The Babylon Rite: A Novel

by Tom Knox

Overview

What terrible secret has driven the world’s foremost historian of the Knights Templar to kill himself?
 
Journalist Adam Blackwood has just been handed the story of a lifetime: something is hidden in the famous Knights Templar chapel of Rosslyn that could unlock the greatest mystery of the medieval Templars—until the one man who could decipher the final clue commits a grotesque suicide. Adam sets out to learn why.
In Peru, anthropologist Jess Silverton is researching the remnants of the Moche, a bloodthirsty, sexually voracious, lost Stone Age civilization. Amid the toxic turmoil of local gangs and corrupt politicians, her dogged pursuit for answers will lead Jess to cross paths with Adam as they unearth the ancient secret that enthralled the conquistadors, horrified the Church, and is threatening to reemerge—with catastrophic consequences.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780142180891
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/29/2014
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Tom Knox is the internationally bestselling author of The Lost Goddess, Marks of Cain, and The Genesis Secret, and is the pseudonym for English journalist and author Sean Thomas. He currently lives in London.

What People are Saying About This

The Dallas Morning News

Praise for The Genesis Secret

"[The Genesis Secret] makes one want to tear through the pages to find out what happens next."

Bill Loehfelm

"Sinister, macabre, relentless and rich...The ideal blend of both The Da Vinci Code and Raiders of the Lost Ark."

Suspense Magazine

“The Lost Goddess” is a globetrotting adventure with shades of Dan Brown and Indiana Jones....A page-turner."

The Wall Street Journal

Praise for The Lost Goddess

"Mr. Knox's speculations are good ones, making you wonder what might really have been going on in dictators' secret laboratories."

Booklist

"An intriguing, well-told story."

Jeff Abbott

Praise for The Marks of Cain

"Tom Knox knows the DNA of an astonishing thriller. The Marks of Cain...may well be the most controversial thriller since The Da Vinci Code."

From the Publisher

Praise for The Lost Goddess:
 
“Mr. Knox's speculations are good ones, making you wonder what might really have been going on in dictators' secret laboratories.” –The Wall Street Journal
 
“"How terrific to find a new thriller in which the dramatic action emerges from an exemplary mix of first-rate research, interesting politics and credible characters!” –The Dallas Morning News
 
“A globetrotting adventure with shades of Dan Brown and Indiana Jones....A page-turner." — Suspense Magazine
 
“Combines elements of the best of several genres, shakes them up, then lays them out in surprisingly original patterns.... Knox doles out enough tantalizing scientific, social, and spiritual lore to sate even the hungriest anthropological thriller reader." — Publishers Weekly
 
Praise for The Marks of Cain:
 
"Tom Knox knows the DNA of an astonishing thriller." — Jeff Abbott, bestselling author of Adrenaline and The Last Minute
 
"An intriguing, well-told story." – Booklist
 
Praise for The Genesis Secret:
 
“[The Genesis Secret] makes one want to tear through the pages to find out what happens next.” –The Dallas Morning News
 
"Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code brought on a flood of tomb-raiding thrillers. I enjoyed Tom Knox's The Genesis Secret best." –The Minnnesota Star-Tribune
 
"Sinister, macabre, relentless and rich...The ideal blend of both The Da Vinci Code and Raiders of the Lost Ark." –Bill Loehfelm, author of The Devil in Her Own Way
 
"Everything one could want in a thriller: a plot that keeps you hooked, heroes worth cheering for, and a brilliantly maintained air of menace." –Jon Fasman, author of The Geographer's Library and The Unpossessed City

The Minnnesota Star-Tribune

"Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code brought on a flood of tomb-raiding thrillers. I enjoyed Tom Knox's The Genesis Secret best."

Jon Fasman

"Everything one could want in a thriller: a plot that keeps you hooked, heroes worth cheering for, and a brilliantly maintained air of menace."

Editorial Reviews

Praise for THE BABYLON RITE:

“Knox’s greatest strength is coming up with original anthropological mysteries. Knox provides a surfeit of gruesome detail, but readers with strong stomachs... will be satisfied.” –Publishers Weekly
 
“Knox weaves a compelling, violent tale, peppered with plenty of sex, that will appeal to ancient conspiracy fans comfortable with the graphic content.” –Booklist
 
“Historical, adventure, and suspense fans unite! Any Da Vinci Code fan will also love the fact that the Knights Templar are once again being revisited, and their reputation is darker than ever before. And although there are horror scenes galore, the research is extremely invigorating and the mystery is beyond cool.” –Amy Lignor, Suspense Magazine
 
“Tom Knox returns with an electrifying new novel. A rapid fire pace, absorbing storyline and plenty of action propels this well researched if grisly tale to a chilling conclusion. The finely nuanced characters and excellent setting development coupled with ancient cultures practicing shocking rites grabs readers’ attention like a vise and doesn’t let go until the final page. The Moche and Templars definitely existed and Knox’s version of how they were possibly connected is an interesting idea to contemplate. This is an outstanding if gory mystery that while predictable in places, delivers a fine tale.” –Monstersandcritics.com Mystery Book Reviews
 

 

Praise for THE LOST GODDESS:

"Mr. Knox's speculations are good ones, making you wonder what might really have been going on in dictators' secret laboratories."

