The legacy of Robert Ludlum lives on in Steve Berry. And for fans of intelligent thrillers, that is a very good thing.

The Alexandria Link tells the story of Cotton Malone, former US spy turned antique bookseller, who is pulled back into action by a global cabal who kidnaps his son to get him turn over a link to the famed and long-thought-destroyed Library of Alexandria. What's so important about the library? Let's just say the foundation of Judaism, Islam and Christianity.

Berry is a good writer who develops very real characters and puts them in extraordinary situations. Interestingly, he is able to balance non-stop action with more cerebral pursuits involving big puzzles (a la Da Vinci Code). Every now and again, his save-the-hero moments can seem a bit contrived, but you have to remember that this is fantasy.

Good characters. Good mystery. Good action. A quick read, if you want it, but easy to savour, as well."

This book was excellent, this book and Steve Berry's "The Templar Legacy" are in my opinion, his best works in this series. I never burned through a book this quick since "The DaVinci Code"

Book2 in the Cotton Malone series

This daring and thrilling novel opens with a confrontation between Malone and his ex-wife Pam over the handling of their teenage son's kidnapping and their narrow escape from the fire bombing of his bookstore. This has all the appearances of an attempt to blackmail Cotton into revealing a secret he sworn to never disclose…the existence of the Library of Alexandria.

This sudden turn of events has Cotton returning to his roots as a secret agent and teaming up with wife Pam. They are lead from Amsterdam, on to Lisbon, England and to the Sinai desert as they follow a series of clues that will hopefully lead them to the Library and the safe release of their son.

This is one fast paced and intriguing tale that intertwines facts with fiction beautifully. Pros and cons of different religious believes of the world are questioned and of course, like the last novel another secret society comes to light with its members of influence and power both political and financial. As usual some may find this controversial.

Mr. Berry has resurrected his full cast from "The Templar Legacy" and provided another wild adventure full of double crossing to leave the reader breathless and quite entertained. I enjoyed the author's take on what I consider a James Bond -Indiana Jones type of thriller.

Very good read. Fast pace. Interesting historical background. A little far-fetched at times but still credible. I discovered Steve Berry with this book and went back to read the rest of his works.