It starts out briskly, with an interesting premise. A spy satellite crashes to earth, but not before taking pictures of something in Eritea that a lot of people find interesting. A renowned geologist-adventurer soon finds himself in the thick of conspiracies trying to find what some believe to be a motherlode of diamonds, and other believe is much more.Jack Du Brul knows how to get you hooked, but the book-killer is that the ending is incredibly weak. Not only is the secret a cliche, it's explained away rationally, by means which are implausible at best. There really isn't anything world-shattering about it, which makes some of the foreshadowing ring hollow. It feels like he just included the "much more" on a whim, because he underdevelops it tremendously. What's left is a pretty dull reason for all these people to get worked up about, especially the main villain. Why didn't he just go in legitimately and try and obtain it? If the writing were any weaker I'd give it one star because of that, but it's paced smartly, with enough realism and difference to entice you. Just expect to shake your head at the ending.
this is the first of Jack DuBrul's solo novels that I've read (I've read several he co-authored with Clive Cussler and enjoyed them). I will be seeking his other solo efforts. This book centers on Philip Mercer, a geologist who has apparently had several other advetures (this is touted as his third). His best friend is kidnapped and he (Mercer) ends up being blackmailed into searching for a 'lost' diamond mine in Africa, aided by a mysterious African woman, he searches and finds the mine (which hhappens to be King Soloman's mine), and that is the begining of the adventure . . .
