DA VINCI CODE meets TOMB RAIDER in this award-winning thriller that #1 NYT bestselling author James Rollins called, ”A book that defines ‘page-turner.’”Spain 1057: During a thunderous battle, the first King of Aragon wrestles Alexander the Great’s priceless Egyptian weapon from the Moors, but finds it holds a terrifying and mysterious power.Nearly a thousand years later, on a fog-shrouded Napa … power.
Nearly a thousand years later, on a fog-shrouded Napa Valley morning, gunshots and the sound of breaking glass rip through the silence. Maddy Marshall, an app designer with special martial-arts abilities, and her twin brother, Will Argones, quickly run toward the sound. Horrified, they discover a sniper has cut down two members of their family.
Before the pool of blood on the living room floor is dry, their father sends the twins on a dangerous quest to recover Alexander’s ancient weapon. Joined by a broad-shouldered friend who harbors a secret alliance with VanOps, an ultra-black covert agency, they soon discover the lethal sniper is from Russia.
They follow time-worn clues from a medieval Spanish castle to a lost warren under the streets of Jerusalem, racing to unlock the secrets that will lead them to an arcane power–before a hostile state seizes the power and cripples the United States.
To survive, they must go undercover and off-grid. No place is safe, a wrong move means death, and even a simple phone call is off limits. Because now, the sniper has his sights set on them.
Fans of Dan Brown, Clive Cussler, Steve Berry, and James Rollins will devour the pages of this instant international bestseller.
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Avanti Centrae’s VanOps: The Lost Power opens a tantalizing new series that combines historical mystery and cutting-edge science into a masterwork of international intrigue — with the promise of more to follow. Written with a dynamic, cinematic style and full of action and suspense, here’s a book that defines page-turner. Don’t miss this riveting debut!
A good ol’ fashioned rip-roaring adventure from start to finish. Enjoy the ride.
The narrative flows quickly and is unstoppable.
I wanted to read this thriller as it looked like it would be a combination of Da Vinci Code and The Tomb Raider. Boy was I right, if you are a fan of them then you are going to love this book.
I found the characters to be well developed and the story is well written. I was engrossed in the story right away it had everything from adventure, suspense, murder, a lost artifact, and plenty of twists and turns,. I enjoyed the historical details too!
I look forward to reading more by this author.
I requested and received an Advanced Readers Copy from publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my OWN.
The VanOps series opener—explodes onto the page! Never a dull moment, I became fully immersed in the riveting experience, holding my breath until The. Very. End.
I was really hooked by the pacing and intriguing story, and raced through it. I love the combination of science, history, and mysticism.
A high-stakes, daring adventure charged with suspense and mystery!
VanOps: The Lost Power takes readers on a fast-paced roller coaster of a ride across the globe in a top-notch thriller with high-stakes and plenty of edge-of-seat action.
Outstanding! Exciting and emotional! A masterpiece of storytelling that is surprising for a first novel, we’ll written and intriguing. I found myself captivated and invested from the first few chapters. A devastating loss that ripples through the twins sends them on a quest for an unbelievable object that may just have unimaginable powers. Passed down from one generation to the next, from the first King of Spain until now. Every new generation is given the clues, but only the worthy will discover where it lies, only the worthy will find it. Chased across the globe, hunted, shot at, with losses coming one after the other, the twins with their friend Bear face them all head on.
Exciting. Action-packed. Emotional and tragic. I could not put it down! I cannot wait to see where it leads to next! Five stars is the least I could give to it!
action-adventure, thriller, historical-research, murder, supernatural, suspense, family-dynamics, international-crime-and-mystery, conspiracy
Can’t possibly go wrong with this one: murder, conspiracy, international pursuit, and all interspersed with historical data! It’s a real thrill ride complete with martial arts, medieval weaponry, car chases, and even helicopter pursuit! The publisher’s blurb is pretty good for an intro, and no spoilers here. Kept me reading straight through to the end and waiting for the next one!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Books Go Social via NetGalley. Thank you!
4 stars
Maddy Marshall and Will Argones, twin brother ans sister, arrive at their father’s old vineyard in the Napa Valley of California. Just as they arrive, a shot rings out that kills their father and Will’s wife Maria. A young boy named AJ that was traveling with Maddie sees a black BMW hurry away from the scene.
