The Omega Factor by Steve Berry
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Web ID: 14966528Historical intrigue involving the Mother Mary
I really enjoyed this thriller mystery that revolved around a gospel written by John (unknown until this time) which reveals the life of Mother Mary after Jesus Christ is crucified. I always like books that involve some spiritual aspect, like the one in the Robert Landon book involving the family tree of Jesus Christ. Although both are works of fiction, it's fun to sometimes venture into those lands with a fictional attitude. The MC travels around the world trying to secure the book and has to deal with Vatican politics, religious zealots and many others. I want to thank the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for giving me an e-copy of this book, in return for an honest review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Historical references
Berry has written a fascinating thriller with lots of historical references. If you are a fan of Dan Brown’s sagas this is a must read. 3.5 Stars
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
perfect for Berry fans
The Omega Factor (Hardcover) by Steve Berry "Christ came and died. Then men created a religion to worship him. They formed it. Molded it. Adapted it. So, understandably, they fashioned it in their thoughts and images. Eventually, they needed a woman, someone to counter the masculinity that they'd gone out of their way to infuse, so they invented Mary...The Bible tells us that she lived. But beyond that, it says little more. It was up to the men of the church in the second, third, and fourth centuries to make her more. And they did. She was deemed born of an Immaculate Conception, free of original sin...And finally, she was assumed into heaven, body and soul." p. 393 Stand aside, Cotton Malone - Nicholas (Nick) Lee is the subject of this stand-alone book by Steve Berry. Nick works for the UN Cultural Liason and Investigation Office (CLIO), a branch of UNESCO. He receives an urgent call from Sister Kelsey McKenzie Deal - a love interest, who happens to be restoring the 12th panel from the Ghent Altarpiece. Surprisingly, Kelsey discovers that the original 15th-century altarpiece is underneath the one she's restoring. Unfortunately, the altarpiece is destroyed and a woman dies. Nick witnesses the event and following the thief discovers it was a nun - who packs a big punch. The nun escapes but Nick recovers the computer with the pictures of the original panel. This is when Berry goes to work. There is a connection between John Van Eyck - who authored the mantelpiece - and a group of nuns who goes by The Maidens of St. Michael - Les Vautours, Vultures, a secret order of nuns and the guardians of a great truth. Sidelining the plot is Bernard de Foix - a Cathar Prefectus - who's interested in the altarpiece, but also has an interest in avenging his mother. Bernard is the son of Archbishop Gerald Vilamur who not only violated his oath of celibacy but also protected known pedophiles. Among them is Father Louis Tallard who abused Bernard's protege, Andre Labelle. Add a corrupt cardinal - Hector Cardinal Fuentes - who will stop at nothing until he can eliminate the threat posed to the Church on whether Mary ascended to heaven both in body and soul. This secret is guarded by The Maidens of St. Michael - les Vautours, Vultures - so known because they have a vulture tattooed to their bodies. Cardinal Fuentes knows the pope is dying - he has a brain tumor that will kill him soon - and he wants to prove to the Curia that he can protect the Church by safeguarding the secret the Maidens possess. There are allusions to Joan of Arc, the Albigensian Crusade, and the massacre at Béziers, arriving on July 21, 1209, and killing thousands of Cathars. Berry also adds The Inquisition and the role the Dominicans played - according to this book - to the present day. From the tranquil canals of Ghent, to the towering bastions of Carcassonne, and finally into an ancient abbey high in the French Pyrenees, Nick Lee must confront a modern-day religious crusade intent on eliminating a shocking truth from humanity’s past. Success or failure - life and death - all turn on the Omega Factor. Narrated from the third person point of view, this is a fascinating, fast-paced book. There are many past historical references - some true, some altered - that keep the reader intrigued and involved. The characters are well developed, the plot has many twists and turns and if you're a fan of Berry, you will not be dissapointed.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A really bad book
Steve Berry has been one of my favorite authors, and I am disappointed by the horrible syntax which only vaguely resembles English, the tortured plot, and implausible ending which finally, mercifully, concludes this non-thriller.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Too Many Words
I have been a fan of Steve Berry novels from before Cotton Malone made his debut. I hoped that this new book with new characters would mark a needed change from the last few lackluster books. I was wrong. While the historical back story is interesting, it is repeated ad nauseam. It also seems that the author repeatedly extends the storyline from the perspective of different characters to add more pages to what is essentially a novella. This will be the last Berry thriller I will read, ending a long run of entertaining reading that he has provided for quite some time.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
What is Hidden and Why?
Steve Berry has given us the beginning of a new series, featuring UNESCO cultural troubleshooter Nick Lee. Nick travels to Ghent to reconnect with the woman he once planned to marry, until she entered the convent. Kelsey is an art restorer, working on the recovered panel of the Ghent Altarpiece, the most vandalized/stolen art in the world. As he arrives at her workshop, he finds it on fire and, rushing in, sees Kelsey fighting with an assailant and the panel destroyed. Who would destroy this priceless art? What secrets did it hold? Nick and Kelsey battle unknown forces to find the answers. Highly recommended.. #TheOmegaFactor #NetGalley #SaltMarshAuthors
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com