Book Review: 30 Pieces of Silver

30 Pieces of Silver
by Carolyn McCray
Thriller
Ebook and paperback
4 Stars

Blurb:

The Eiffel Tower is attacked…by a Christian suicide bomber.

Within the twisted wreckage a cache of bones is found. Bones that are inscribed with ancient Greek, letters that identify the remains as those of John the Baptist—and a promise to guide the seeker to the tomb of the Savior himself.

Tasked with untangling this millennia-old mystery, Dr. Rebecca Monroe, a paleo-archeologist, and Special Forces, Sergeant Vincent Brandt are hounded across three continents to attempt to piece together the bones’ clues. But their quest will not be an easy one. Born at the foot of the Cross, a secret society known only as the Knot has guarded the Savior’s bones, and they will do anything—even commit genocide—to protect the dark and controversial truth of Christ’s final days.

Review:

There's a standing joke in our house that I only read book with pictures of a red cross on the front. Things like Secret of the Templars, The Templar Code etc. It's true, I do have a soft spot for religious conspiracy thrillers ever since I read the Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.

30 Pieces of Silver is only like the Da Vinci Code in the broadest sense in that it deals with a religous conspiracy and a secret society determined to keep it secret at all costs, even if that means murder and mayhem. It's action-filled and even a little bit of romance in there too. The characters are well-drawn, even the bad guys, there are no cardboard cut-outs here.

I think the writing is very good and it's well-paced, but the modern day sections had a bit too many car chases and explosions for my taste, as if the author wanted to catch the eye of a film producer somewhere down the line.

My favourite parts were the historical sections dealing with Judas, a character who really came alive in this book. I don't think I've ever read a book dealing with Judas before and it was intriguing and fascinatiing. I started skimming the modern day parts wanting to get back to the historical bits!

The book is entertaining but I don't think it's as controversial as the cover makes out, but then again, no matter what's written in any book, someone somewhere is bound to find it objectinable, aren't they?

I liked it and I'll give some other books by this author a go.

Reviewed by Annette Gisby