Atlar of Eden by James Rollins

"Altar of Eden" the latest by New York Times bestselling author James Rollins is a good book if not a great book. Once again he does his research and along with enjoying a good story you will learn a few things about science and history and the current battles being fought in the scientific laboratories across the world all in the name of national defense.

This is a departure for Rollins. The majority of his books have centered on international intrigue and terrorism under the guise of "The Black Order". This book leaves Sichuan, Monk and their friends back at base and branches out into new territory. The main characters are Lorna Polk and Jack Merand. Lorna is a vet and Jack works for the U.S. Border Patrol. Both grew up in New Orleans. Lorna in the Garden District in a family focused on education and aristocratic history and Jack in the Bayou. Rollins introduces you to a few members of Jack's family and I must say at times I wanted to sit down and have a beer and some jambalaya and listen to their stories of growing up in the swamps on New Orleans.

Lorna and Jack share a history of a night that was a turning point for both of them. Rollins does a good job of giving the reader back story while not letting the book get weighed down by something that happened years ago and there is good chemistry between the main characters.

The premise of the story is that in this new post 9/11 world governments and the private sector are willing to go to almost any lengths to create the newest and deadliest weapon and that not all weapons of mass destruction are inanimate. This is where the research and the science come into play. Rollins knows enough about what is and/or can be done by science in the name of research to bring the reader into the story and believe what is happening. Duncan the nemesis that brings Lorna and Jack together is interesting. He is not evil but he is cold and calculating and has lost enough of himself to have no moral qualms or ethical issues with the studies that are being done on animals and humans.

The book moves at a fairly brisk pace the few sections that are slow can be skimmed without missing losing pieces of the story. The information about the mind body connection and the human animal bond is science based and interesting. I enjoyed this book though not as much as "The Black Order" books. I have no objections to Rollins bringing Lorna and Jack back but first I want to know what is going on with Monk and his cronies.