The Blood Gospel

The Order of the Sanguines, Book 1

By: James Rollins, Rebecca Cantrell

Narrated by: Christian Baskous

Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

An earthquake in Masada, Israel, kills hundreds and reveals a tomb buried in the heart of the mountain. A trio of investigators - Sergeant Jordan Stone, a military forensic expert; Father Rhun Korza, a Vatican priest; and Dr. Erin Granger, a brilliant but disillusioned archaeologist - are sent to explore the macabre discovery, a subterranean temple holding the crucified body of a mummified girl.

But a brutal attack at the site sets the three on the run, thrusting them into a race to recover what was once preserved in the tomb's sarcophagus: a book rumored to have been written by Christ's own hand, a tome that is said to hold the secrets to His divinity. The enemy who hounds them is like no other, a force of ancient evil directed by a leader of impossible ambitions and incalculable cunning.

©2013 James Rollins and Rebecca Cantrell (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers

The DaVinci Code with Vampires...

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The first chapters of this book were exciting, and the book could've taken many interesting directions - but the vampire direction that the book took lost me. I finished the book because it was entertaining enough, but it was definitely a little "out there". I would have definitely kept the first 100 or so pages of this book and then taken the story in a completely different direction, far away from the vampire fad of this decade. I would quickly (and in an oversimplification) sum it up as The DaVinci Code with vampires.

Was The Blood Gospel worth the listening time?

It's entertaining enough, but not fantastic. Though, after you start it, you do want to know how it ends, even if the story is just mediocre.

It has it all!

Where does The Blood Gospel rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Truly high, it travels through history has immortals of all kinds, and honors Christ.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Rune

Which scene was your favorite?

Rune and Erin

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

Yes

Any additional comments?

NO

Surprisingly Different!

Great story and performance. My only dislike was some of the narrators whispering moments... with the addition of emulating a accent and whispering it was difficult to understand parts. Other than that it was fantastic.

Enjoyable!

Where does The Blood Gospel rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

In the top %

What did you like best about this story?

Action and historical drama all rolled into 1

Have you listened to any of Christian Baskous’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

yes - very well done

Priests and Vampires and Archeologists, Oh My!

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

I loved this audio book. James Rollins and Rebecca Cantrell worked together to create a hybrid of their individual genres and I think it works. I like the twists on accepted wisdom with regard to the Church. It is certainly possible that devout Christians might be somewhat offended by the storyline and they should consider reading something else. As an amateur scholar in First Century Christian History, I really enjoyed the extrapolations from real history into a really wild, romantic "what if?" story. Let us remember that vampires in the story allow the writers to time travel with characters in real time which is a very effective literary device. The story can span many centuries and provide first person perspective on remote events in history without the worry of how the flux capacitor works. Christian Baskous, who did the audio version, did truly excellent work with the reading. He created each of the myriad characters as utterly distinct from one another, from a mysteriously menacing 16th century priest to the doe-eyed and intellectually voracious blonde archeologist with a nice rack. I was amazed at how atmospheric his reading was. This story has plenty of atmosphere, let me tell you. It swings through history and geography, science and the supernatural, and Mr. Baskous's reading is beautifully evocative of each time and place and character. Wonderful.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved Professor Erin Granger. She is a true scientist with the real understanding of human emotion. Perfect as the primary perspective through which this story unfolds.

Which character – as performed by Christian Baskous – was your favorite?

Rhun Korza. Romantic, tortured, fabulously male and richly realized in Mr. Baskous's wonderful voice. Jordan Stone was a close second. He is heroic and manly in a straightforward, very American way. Both men so different. Mr. Baskous is a really talented artist.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Blood Gospel: Sacred Revelation

Any additional comments?

I can't wait for Book 2.

wanted to like it but couldnt

I love this genre and wanted to like this sstory but could tell what was going on half the time. disappointed.

it's not angels and demons...but it's still good.

I hated some of the voices but guess he did them justice. I approve of all of it

Um, What Was This Book About Again?

Yeah, as a fan of Rollins' Sigma Force stories, as well as most of the stand alones, I was expecting a rip-roaring tale from "Blood Gospel." I don't know, either this was the driest vampire tale I've ever read or it was the driest vampire tale Baskous ever read, but this one tried to put me to sleep. Though, out of my respect and enjoyment of past Rollins tales I did make it through all 12+ hours!

Was it the reader, or was it the writing? It's hard to say. Perhaps a bit of both. The story has the classic 50's sci-fi movie set up with the ballsy, brash Hero, the intellectual and repressed Heroine and a Quest, but it's missing the fun! The interplay between the Hero and the Heroine is limited to exposition as dialog and action sequences. We learn about their growing mutual attraction through inner dialog. And then there are the vampire priests - zzzz

Guilty vampires are interesting if their guilt drives them to action (Blood Oath). Pious guilty vampires, turns out, are a lot less interesting.

Baskous' narration, with its white-noise pitch and cadence, didn't help. He wasn't feelin' it, or maybe there just wasn't much to feel.

Incredible

I'm a long-time fan of James Rollins and have been waiting for this book since he first mentioned it. The book is incredible. There is an intimacy about the book that brings the characters to life as we find out their background stories. It made me care for what at first might seem to be at least one unsympathetic character.

When I first heard that there might be the "v" word type of characters in the book I has hesitant to read it - but I have read everything by Rollins so couldn't let this one go by. I was not disappointed. Well, my only disappointment is that I have to wait a year for the second part of the trilogy.

My one problem (minor) is with the narrator. He does some incredible accents - but some of them are so heavy that I have a hard time understanding what the character is saying. I think when I relisten to the book (prior to the second part coming out) I may have a copy of the book to refer to so I know what is being said. But this is certainly not a reason not to listen to it.

I can't say enough good things about this book. Maybe I will just go ahead and re-listen to it. It was that good.

Great mix of religion and mystery!

I enjoyed the book very much!

I would recommend this to my friends. I love the play on myths, religion and mystery. Great plot and narrator