Review - The Anomaly by Michael Rutger

The Anomaly by Michael Rutger

Published 14th June 2018 by Zaffre

Star Rating - ****

Goodreads Challenge - 22/50

I was gifted a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Not all secrets are meant to be found.

If Indiana Jones lived in the X-Files era, he might bear at least a passing resemblance to Nolan Moore -- a rogue archaeologist hosting a documentary series derisively dismissed by the "real" experts, but beloved of conspiracy theorists.

Nolan sets out to retrace the steps of an explorer from 1909 who claimed to have discovered a mysterious cavern high up in the ancient rock of the Grand Canyon. And, for once, he may have actually found what he seeks. Then the trip takes a nasty turn, and the cave begins turning against them in mysterious ways.

Nolan's story becomes one of survival against seemingly impossible odds. The only way out is to answer a series of intriguing questions: What is this strange cave? How has it remained hidden for so long? And what secret does it conceal that made its last visitors attempt to seal it forever? 

My Thoughts

I was kind enough to be sent a copy of this one from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I initially requested is as it was blurbed for fans of Dan Brown, which I am, and I definitely agree with that. If your a fan of fast paced, thrilling reads with an adventure type aspect then I would recommend this book for you. 

In this one we follow a group of characters as they embark on an adventure to find a legendary hidden cavern somewhere in the Grand Canyon. This book was fast paced and action packed. There was always something going which often kept you on the edge of your seat. The writing was engaging and there was some elements of mystery and intrigue woven throughout the story which kept me engaged. I liked the inclusion of the historical documents scattered throughout the end of some of the chapters but I wouldn't like to comment on the historical accuracy of these. I also will say, although they offered an extra element of interest to the book I did struggle to see how some of them added to the story. I maybe would of liked them explained a bit more. The overarching mystery surrounding the cavern was also interesting but again, I would of liked a bit more explanation when it came to the reveal, it felt a bit lacking if I'm honest. That being said there were definitely some shocking plot twists that I didn't see coming within the story. 

I enjoyed our group of main characters as a whole. Each one had a distinctive personality but they worked well together as a group. Two of our main characters, Nolan and Ken, were quite brash and blunt. They didn't beat around the bush and said things how they were. The swore a lot and smoked a lot, your quite stereotypical middle age man character, but I think this suited there characters well. They were able to bring some humour to the group. Molly was my favourite character, she had some monsters in her closet and as the story progressed you discovered what these were but she was able to put these aside and work through them and her determination shone through. I will say I would of liked a little bit more development of the overarching 'villain' in this book (if you've read it you'll know who/what I mean) but I think this is going to be an ongoing series so maybe we will see that as we go. 

Overall I really enjoyed this book. It was really fast paced and action packed and as a result meant it was quite a quick read. I found myself not wanting to put it down which, to me, is the sign of a good book.

Overall Rating