The Doomsday Key by James Rollins

I guess it’s obvious that I’m hooked. It was less than a week ago that I wrote about The Judas Strain and here I am, writing about another James Rollins book. I just couldn’t resist buying one of his books and then I couldn’t put it down.

At first, I was almost afraid to read another of his books, in fear that after the great experience I had with the first one, this one might be a let down. Nope. The Doomsday Key definitely met and exceeded expectations.

Again, the mash up of genres: archaeological adventure, science/medical thriller, historical fiction, and more. This time, there was even more Vatican/Roman Catholic involvement in the plot and, although I’m sure it would be controversial to some, I certainly enjoyed the read.

This time the plot follows a little more in order (or perhaps I am just getting used to Rollins’ writing). Instead of five different storylines to follow, now there are really three primary lines to keep up with, making it much easier to follow when you do have to put it down (darn work!).

The story begins in the modern world (well, during Benedict XVI’s reign as pope), with three gruesome murders across the globe: one, in Rome, of a Vatican archaeologist; the second, in Africa, of a young man working at a Red Cross camp that is also doing research on GMO corn; and the third, of his genetics professor at Princeton. The main story, without ruining too much of the end, follows two key lines. The first, follows the investigation of the link between the second and third murders by Director Crowe, an investigation that reveals a great deal about the engineering going into GMO crops and the very real dangers of planting GMO seed. The second line follows Gray and his team as they follow the clues left by the Vatican Archaeologist, trying to find what it was that got him killed. As the danger mounts, both teams find themselves traveling around the globe to find the answers before it is too late.

The plot ends up involving Saints Bernard of Clairveaux and Malachy, Malachy’s prediction, the Black Madonna, and the ancient Egyptians. I, whose studies of Bernard of Clairveaux were limited to whatever Dr. John Sommerfeldt has told me, had no idea of the complicated conspiracy theories behind these two best-friend holy men. Rollins’ writing is just generous enough to keep from offending while entertaining and educating. Again, Rollins balances his incredible plot with compelling facts from history.

I give The Doomsday Key a solid 5. And, if you happen to have a copy of any of Rollins’ other books, I would love to borrow them.

The Judas Strain by James Rollins

This past week, I was on Alternative Spring Break with my students at the White Violet Center for Eco-Justice. While there, my friend Tracy Wilson lent me her copy of The Judas Strain. After reading only the preface, I simply did not want to put it down.

This book is like all great literary genres and modes all rolled into one. There is the historical fiction telling about Marco Polo’s travels, the scientific/medical thriller in the pandemic that is quickly spreading around the world threatening the entire population, the adventure of being on a ship taken over by pirates, the suspenseful story of the sweet older couple being tracked and tortured by would-be assassins, and the archaeological adventure story of chasing after the mysteries left by Polo’s descendants and later keepers of his secrets. Add to this a mysterious language, Vatican involvement, and the possibility of angels walking on earth and you have The Judas Strain. Even the title invokes memory of Judas betraying Christ, a literary character who has been revisited again and again. Perhaps the most intriguing part of the novel is the amount of seemingly fictional information that the author explains in his note at the end of the novel to be true.

So, you can see how this novel would appeal to me. As a history buff and philologist, as a devout Roman Catholic and employee of the RC Church (7 years running), and as someone who enjoys a good thriller, it is like this book was written just for me. And that’s not to mention that I love science literature and sci fi literature—one of my favorite classes was Faith and Sciences at the University of Dallas, taught by Dr. John Norris.

This was one great book. Explaining why is a challenge and I hope that I’m up to the task.

As a work of literature, it has everything. The characters are well written and you can see how they evolve throughout the story. By using multiple character perspectives, Rollins allows us to see each character through at least a couple lenses. The relationships between the characters are as complex as real-life relationships and following the ways that they change and grow makes the novel that much more real.

The plot is windy. A character met before the first chapter is lost until the end of chapter six. Storylines are dropped for a while and then picked up again, weaving a masterwork that brings multiple events and storylines into one larger story. But, while the plot is thick and takes a lot of concentration to follow at the beginning, eventually you can see how every word written ties into the larger tale.

While reason would lead you to question some of the decisions made (mostly by Vatican agents in the 1600s—I mean, come on, why split up a map into three different clues and hide them all over the world?), the pace of the story quickly gets you caught up in even the most intricate conspiracies. By the end, even the fantastical seems realistic (and, after all, the Church did do some pretty strange things during that century).

The end leaves nothing desired. While open to another story with the same characters and a new adventure, there are no loose ends that leave the reader dissatisfied: only new leads that could lead to a new story. And, as a big fan of Doctor Who, at the end I could almost hear Chris Eccleston saying, “Just once, Rose, just once everybody lives.” In spite of the mass death present throughout the book, at the end, there is no need for tears, only hope. That’s a good book.

I give The Judas Strain a solid 5.