W. R. (NYbooks) reviewed on 12/17/2006 + 95 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

As fascinating as Mr. Brown's Research is, and as alluring as each chapter-end cliffhanger is, the book, as a novel, has a few flaws.

The one major gripe I had was the Police Official's motivation for pursuit. In the natural world of police investigations, such behavior, is just plain silly, and not taken seriously at all.

The book did not pursue the route I thought it would. Imagine this: what starts out as a murder investigation soon leads into the hunt for one of the most sought after relics in human history. The discovery of this relic could possibly mean big money and/or power for its discover. So, you would expect countries, spies, agents, to use whatever means possible to grab this relic. Maybe a war ensues. Sounds exciting, right? Alas, ... ho hum, nothing that exciting happens.

After everything is said and done, the book is simply a 1- to 2- day Scavenger Hunt with some action and interesting facts thrown in to fatten up the book. Chapter cliffhangers are nice. But as a whole, the book lacks the keys necessary to be labeled 'great'

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