After exhaustive interviews with somewhat incompetent appearing detectives, Will, Maddie and AJ leave. They see the BMW on the side of the road and a car chase ensues. The BMW crashes, but one of the assassins survives. They learn from the police that he is Russian. Another attempt is made on their lives at their attorney’s office.
They obtain false passports to try to evade the Russian and flee to Spain which is their historical family seat. There they meet Carlos a cousin and the son of the King of Spain, who is their uncle. Carlos is a shady character, but they like the King. He shows them a mysterious codex and imparts some knowledge to aid their search for a mysterious weapon of some sort.
Their search takes them on a world-wide journey. Along the way, they discuss the form their search may take them. Just what is it they are looking for? How do these shooters keep finding them?
Maddy nearly drove me crazy with her feud with her brother Will. She ran hot and cold, sometimes she almost liked him and then she would get mad at him all over. Arrgh! But, as time passed and Maddie learned from various encounters more about herself and her emotions, her anger at her brother and others attenuated. I wondered to myself just how she had advanced as far as she had in Aikido still holding on to her anger and self-ignorance.
This is a well written and plotted novel. The content is consistent and follows a logical progression. I really liked the historical information given in the book. Ms. Centrae did her research for these parts of the book. It was most interesting. I really liked the “Bear” character. Especially his history lessons. This book will stretch your beliefs, but I reminded myself that it is an entertaining novel and continued to read for the pleasure of it. Ms. Centrae is a very good writer and I immediately went to Amazon to look at her other novels.
I want to thank NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for forwarding to me a copy of this very good book for me to read, enjoy and review.
It felt like I was watching a movie when I read this because I kept on imagining it very vividly. The action and suspense were non-stop so there was no dull moment and no time to even predict about what’s going to happen because things just keep happening! This is one of the most fast-pacing novels that I have ever read and noting it as a page-turner is an understatement; words aren’t enough to describe the excitement this book brings. I literally didn’t stop reading until I have finished it and I am hungry for the series to be complete so I can read more of Avanti’s amazing work. Her writing style is picture perfect that it’s hard to stop expressing how in awe I was after finishing the book. Maddy, Will, and Bear are my favorite team novel characters now. They seriously complete each other and make the conversations so fun to read because of its humor. An aikido instructor plus engineer plus history expert just made this even more enjoyable to read on top of the already exciting series of quest and exotic places. The intellectual flow of the story in combining science, history and human emotion is remarkable and intriguing. Overall, brainpower and entertainment are two main things that are in my mind to describe what this book is about. If you’re a fan of Dan Brown, this is the perfect book for you, and I am 100% sure you’ll get hooked.
What a fun ride! Travel the world with this intricately plotted novel. From vineyards in Northern California to Egypt with exotic stops along the way, Maddy, Will, and Bear use their wits and talents to evade a cadre of well-funded bad guys while following ancient clues. I listened to the Audible and may have accidentally-on-purpose driven past my exit on the freeway to make sure I finished a chapter.
Twins Maddy Marshall and Will Argones are descendants of the King of Spain and have been sent on a quest to find a powerful ancient treasure that connects them to Alexander the Great. Maddy and Will along with a friend Bear must unravel clues along different parts of the world to find the treasure. I really enjoyed reading this suspenseful mystery novel. I received this free novel and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: VanOps: The Lost Power
Author: Avanti Centrae
Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 17
Stats
Editing: 9/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Content: 9/10
Cover: 10/10
Of the 17 readers:
17 would read another book by this author.
17 thought the cover was good or excellent.
17 felt it was easy to follow.
17 would recommend this story to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 12 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 5 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
17 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
17 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.
Readers’ Comments
‘This is a good, solid thriller in the style of Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt novels. Tons of pace, solid central characters and plenty to play for.’ Male reader, aged 52
‘Easy to read, gripping thriller. I particularly liked the sniper part of the plot. The author knows his readership and offers them what they want: fast-paced adventure with a strong mystery element. The writing style is what it is: short, sharp, not overly description, but perfect for the genre.’ Female reader, aged 50
‘If you are looking for a gripping thriller, you can’t go far wrong with this. I could imagine the VanOps novels will go a long way.’ Male reader, aged 35
To Sum It Up:
‘A fast-paced thriller packed full of twists and turns. If you enjoy Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt, you’ll love this. A BRONZE MEDAL WINNER and highly recommended.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards