The Charlemagne Pursuit

A Novel

By: Steve Berry

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 16 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

As a child, former Justice Department agent Cotton Malone was told his father died in a submarine disaster in the North Atlantic, but now he wants the full story and asks his ex-boss, Stephanie Nelle, to secure the military files. What he learns stuns him: His father’s sub was a secret nuclear vessel lost on a highly classified mission beneath the ice shelves of Antarctica. But Malone isn’t the only one after the truth. Twin sisters Dorothea Lindauer and Christl Falk are fighting for the fortune their mother has promised to whichever of them discovers what really became of their father - who died on the same submarine that Malone’s father captained.

The sisters know something Malone doesn’t: Inspired by strange clues discovered in Charlemagne’s tomb, the Nazis explored Antarctica before the Americans, as long ago as 1938. Now Malone discovers that cryptic journals penned in “the language of heaven”, inscrutable conundrums posed by an ancient historian, and the ill-fated voyage of his father are all tied to a revelation of immense consequence for humankind. In an effort to ensure that this explosive information never rises to the surface, Langford Ramsey, an ambitious navy admiral, has begun a brutal game of treachery, blackmail, and assassination. As Malone embarks on a dangerous quest with the sisters - one that leads them from an ancient German cathedral to a snowy French citadel to the unforgiving ice of Antarctica - he will finally confront the shocking truth of his father’s death and the distinct possibility of his own.

©2008 Steve Berry (P)2008 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Those who relish suspense in the Da Vinci Code vein will snap this one up, the best yet in the series." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Berry outdoes himself in his latest Cotton Malone adventure....Mixed in with the complicated action, Berry finds the time to explore the characters as well, making this his most personal and best book to date." ( Library Journal)

like the book

Love the History and the characters, hope to find out how Cotton got his nickname.

Not Steve Berry's finest...

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

This was probably my least favorite of all of Steve Berry's books in the Cotton Malone series. The story was not nearly as captivating, much of the time you wonder why anyone even cares about the "lost civilization," and the characters outside of the series regulars are not particularly interesting, and often downright annoying. Much of the book takes place from numerous different points of view, and due to it being an audiobook with no visual cues for scene changes, I felt that it made the plot difficult to follow. Some scenes were only a few sentences or small paragraph long, and the constant switching chapter after chapter made it more of a challenge than a pleasure.

Would you ever listen to anything by Steve Berry again?

Of course. So long as it is read by Scott Brick. His narration is among my all time favorites.

Meh

Had trouble following the story probably because I couldn't listen to it straight through. It jumps from one scene to another like a Ludlum novel, which tells me it has to be read (or heard) in LONG stretches to make sense. I found myself mocking the narrator's style out loud in the car...The descriptive passages were fine, but almost every line of dialogue was spoken the same way (even the ones with the German accents). There was little distinction between male, female, friend, foe, old, young...they all sounded to me like they'd been press-fit into the mold of Mae West's "Come up and SEE me sometime, big boy." I don't know any real human beings who actually talk that way, and so I found myself pretty disgusted with the narrator.

keep them coming!

love this series. I buy the new same day I finish one. good story only neg jumped a little fast between scenes made it hard to follow on audio book.

Intriguing historical elements

Another fun Cotton Malone ride through the ages. Not my favorite narrator, and the story lacks a bit in world threat, but I enjoyed the history lesson and possibilities.

Phenomenal!!

Love the story, love the detail, and I love the reader, Scott Brick. Everything written by Steve Berry and read by Scott Brick is just wonderful. They go together like peanut butter and jelly!

Blockbuster!

Fast-paced, super intrigue, action and suspense, with great twists. Very addictive. Berry is a superb author and every Scott Brick narrated novel reigtns supreme.

Adventure with Historical interests

The auditory is some of the best. The story line is written with historical intrigue and adventure.

Great story

Great listening. Facinating descriptions of places, some of which many of us have visited me

Thought Provoking

The meticulous research that Steve Berry does in his books is extraordinary. This book has so many thought provoking insights. Berries attention to detail interwoven with exceptional character development and storyline, immerses the listener into each scene as though they were there with Cotton Malone. This book is the audible listeners equivalent to a "page turner". I have always been fascinated by the theory of lost Atlantis. Although hotly debated by the scientific community still an intriguing concept.