Book Review: Bloodline by James Rollins

"Bloodline" by best-selling author James Rollins (William Morrow, $27.99) seems destined to be one of the season's hottest selling books.

 

The eighth in his exceptionally popular Sigma Force series sizzles with non-stop action set in contemporary times, although the brief prologue takes place centuries earlier.

 

Rollins' heroes are all members of the Sigma Force, a group described as "Special Forces soldiers who had been retrained in various scientific disciplines . . . a covert wing of DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency."

 

Usually, they're called out to protect against global threats - but this time their initial mission is different.

 

Their new assignment is to track down and safely release Amanda Gant-Bennett, the president's pregnant daughter, who has been kidnapped off a yacht by Somali pirates.  If that seems like an easy task, be warned, it's going to be a lot tougher than it sounds.

 

The Sigma Force members face significant challenges as they attempt a rescue; pirates and others with evil intentions make landfall and move her through a mountainous area.

 

The cast of characters includes many familiar faces plus a pair of new operatives, former Army Ranger Tucker Wayne and his exceptional military war dog Kane.

 

The sequel to "The Devil Colony" explodes with tense action at various sites in the United States as well as Somalia and Dubai.

 

As usual, there's an innovative, distinctive scientific aspect to the plotline.  This time is involves sneaky members of the mysterious Guild and their carefully orchestrated attempts to achieve immortality through genetics at all costs.

 

Wayne and his dog Kane add an interesting dimension to the rescue effort - they first- appeared in "Tracker", an e-book original short story.

 

Rollins, one of the world's best thriller writers, takes the reader on an incredibly fast paced literary roller-coaster ride that's hard to beat.

 

"Bloodline" features strong woman characters, intriguing interaction, cutting-edge science and seemingly endless nerve-wracking scenes teeming with violence.

 

The corkscrew plot is certainly not predictable; loyal fans and newcomers should find Rollins' latest effort exhilarating.

 

The quest for Immortality isn't over - it's just beyond Mankind's reach - for now!

 

Ray Walsh, owner of East Lansing's Curious Book Shop, 

has reviewed thrillers and crime novels regularly since 1987.

 

This review was originally published by 

the Lansing State Journal on Sunday, July 15, 2012.