Back Cover:
The Rand scientific expedition entered the lush wilderness of the
Amazon and never returned. Years later, one of its members has stumbled
out of the worlds most inhospitable rainforest—a former Special Forces
soldier, scarred, mutilated, terrified, and mere hours from death, who
went in with one arm missing . . . and came out with both intact.
Unable to comprehend this inexplicable event, the government sends
Nathan Rand into this impenetrable secret world of undreamed-of perils,
to follow the trail of his vanished father . . . toward mysteries that must
be solved at any cost. But the nightmare that is awaiting Nate and his
team of scientists and seasoned U.S. Rangers dwarfs any danger they
anticipated . . . an ancient, unspoken terror—a power beyond human
imagining—that can forever alter the world beyond the dark, lethal
confines of . . .
This book starts out fast-moving and maintains that level of action throughout the rest. Nathan Rand serves as a great, though reluctant, hero. Though he was initially against the expedition, the thought of finding out what happened to his father is too much for him to resist. The variety of obstacles they face on their way to the heart of the jungle, such as mutated, poisonous piranhas and carniverous locusts, make him doubt whether the knowledge is worth it. However, it is not only finding out what happened to his father that spurs him on, the plague spreading among Amazon villages, as well as the Southern United States, is an added incentive to find out what happened to his father's expedition and what it has to do with the plague. The hope is that by finding those answers will lead them to a cure.
This was a fabulous book. I have never been disappointed with anything that James Rollins has written. He does a wonderful job of keeping the suspense up until he is ready to reveal the heart of the mystery. I definitely recommend this for anyone looking for a thriller with a scientific edge.
