Seven Ancient Wonders

By: Matthew Reilly

Narrated by: Sean Mangan

Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Thousands of years ago, a magnificent golden capstone sat atop the Great Pyramid of Giza. It was a source of immense power, capable of bestowing upon its holder absolute global rule for a thousand years.... But then, in 323 BC, the capstone was broken into seven pieces and spread to the corners of the Earth, hidden within the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World. Now, with the coming of a rare solar event, the time has come to locate the pieces and rebuild the capstone.

©2008 Matthew Reilly (P)2008 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd.

Critic reviews

"A nonstop roller-coaster ride that lurches around the globe." (Publishers Weekly)

"A novel that grabs readers by the hand and pulls them along until they're out of breath. It is impossible (even for hard-core cynics) not to love this big, boisterous, action-filled adventure." (Booklist)

Marvelous narrator reads awesome story

Would you listen to Seven Ancient Wonders again? Why?

I enjoy reading Matthew Rielly, but Sean mangan adds another level. I own all Matthew Reilly's read by Sean mangan.

Great Story

Loved this story. Matthew Reilly has included everything; adventure, intrigue, political tension, history. Wow. His weaving of current history into the story is very interesting. Makes you wonder about real life conspiracies.

I was majorly disappointed by the narration especially for such an action packed book. While I liked Sean Mangan's voice very much his narration was much too slow and I found it boring. In fact I put my iPod onto "faster" for 2/3's of the book and then it honestly became much more enjoyable. Try it.

Lots of Adventure

Well put together with really interesting information . . .really good fun read

Riveting

Fantastic story from beginning to end. Loved all the characters as they were all different but had the same goal. Family seemed a big part of this novel.
If you love history and looking into the past then you will love this book.
Sean Mangan is one of my favourite narrators as he makes all the characters come alive.
Another gripping Mathew Reilly novel

What did they know back then which is lost now?

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the only surviving wonder of the seven in our day, however the whereabouts of its 9ft high golden capstone are unknown. Reilly's description and detail for each of the locations of the treasures is cinematic in its scale. Huge temples hidden beneath the earth, Waterfalls of flowing lava and booby-traps to rival the opening scene in Raiders of the lost arch. His vision of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (the second oldest wonder to the Great Pyramid) is mind blowing and in typical Reilly fashion it is over sized and described in beautiful detail.

I only have only two issues with the story. Too soon into the tale the reader (in this case listener) is assumed to have made a connection with the characters, and the warmth and feelings he writes about are missed or over the top (this may just be me), with the details of the characters seeming secondary or lost to excellent detail he gives to his locations. The second issue I had (and this is not just with this book) is Reilly constantly repeating expressions. An example of this would be "A star shaped pool of blood" and "He fell like a marionette puppet with its strings cut" again this just maybe me but these fraises appeared at least 3 times each in this book.

Overall the premise of the story is fantastic and I feel the writing had more control to it than some of Reilly's original works. I would recommend this story to anyone who enjoys and Indiana Jones meets Tomb Raider plot. It will make you want to read/listen to the next two books in the series "The Six Sacred Stones" and "The Five Greatest Warriors".

Would definitely recommend

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this to a friend. Matthew Reilly is an amazing author.

What other book might you compare Seven Ancient Wonders to and why?

I would compare this book to the other series written by Matthew Reilly, Scarecrow. They are the same yet completely different.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narration was good until Sky Monster spoke. Sky Monster is a New Zealander however the voice used was an Australian accent. This is similar to using a Canadian accent when voicing an American and vice versa. Apart from this one slight flaw the narrator did a great job.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes I feel this way about all the books Matthew Reilly writes.

Action packed!

An fast paced adventure story that will keep you enthralled! Performed beautifully by Sean Mangan. Love this book!

Indiana Jones and The Da Vinci Code

Seven Ancient Wonders is Indiana Jones and The Da Vinci Code all rolled into one. A great action adventure story and better than the Scarecrow novels. Sean Mangan gives an excellent performance and the characters are awesome. Fans of Harry Potter, Dan Brown and the Indiana Jones movies should enjoy reading and listening to Seven Ancient Wonders by Matthew Reilly.

i just could not stop listening

What did you love best about Seven Ancient Wonders?

this would have too be one of the best matthew riley books around beaten only by scarecrow thank you matthew riley

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

YES most definatly it had me hooked

A Modern Doc Savage

This book reminded me of the "pulps" of Doc Savage in that the plot is everything and the characters are dimensionless. Unfortunately if it is to work one has to believe in the plot and this one is just too much. The "gadgets" are just ridiculous - for example a hovering, turreted 747.
Two stars because I listened to the end and the reader didn't laugh out loud!