— The Wall Street Journal

"How terrific to find a new thriller in which the dramatic action emerges from an exemplary mix of first-rate research, interesting politics and credible characters! A novel such as this really gives you hope for good reading at the end of a busy workday or during a trip."

— The Dallas Morning News

“The Lost Goddess” is a globetrotting adventure with shades of Dan Brown and Indiana Jones....A page-turner."

— Suspense Magazine

"This quirky novel from the pseudonymous Knox...combines elements of the best of several genres, shakes them up, then lays them out in surprisingly original patterns....Knox doles out enough tantalizing scientific, social, and spiritual lore to sate even the hungriest anthropological thriller reader."

— Publishers Weekly

 

Praise for THE MARKS OF CAIN:

"Tom Knox knows the DNA of an astonishing thriller. The Marks of Cain...may well be the most controversial thriller since The Da Vinci Code." — Jeff Abbott, bestselling author of Panic and Fear

"An intriguing, well-told story."

— Booklist
 

Praise for THE GENESIS SECRET:

"[The Genesis Secret] makes one want to tear through the pages to find out what happens next."

— The Dallas Morning News

"Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code brought on a flood of tomb-raiding thrillers. I enjoyed Tom Knox's The Genesis Secret best."

— The Minnnesota Star-Tribune
 

"Sinister, macabre, relentless and rich...The ideal blend of both The Da Vinci Code and Raiders of the Lost Ark."

— Bill Loehfelm, author of Fresh Kills
 

"Everything one could want in a thriller: a plot that keeps you hooked, hero's worth cheering for, and a brilliantly maintained air of menace."

— Jon Fasman, author of The Geographer's Library
 

From the Publisher

Knox’s greatest strength is coming up with original anthropological mysteries; his greatest weakness is stopping the action so his characters can expound at length—as shown in this intriguing science quest thriller. Anthropologist Jessica Silverton’s dig in Peru has discovered evidence of human sacrifice in the ancient Moche civilization. The Moche had a bizarre culture, as suggested by erotic pottery depicting “Sex with animals. Sex with the dead. Sex between skeletons.” In Scotland, journalist Adam Blackwood witnesses the strange death of Knights Templar researcher Archibald McLintock. Adam teams with McLintock’s daughter, Nina, to investigate her father’s death. Many people die while the characters search for a mysterious drug that explains the barbaric oddities of both the Moche and the Templars. Knox (The Lost Goddess), the pseudonym of British journalist Sean Thomas, provides a surfeit of gruesome detail, but readers with strong stomachs and who don’t mind the lectures will be satisfied. Agent: Jay Mandel, William Morris Endeavor. (May)

Publishers Weekly

"Everything one could want in a thriller: a plot that keeps you hooked, heroes worth cheering for, and a brilliantly maintained air of menace."

Jon Fasman

"Sinister, macabre, relentless and rich...The ideal blend of both The Da Vinci Code and Raiders of the Lost Ark."

Bill Loehfelm

"Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code brought on a flood of tomb-raiding thrillers. I enjoyed Tom Knox's The Genesis Secret best."

The Minnnesota Star-Tribune

"An intriguing, well-told story."

Booklist

The Lost Goddess” is a globetrotting adventure with shades of Dan Brown and Indiana Jones....A page-turner."

Suspense Magazine

"How terrific to find a new thriller in which the dramatic action emerges from an exemplary mix of first-rate research, interesting politics and credible characters! A novel such as this really gives you hope for good reading at the end of a busy workday or during a trip."

The Dallas Morning News

Another thriller about the Knights Templar results in a disappointing and amateurish effort to emulate a best-selling novel. It's a hair-whipping race to figure out who the bad guys are and what they're really after in Knox's (The Lost Goddess, 2012, etc.) latest offering. Anthropologist Jessica Silverton is a member of an archaeological team in Peru studying the Moche, a pre-Columbian civilization. She's convinced the murals and other artifacts depicting violence, carnage and erotic activities actually occurred, but she wants to discover the underlying cause and is skeptical when her boss (and lover) believes the behavior was probably caused by el Niño. Across the ocean, investigative reporter Adam Blackwood watches in horror as noted historian Archibald McLintock ends his life in a fiery car crash outside Rosslyn Chapel, a Scottish tourist attraction associated with the Knights Templar and popularized by Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. But McLintock's daughter, Nina, refuses to believe her father committed suicide and convinces Adam to help her uncover the truth. Armed with a bag of her father's old receipts, the two track his last movements among Templar sites in Western Europe, where they discover one of her father's secrets. Meanwhile, Detective Mark Ibsen is tasked with investigating a series of gruesome autoerotic deaths in London, and what he uncovers is pretty far-fetched. He crosses paths with Adam and Nina after a horrific attack, and they share what they know. Told in short cliffhanging chapters, the story becomes more convoluted with each chapter as the author adds layer upon ridiculous layer to the mix. The characters experience repeated flashbacks about their lives; countless feelings of ominous foreboding; lots of menacing looks from tattoo-sporting men associated with drug cartels; liberal doses of gory murders; and endless encyclopedic information to explain every supposition or twist. When the heroes finally assemble for a boat trip on the Amazon (except for Ibsen, who wisely chooses to participate by phone) to put together the final piece of the puzzle, don't get too excited: The trip takes forever. Knox begins with an interesting premise, which he first attacks with enthusiasm; unfortunately, he drags the story out well beyond tolerable limits and literally stomps it to death.

Kirkus Reviews