Book Review – THE SIX SACRED STONES by Matthew Reilly
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| The Six Sacred Stones – Matthew Reilly |
The Six Sacred Stones is action-packed and an enjoyable read but has Matthew Reilly bitten off more than even he can chew this time?
Jack West Jr., the seemingly invincible defender of the free world and all round nice guys’ peace and solitude on his farm in outback Australia is rudely interrupted by an army of invaders one morning. This sets in motion the coming together of all our favourite characters that helped Jack save the world last time in The Seven Ancient Wonders – Pooh Bear, Wizard, Stretch, Sky Monster, Lily and Zoe.
I enjoyed the addition of several new characters to the merry band such as the computer geek Twins and a friend for Jack’s adopted daughter Lily, named Alby. The subtle but developing relationship between Jack and Zoe was a nice touch, as was the appearance of one of the Scarecrow characters’ ‘never leave home without it’ devices in this story. Reilly fans will know what I mean by this!
Most pleasingly though in this instalment we are treated to a look inside the world of Jack West Jr., his family and upbringing, shining further light on what makes him tick.
What makes The Six Sacred Stones different to any of the previous books written by Matthew Reilly?
It is the fact that the story is only halfway through when you reach the end of the novel. The Six Sacred Stones presents readers a cliff hanger like no other I have seen in a fiction series. It is so abrupt. I don’t consider this a spoiler, more like a community service announcement – readers soon figure it out for themselves when the pages start running out with many of the stated goals yet to be achieved. Reilly himself admits it is very much like waiting for the next season of a TV show that has ended on a cliff hanger.
I honestly do not think this is Matthew Reilly’s greatest work. Granted I read books by this author for pure escapist fun but at times this story is still just that little too big I think, even for him. The feat they are seeking to achieve appeared too complex at times – there are just so many different pieces of the puzzle that need to fit together to achieve their goal. My favourite books by Reilly remain his Scarecrow Series which are more self-contained and in particular the novel Ice Station
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BOOK RATING: The Story 4 / 5 ; The Writing 3 / 5
BOOK DETAILS: The Six Sacred Stones (The Book Depository) The Six Sacred Stones
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Author Information: Matthew Reilly is an Australian Author.
This book counts towards my participation in the Chunkster Challenge (570 pages) and the Finish That Series Challenge.
A selection of other titles by Reilly:
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I'm with you – not his best but still a cracking read, and I think Ice Station is my favourite, I read it in one day, I just couldn't put it down! 5 Greatest Warriors is (imo) again not quite as good as 6SS (which was not as good as 7AW), but I enjoyed the ride and also satisfied my curiosity as to what happened to Jack
My favorite Reillys are still ICE STATION and AREA 7. I've read the rest of them with varying degrees of interest. SCARECROW I couldn't finish. But I'm like you, I'll keep reading them if he keeps writing them.
I had that happen to me with Pirates of the Caribean 2, felt so pissed off as a movie goer. I expect a full book or a full movie not half a story.
I have a complicated relationship with Matthew Reilly (or rather, his books). 7 Ancient Wonders was the first one I read by him, and I loved it. I agree with you about 6 Sacred Stones. I enjoyed it, but didn't feel it was quite as good as 7AW. The next in the series, 5 Greatest Warriors, I found way over the top, but fair enough entertainment. Then I made the mistake of reading Temple which IMO was utterly rubbish. I came very close to hurling the book across the room. After that I was apprehensive about reading anything else by Reilly, but as I had 3 Scarecrow books on my shelf, I picked up Ice Station – and loved it. Now that I've come full circle, I can only wonder what my next Reilly experience will be like..