Evan has been having some very strange dreams. The Perth-based architect dismissed an unexpected phone call from an entrepreneur in Greece, asking him to restore his family home, as the ravings of a crank. Until, that is, the dreams begin, each more vivid than the last. A dream encounter with a mysterious character called Zeus sees him catapulted back in time to 500 years before the birth of … Christ. Evan finds himself quickly embroiled in a plot to prevent the birth of Christianity, an unwilling player in an epic struggle between the old gods and the new, fighting for his life.
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In Luciana Cavallaro’s Search for the Golden Serpent (Mythos Publications 2015), Evan Chronis (aka Evandros by the Greeks), a world-class architect, has built his business on a foundation of always finishing projects on time and on budget. When he is contacted by Zeus to save Mount Olympos (no spelling error), he thinks someone is playing games with him. When he passes out and wakes up almost twenty-five hundred years in the past, a time when the Olympian gods ruled, he is sure he’s being fooled with. He argues and rants with the being who calls himself Zeus but finally has no choice but to accept that this creature has the ability to reach across time and force him to do his will. Zeus will not return Evan to his modern world until he saves the Gods. To do this, he must find a mythical relic that, when united with several other pieces, will save Olympos. Zeus also drops a bombshell on everything Evan thought he knew about his life.
Evan finally agrees and sets off with four others on a journey that takes them throughout the ancient world, authentically through the towns and seaports, deep into the cultural norms of people now long gone. As we travel with Evan, we live the Greek myths that to modern man are simply folklore. Every scene rings with truth as though the author was there. All the while, I was thinking, “Why can’t it be me rather than Evandros?” And be prepared for a big surprise at the end of the book.
This is highly recommended to anyone who loves learning about life in Ancient Greece and the part played by the gods in Greek lives. You can’t experience this any more real than what Cavallaro reveals.
This is part of a trilogy. I’ve already bought the next, Labyrinthine Journey.
The Search for the Golden Serpent, by Luciana Cavallaro is the first novel in the series entitled, “Servant of the Gods.” This is a tale of a modern-day hero’s adventure of time travel to ancient sites such as Atlantis, Thebes, and Pylos. The modern day time traveler, Evan is a multilingual Australian architect who has reoccurring nightmares of an ancient shipwreck. One day in his office, he receives a telephone call from Zeus and is teleported to Mt. Olympus where he is introduced to the Family, a pantheon of gods and goddesses. The Father of all Gods, Zeus reveals he had transported Evan forward in time to learn the skills necessary for a quest to prevent the Family’s demise in favor of the one god herald by Moses. Little by little in dreams, Zeus reacquaints Evan to his former life on Atlantis where he is called Evandros. Zeus calls upon Evan to recover the sacred relics of the Mother Goddess and restore them on Atlantis to prevent the destruction of this civilization and the demise of the Family. Zeus gives Evan a writing tool to record his adventures and a mystical sword and shield.
Unwilling to accept these visions are real, Evan consults physicians to determine if there is something physiologically wrong with him. But when Evan is teleported back in time to the ship wreck from his dream, he reluctantly begins an odyssey in 1500 BC to recover the first relic of the golden serpent. The story unfolds as an epic hero’s adventure where Evan (Evanos) must journey to various ancient civilizations and overcome trials in his quest to find the golden serpent. He is accompanied by a Phoenician, a boy oracle, three Atlantean warriors and a high priestess. Ancient civilizations and cultures come alive with rich detail as seen through the eyes of a modern-day architect. Not only is this an action-packed adventure, but a reader will learn more about ancient history and mythology.
I highly recommend reading this novel that not only whisks you away into adventure, but it also vividly shows the mystique of ancient civilizations and religions. This novel is particularly a delight for those who love mythology and the hero’s adventure.