, Ben is propelled on a global quest from the UK to France, the Holy Land and America to unlock the enigma of the sacred sword. At every step, he is pursued by ruthless agents of the sinister organisation that will stop at nothing to acquire it.
In the course of his investigations, Ben will discover an incredible secret, not just about the history of Christianity but about his own past .

I really cannot fault Scott Mariani and his Ben Hope series. I know there are many books out there along the same lines but these, and in particular The Sacred Sword are superb reads. I like how history is intwined with the story and I like Ben's flawed character. Whilst I found the violence was a bit more than usual in Scott's novels, I thought it fitted in with the story.
I found that this book was fast paced and I couldn't put it down which is the only downside! I am very much looking forward to the next book :)

Ben has had a hard year, and is hoping for a rest as his business has wound up for the Christmas season.
On route to the UK to do 2 slightly unpleasant personal jobs, he has thoughts of a better year ahead of him as he pass by the White Cliffs of Dover.
Unknown to him things around him are spinning out of control, with a friend in needed thrown a desperate hand out for help.
Once again the History and facts are seamless, in the way they have been bent to create this story. Could this be true is always a question you ask after reading these books.
Scott Mariani is a master of his craft, any of his books are a good read.