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Title: The Romanov Cross

Author: Robert Masello

Narrator: Paul Boehmer

Format: Unabridged

Length: 18 hrs and 16 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-05-16

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 286 votes

Genres: Fiction, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Army epidemiologist Frank Slater is facing a court-martial, but after his punishment is mysteriously lifted, he is offered a job no one else wants - to travel to a small island off the coast of Alaska and investigate a potentially lethal phenomenon. The permafrost has begun to melt, exposing bodies from a colony that was wiped out by the dreaded Spanish flu of 1918. Frank must determine if the thawed remains still carry the deadly virus in their frozen flesh and, if so, ensure that it doesn't come back to life.

Frank and his handpicked team arrive by helicopter, prepared to exhume history. The colony, it transpires, was once settled by a sect devoted to the mad Russian monk Rasputin, but there is even more hiding in the past than Frank's team is aware of. Any hope of success hinges on their willingness to accept the fact that even their cutting-edge science has its limits and that the ancient wisdom of the Inuit people who once inhabited this eerie land is as essential as any serum. Frank soon finds himself in a brutal race against time. With a young, strong-willed Inuit woman by his side, he must put a deadly genie back in the bottle before all of humanity pays the price.

Critic Reviews:

"Tense, taut and impossible to put down." (Kirkus Reviews)

Members Reviews:

Meh

The plot is intriguing and interesting and how I wish It had been better handled by the publisher!

PROS:

The basic plot idea is excellent. Expert epidemiologist is recruited to go to Alaska to see what is happening to the graves on a remote island where everyone died from the Spanish Flu in 1918. The Romanovs of Russia are involved and the Inuit Indians. And the US Military. And lots of mystical, magical events. And why all this good stuff was necessary is an intriguing part of the story so - no spoilers. The principal characters start out with engaging and/or interesting and/or compelling stories.

Then it derails, ever so slowly. Various side plots were potentially SO interesting and engaging and they could have added SO much to the narrative. But they were all unfortunately read by a bad narrator and buried in detail and more detail and still more detail until I began to wonder if the author had been paid by the word. So, while this is a pro, its also a con.

Cons:

1. The narration is mostly overdone and, while not always terrible, it was just mostly terrible. For starters, Paul Boehmer is a scenery chewer. Everything that happens is delivered in florid tones so that no one ever speaks like normal humans speak. I cant convey it with the written word, but try to imagine if you were ordering a burger and fries in the same tone and with the same passion you would use if you were defending yourself against a charge of murder. Nobody in this story just talks. They all gush and declaim and ooze passion. I blame this on the narrator AND on the director.

1.a. Also about the narration he has about 3 voices - all male - and 2 accents (American and Russian). And thats pretty much it.

2. Too, too, too, too, too, too, too, too much detail. Way too much detail. An ocean of irrelevant unnecessary detail. Details that s . l . o . w . the pace of the story to an absolute crawl in some places or... more precisely in many places.

Overall:

Its a pretty OK book that could have been a really good book with the help of a good editor.