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Title/Author

The Traveller

John Twelve Hawks

Average Review Rating Average Rating 8/10 (1 Review)
Book Details

Publisher : Bantam Press

Published : 2005

Copyright : John Twelve Hawks 2005

ISBN-10 : HB 0-593-05430-X
ISBN-13 : HB 978-0-593-05430-7

Publisher's Write-Up

In the shadows of our modern society, an ancient conflict between good and evil is being fought. A life-and-death battle we will never see, between those who wish to control history and those who will risk their lives for freedom and enlightenment...

Los Angeles: A city where you have to work hard to live beneath the surface. Gabriel and Michael Corrigan are trying to do just that. Since childhood, the brothers have been shaped by the stories that their mystical father, a man of strange powers and intuition, has told them about the world in which they live. After his violent death, they have been living 'off the grid' - that is, invisible to the intricate surveillance networks that monitor our modern lives. London: Maya, a tough and feisty young woman, is playing at being a citizen, is playing at leading a normal life. But her background is anything but.

Trained to fight since she was a young girl, she is the last in a long line whose duty is to protect the gifted among us. When she is summoned to Prague by her ailing father, she learns that Gabriel and Michael’s lives are in danger and are in desperate need of protection.

Prague: Nathan Boone, a disciplined and amoral mercenary, watches Maya leave the meeting with her father before brutally killing him. Tasked to hunt down the Corrigan brothers, he tracks Maya as she seeks to fulfil what turns out to be her father’s last command. When Maya flies to California to find them, an extraordinary chase begins, the final running battle in the war which will reveal the secret history of our time...

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Reader Reviews

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Review by Nigel (301205) Rating (8/10)

Review by Nigel
Rating 8/10
I'd been looking forward to reading this debut novel for some time and when I finally got my hands on a copy I wasn't disappointed. It tells the story of Maya, a Harlequin, who has trained all her life to be a protector of The Travellers, people who are able to leave their own bodies and visit other dimensions or realms. Having renounced her past Maya is trying to live a normal life as Judith Strand, a product designer working in London.

The Tabula, the real power behind the governments of the world, have sworn to destroy all Travellers as they offer an alternative to the controlled life the Tabula try to maintain. This battle has raged for centuries with the Harlequin protecting the Travellers. Now the Tabula have almost won, believing all the Travellers have been killed and the few remaining Harlequin all but caught.

Maya has been left alone since turning her back on the Harlequin life and believes she is now safe. However, she has received a message from Thorn, her Harlequin father and visits him in Prague where her past life comes back to haunt her. Thorn tells Maya two brothers, who may be Travellers, are living in America and tries to persuade her to find and protect them. Maya, however, only wants to be left alone and refuses to help.

The Tabula make there first mistake while tailing Maya back to her hotel. She ambushes the tail and kills him. Maya’s hand has now been forced and she can never return to the life she was trying to live. Returning to her father’s apartment she finds him brutally murdered. With no other option she once again becomes a Harlequin, sworn to protect the Travellers. She sets off for America to find the brothers before the Tabula can murder them. However, the Tabula have other ideas and also want the brothers kept alive. Policies have changed and a Traveller’s power might be able to help the Tabula achieve their goals.

The story is a good mixture of thriller and fantasy, the latter not overwhelming the plot and taking it away from the world we live in. The main characters are well fleshed out and likable, while the villains are nasty enough to deserve all they get.

The Traveller is a well written, fast paced, action thriller to rival Crichton and Koontz with a bit of Stephen King thrown in. To be honest there is nothing ground breaking or new in the story but if you like a good read, full of action, you will not be disappointed. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Transworld Publishers for sending this book to BookLore. We requested a proof copy and having received nothing by publication date we were a little disappointed as good things were being said about the novel. Imagine our surprise when a finished copy appeared in the post... very nice people.
Nigel (30th December 2005)

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