Every once in a while, I crave a good thriller --- one with a relentless pace and suspense that keeps me constantly turning pages. When I finish, I want to feel windswept and out of breath from trying to keep up. For this, I’m willing to suspend all disbelief and go with it. If you can to do just that, Sam Christer spins an entertaining tale.

"Christer does a good job of pulling you in and keeping you there with just enough intrigue, suspense and mystery to hold you there until the end."

Nathaniel Chase is a famed treasure hunter and archaeologist, though he’s more famous for treasure hunting than for his archaeological advances. His sudden passing is a shock to his son, Gideon, who has not spoken to him in years. Distraught and confused over the loss of a father he hardly knew --- Nathaniel withdrew from Gideon’s life after his wife’s death --- Gideon doesn’t know what to do with the news of his father’s suicide. With nowhere else to go until he can make funeral arrangements, he heads to his father’s house and unexpectedly interrupts a break-in. Injured but not seriously hurt, he returns wondering why anyone would be interested in this particular house. His father was a rich, well-known person, but his treasures weren’t kept there. To Gideon, it’s more than the simple smash-and-grab the local police seem to think it is. Curious, he starts looking around and finds a hidden room full of his father’s journals written in a code only he understands.

What Gideon uncovers in the journals is a record of a secret society devoted to protecting the gods of Stonehenge. Unsure of what he’s found, Gideon, an archaeologist in his own right, decides to investigate and possibly infiltrate the cult. Unfortunately for him, several plans are already in motion and his timing couldn’t be worse.

In thrillers of this nature, death is usually in abundance and time is always lacking. However, the addition of Stonehenge is a nice touch and good backdrop for a story that includes a kidnapping of a famous American, the death of a British Lord’s son, and the disappearance of several others in a small, English country town. Yes, there are a few moments along the way when you go “huh?”, but overall the plot surrounding the cult is strong enough to pull you and the story through. Of course, you have to be willing to go along with conspiracy theories, police procedures, kidnappings and cult behavior. Once you get there, Christer manages a pace that has you wondering when he’s going to drop the ball. But he never does. He keeps the tension going until the end. I wasn’t completely sold on the ending, but things are satisfactorily wrapped up even if it might give you pause to wonder where it came from.

THE STONEHENGE LEGACY is one of those books that you want with you when you need a distraction, and I mean that in a positive way. Christer does a good job of pulling you in and keeping you there with just enough intrigue, suspense and mystery to hold you there until the end.