The Judas Strain audiobook

James Rollins' novels generally remind me of some weird combination of Michael Crichton, Dan Brown, and Tom Clancy -- none of whom are among my favorite authors. Rollins is, though -- I love the combination of myth/legend, science, and intrigue. The Judas Strain starts with a viral outbreak, follows Marco Polo to Cambodia (via an ancient manuscript), and has the SIGMA team tracking terrorists on three continents. If that sounds far-fetched, it's only because you haven't read it. Rollins nearly always leaves me thinking "huh. What if ....?".

A friend recommended James Rollins to me as I like books by Dan Brown, and Steve Barry. I have read a couple of his books so far and am in complete agreement with my friend. I find that the books start off in a very exciting way and hold my attention throughout. In this book, The Judas Strain, I am learning about Marco Polo and the mystery surrounding his 24 year voyage that took him to the palaces of Kublai Khan in China. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a historical thriller.

After finishing The Judas Strain, I remain a HUGE James Rollins fan! I think Map of Bones and Sandstorm are my favorite books in the Sigma Force series, but really, they are all superb adventures, and The Judas Strain is no exception.After reading 4 books in the series, I'm completely invested in these characters. I have images of them in my head. I know and love or hate their personalities. I root for their success and worry at their failures and ultimately, I want them to save the world. I think that's something special about a series of books as opposed to a stand alone novel, you really become attached to the people you're reading about.The Judas Strain has so much going on - pandemics, cannibalism, cruise ship hijacking, Marco Polo and lots more. It spans the globe from Washington DC to Christmas Island, The Vatican, Istanbul and finally the ancient city of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.Do yourself and favor and Google the locations mentioned around the world in Rollins' books. He bases his adventures on real places, so it is fascinating to submerge yourself in the imagery of the locations by looking them up. Angkor Wat for example is incredible looking in photos, and it was so fun to really "see" what was being described in the book.At this point, I feel like I really cant go wrong with Rollins' style.

"Why the bubonic plague suddenly arose out of China's Gobi desert during the middle ages and slew a third of the world's population remains unknown. In fact, no one knows why so many plagues and influenza of the last century - SARS, the Avian flu- have arisen out of Asia. But what is known with fair certainty: the next great pandemic will arise again out of the East. - US Centers for Disease control and prevention, May 2006" - This quote in the beginning of the book, was so eerily apropos, now that the world is under threat of corona virus, also originated from China! This had my attention and kept me interested throughout . This is combo offer of Michael Crichton and Dan Brown- Solving of historical puzzle by Dan Brown and the action and gore, with mutants and freaks, by Crichton. Though it was absolute non-sense, it was a fun read with nonstop mindless action. I am rating this as 4, for its pure entertainment value. The bonus was the virtual tour of so many historical places, events and their significance, lessons in pathology, anthropology, microbiology, DNA and how it is similar to the structure of a language. The adventure in Cambodia was interesting. The architectural details of temples and the references to Hindu mythology was quite accurate. (some minor mistakes though, it was not Vishnu, but Shiva, who drank the poison which was produced while churning the milky ocean. ) Additional info- Asuras, the demons, did not get any amrit as Vishnu took the form of Mohini (a beautiful lady) to lure them away from the nectar. I also liked the way Sigma works as a team, they are in different parts of the world but working for a single cause. This is unlike so many other thrillers i read, where the hero is a lone warrior, like Dirk Pitt by Clive Cussler or Jack Reacher by Lee Child (yes, i have stopped reading their books now). For once, I wasn't annoyed by the way the female characters were portrayed.I was laughing out during some of the frenzied action scenes, when the Sigma folks escape the Guild effortlessly in numerous occasions, like when Gray flew from US to Turkey even when the Guild, Sigma and FBI were looking for him and how easily he found the missing puzzle. I have this question again for these treasure hunt novels - though the villains are so resourceful, they have highly qualified scientists etc on their roles, why do they need the help of the good folks to solve the puzzles (which the protagonists solve very easily). In this novel too, Dr. Devesh had the best doctors at his disposal, but he need Dr. Lisa to find out more about the bacteria and the Guild wanted Gray to solve the mystery of the obelisk ! They could have done all these secretly, with no one getting wiser. Lisa and Monk's escape from the cruise was very boring. I skipped a few pages here. And Painter Crowe was missing in action. I wanted more of him.

This was definitely an intriguing adventure for the Sigma forces, starting with the mysterious motive behind the murder of an Egyptian curator for an even more mysterious object with links to one of the most bizarre historical mysteries we know of. The journey of Marco Polo and his father (Niccolo) and his uncle (Masseo). However, there are parts of the journey that remain a total mystery to us all. This adventure looks into what may have happened as well as a secret chapter of Marco's journey and what happened to his personal confessor, Friar Agreer.There's another part to this adventure, as is standard Sigma affair- that of a bizarre and extremely disturbing outbreak. One that can turn people into cannibals, burn them from the inside out (not like combustion, but more like boils and intense, uncontrollable sunburns). So, it's one part historical thriller, one part medical thriller. One part, not one half, as there are more parts to this story, like a personal attack to Gray's parents, and Painter's search for them. Multiple stories/substories intertwining. However, there are also very sad moments, both with people you've known and liked for some time (like Monk) and people you only knew from the Prologue (Gregg Tunis). The strangest thing to happen in this book is actually what concerns Susan, Gregg's wife. But to find out what that is, you'd have to read this book. The reason for 4 stars is one of the side enemies, an emotionally-distant assassin, Surina, becomes interesting, but something she does doesn't get explained thoroughly enough for me, so I ended up getting dissappointed about that. Beside that, this was a very good adventure full of crazy twists and sarcastic, razor-sharp wit and counter-twists.

I really liked this as my rating indicates. Rollins has reached a point with these characters that authors can arrive at when they fully develop them over s series of novels. In order to fully appreciate the plot twists and turns the series should be read in order. I am glad I was patient at times earlier in the series because it is paying off now.Rollins researches his subjects thoroughly and this book is no exception. It seems a mix of religion, science, philosophy and action that makes the story seem believable. He also incorporates history. Considering how prolific this author is, it surprises me he has time to research his novels this thoroughly.Several story lines happen simultaneously and converge as the story nears the end. His villains are brutal and edgy. The complexity of the story requires full attention (and an occasional reread for me at least) to prevent confusion later. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This thriller, in the 'Sigma Files', is probably the closest thing to anything written by Michael Crichton. James Rollins has compressed so many intriguing ideas and facts onto the matrix of our imagination (and a very real fear), that this novel simply couldn't be rushed. I had to read it piece-by-piece, trying to absorb the many threads of the narrative. My only grudge in this respect is that the narrative didn't have any humour at all. Hence, one star was dropped. Otherwise, this is really as good as a Techno-thriller can be. Recommended.

considering the pattern and the number of succeeding books in the series, it's impressive;new tech are just awesomep26: she was dressed all in black leather, hugging tight to hips and breast.p172: as the band of pirates here was a mix of locals and foreign mercenaries, monk had learned that pigeon malay passed okay.p225: proving it, kowalski revved the engine's rpms, downshifted for the next corner, twisted the wheel, throwing them all to the left, then planted back on the power and shot out of the turn like a rocket.

A quick read filled with chills, thrills, and spills. I do enjoy the journey as always to lands far away that I would only read about and never travel to be there in real life. James Rollins does have a way about his writing that always has a few laughs, surprises in the pages, and I do wonder if there is a surprise in the next installment of Team Sigma Force. Overall I wanted more as the group was winding down. Therefore, I will have to read the next one in the series sooner rather than later. I just need to take a short intermission before I embark forward.