Join me every Friday with the #FantasticalFridays — and share 3 books that while listed as one genre, also contain a fantastical elements. Monsters, demons, magical elements, zombies, time travel, virtual reality … you get the picture.

THE BLOOD GOSPEL by James Rollins & Rebecca Cantrell

Backcover Blurb:

Some books should never be found, never opened—until now.

An earthquake in Masada, Israel, reveals a tomb buried in the heart of the mountain. A trio of investigators—Sergeant Jordan Stone, a military forensics 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 rumoured to have been written by Christ’s own hand, a tome that is said to hold the secrets to His divinity. But the enemy who hounds them is a force of ancient evil directed by a leader of impossible ambitions and incalculable cunning.

Thoughts:

In typical James Rollins fashion, much like we all know what to expect from a Dan Brown novel, readers of Rollins books know to expect aspects of the supernatural, sometimes tinged with the paranormal, and often interwoven with hints of otherworldliness. As it turns out, The Blood Gospel is, in the end, a vampire story! Labelled an action/adventure novel, this novel is, in fact, about two very ancient vampiric sects—the Sanguines and the Strigoi—hidden deep within the very fabric of the Catholic Church.

If that doesn’t grab your interest, nothing will. The Blood Gospel is a roller coaster ride that has something for everyone; conspiracy, an ancient mystery, action-adventure, car chases, oh, and a lot of biblical lore!

THE EIGHT by Katherine Neville

Backcover Blurb:

Computer expert Cat Velis is heading for a job to Algeria. Before she goes, a mysterious fortune teller warns her of danger, and an antique dealer asks her to search for pieces to a valuable chess set that has been missing for years… In the South of France in 1790 two convent girls hide valuable pieces of a chess set all over the world, because the game that can be played with them is too powerful…

Thoughts:

The premise for this novel written as it was, 30 years ago now, was considered quite fanciful — a mythical chess set that once assembled can impart unlimited power to those who possess it. Given what has followed since in Neville’s footsteps: Dan Brown, Douglas Preston and James Rollins — this book read by today’s standards might seem a little tame and or bland. But still, it features a computer expert teamed with a Russian chess Grand Master, a mysterious code and musical notations, chess strategy, Fibonacci numbers, and a good does of mysticism. What’s not to like?

THE GUARDIANS OF THE COVENANT by Tom Egeland

Backcover Blurb:

In the year 1013, Viking warriors raided an Egyptian tomb and unknowingly stole the greatest secret of the Old Testament. When a quirky archaeologist finds ancient Viking parchments containing runes and riddles, his mundane life is changed for good. These codes lead him on a quest for clues in mysterious places, from Egyptian tombs to antiquarian bookshops. Powerful forces are against him, but he manages to unveil a religious cover-up with potentially fatal consequences.

Thoughts:

This is more a historical adventure rather than actually having any overt supernatural or fantastical elements. But it does delve deep into the mysterious, in and on an intellectual level with old Norse legends, ancient Egyptian superstitions and Christian Secret Societies. With codes, clues, hidden maps, and archaic symbols, I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable adventurous  romp. And as the main character follows the clues, we get to know a great deal more about the kind of countries the Vikings visited and invaded, including how they got to Egypt.

For this, my first installment of #Fantastical Friday, I want to share three books that cross genres due to one or more fantastical element. James Rollins has written any number of books that while on the surface might be classed as a thriller or an adventure but, when you look closer, also included fantastical elements.

So let’s start there:

AMAZONIA — James Rollins

The Backcover Blurb

The Rand scientific expedition entered the lush wilderness of the Amazon and never returned. Years later, one of its members has stumbled out of the world’s most inhospitable rainforest: a former Special Forces soldier—scarred, mutilated, terrified, and mere hours from death—who went in with one arm missing…and came out with both intact.

Unable to comprehend this inexplicable event, the government sends Nathan Rand into this impenetrable secret world of undreamed—of perils to follow the trail of his vanished father…toward mysteries that must be solved at any cost. But the nightmare that is awaiting Nate and his team of scientists and seasoned U.S. Army Rangers dwarfs any danger they anticipated…an ancient, unspoken terror—a power beyond human imagining-that can forever alter the world beyond the dark, lethal confines of the Amazon rainforest for better… and for worse.

Thoughts

You cannot get any more ‘out there’ than with a Rollins plot, which usually dumps a group of people into an already difficult situation, and then? He stretches credibility and disbelief to the point you almost think, ‘what the hell is going on?’ But then, he manages to give it all a sheen of possibility because, as in this case, we’re in the middle of the Amazon jungle and who knows what still lies in its deep, dark depths? And it’s that ‘what if’ that plays wonderfully into the story he weaves, because, we really don’t know.

THE ANCIENT CURSE — Valerio Massimo Manfredi

The Backcover Blurb

In the darkest hours of the night at the Museum of Volterra, young archaeologist Fabrizio Castellani is immersed in his work. He has discovered that the famous Etruscan statue known as “the shade of twilight” contains a mysterious object, seemingly enclosed within the sculpture itself. He is suddenly interrupted by a phone call from an icy female voice, warning him to abandon his research at once. A series of gruesome killings follow. The victims, who have all been involved in the desecration of an unexplored tomb, seem to be have been torn to pieces by a beast of unimaginable size. Meanwhile, as Fabrizio excavates the Etruscan tomb he discovers something extraordinary, and chilling. Will Fabrizio manage to unravel these secrets without being sucked into the spiral of violence himself?

Thoughts

Here again, we have a group of people dealing with what is ostensibly a ‘supernatural’ element, and a mystery stemming from an ancient curse — but, here’s the rub, is the monster in question real, or is someone very cleverly playing on people’s fears to commit murder? This is a fun, fast read with plenty of historical detail thrown in for good measure, shoring up something of a cheesy plot but that might be due to the translation rather than anything to do with Manfredi’s style of writing.

THE BEGGAR’S OPERA — Peggy Blair

The Backcover Blurb

In beautiful, crumbling Old Havana, Canadian detective Mike Ellis hopes the sun and sand will help save his troubled marriage. He doesn’t yet know that it’s dead in the water—much like the little Cuban boy last seen begging the Canadian couple for a few pesos on the world famous Malecón. For Inspector Ricardo Ramírez, head of the Major Crimes Unit of the Cuban National Revolutionary Police, finding his prime suspect isn’t a problem—Cuban law is. He has only seventy-two hours to secure an indictment and prevent a vicious killer from leaving the island. But Ramírez also has his own troubles to worry about. He’s dying of the same dementia that killed his grandmother, an incurable disease that makes him see the ghosts of victims of unsolved murders. As he races against time, the dead haunt his every step.

Thoughts

Here we go again, a novel that is essentially crime fiction but with an overlying supernatural element that takes it from what could be just a mundane read to something a little spooky. We follow along with the good Inspector Ramírez, as he tried to solve a murder while fending off critical and, at times, witty banter from dead by-standers. This makes for a very whimsical read and adds a certain ‘other-worldly’ element to Ramírez’s and, of course, our world. We can sympathise with him, and yet, also indulge in a laugh to at some of the wise-cracks at his expense. If you want something completely different, why not give this series a try.