Cleopatra’s Vendetta is a fast-paced thriller with an unusual background story. Cleopatra, after being defeated by Octavius, has a servant/spy hide a map to her secret stash of gold. She also hides images of female deities, before she kills herself. Centuries later, three American women and their two children are kidnapped from a bar in Bari, Italy. These women are the wives and friends of an American Special Ops group. Stryker, whose wife Angie and daughter Harper are among the kidnapped victims, must find the women. They soon uncover a group called the Sons of Adam and learn that somehow everything is related to Cleopatra. The team travels all over Italy, Greece, the Ionian Islands, Egypt, and India to solve the mystery.
Author Centrae’s prose is sharp; her characters show a moderate amount of depth and emotion and some forward growth in their character arcs. However, I look to Daniel Silva for the ultimate in thrillers. His Gabriel Allon is a deep, rich man with ethics whose life evolves over time. Also, Silva’s details make me feel like I’m back in the Jewish ghetto in Venice, for example, or standing right before the artwork he describes. I was not fully transported by Cleopatra’s Vendetta, but those who love a snappy read with machine-gun pace and a conspiracy with world-wide involvement, this may be the read for you.
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Cleopatra’s Vendetta (Thunder Creek Press, November 15, 2022) is available through Amazon.
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