Cleopatra's Vendetta by Avanti Centrae Book Review

About the Book:

Born a goddess, Cleopatra died a prisoner. But the cobra's deadly kiss was just the beginning...
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Bari, Italy, present day. Think tank Special Ops leader Timothy Stryker and his wife Angie, a self-made CEO, haven’t exactly been seeing eye-to-eye. They take a much-needed Italian holiday, but it comes to a shocking end when Angie and their daughter are kidnapped.
 
Still raw from the death of their infant son, Stryker is desperate to rescue Angie and reconcile their differences. As he works to locate the captors’ lair, he discovers the kidnappers are behind a string of recent assassinations and attempting another high-profile hit in only seven days. But when he learns their plans for his only remaining child, the scab on his heart tears open and blood begins to spill.
 
Working from inside her brutal captors’ high-security compound, Angie realizes the cabal is hiding an ancient secret using modern propaganda techniques. And as Stryker races hitmen across India, Egypt, and Greece to thwart the next assassination and save his family, he has to connect a series of deadly dots tracing all the way back to the time of Cleopatra. Ultimately, the estranged pair must shake the deeply-buried pillars of western civilization to save their four-year-old daughter from an unspeakable fate.

You can watch the book trailer here. 

My Review:

Centrae has given readers another action packed adventure in international intrigue enveloped in interesting historical information. I love the cutting edge technical equipment the team has, even custom made silicone masks for disguises. The characters do lots of travel and the various setting include a wealth of cultural information. I really appreciated the author note at the end, explaining historical facts and cutting edge technical feats, like creating deepfake photos and videos.

The plot has centuries old roots in the life and death of Cleopatra. I appreciated the information included about her. There are several twists and turns in the action, as well as a surprise mole hampering the work of the team. And what a thought provoking exploration of whether God is male or not.

This novel centers more on the character Stryker and his family. I like how the character of Stryker's wife is well developed in her experiences. There is a good balance of personal life and action throughout the fast paced novel.

This is another good novel from Centrae for readers who like international intrigue, adventure and suspense, interesting historical information and the latest in technology and equipment.

This is the beginning of a news series with roots in Centrae's earlier novels. You can read my reviews of VanOps: The Lost Power, Solstice Shadows, and The Doomsday Medallion.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

About the Author:

Avanti Centrae always wanted to be a writer. Her father served as a U.S. marine corporal in Okinawa, gathering military intelligence during the first decade after the Korean War and her mom was a teacher who loved antiques. She grew up haunting silver bookmobiles in the Midwest but her practical family urged her to get a degree in computer technology, which she did. Eventually, she became a Silicon Valley IT executive, but her heart wasn’t in it. Before her hair began to turn gray, she had a health scare, which forced her to face her own mortality. At the top of the bucket list was becoming a bestselling author. She decided to break free of the golden handcuffs to pursue her dream. After years of drafting, editing, and finding an agent and publisher, her debut, VanOps: The Lost Power, released as an instant Barnes and Noble Nook bestseller. It went on to win three literary awards. Solstice Shadows, VanOps #2 quickly became a #1 Amazon bestseller in the U.S. and Canada, before winning a bronze medal at the Readers' Favorite book awards and nabbing the Chanticleer Global Thrillers Genre Grand Prize. The Doomsday Medallion won Best Political Thriller in the annual BestThrillers.com contest, an Honorable Mention at the Southern California Book Awards, was a quarterfinalist in the Publisher's Weekly Booklife contest, and was a finalist in the Book Excellence Awards and in the Best Books awards. It also hit the Top 100 in the Canadian and Australian Amazon Kindle stores. Cleopatra's Vendetta also won two awards and is garnering critical acclaim. Her work has been compared to that of James Rollins, Steve Berry, Dan Brown, and Clive Cussler but her trademark blend of trademark blend of intrigue, history, science, and mystery is hers alone. When not travelling the world or hiking in the Sierra mountains, she’s writing her next breathtaking thriller in Northern California, helped by her family and distracted by her German shepherds.

Thunder Creek Press, 382 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)