David Morrell
Paperback | Pages: 416 pages Rating: 4.14 | 6342 Users | 224 Reviews
Declare Books Supposing The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1)
| Original Title: | The Brotherhood of the Rose |
| ISBN: | 0747238901 (ISBN13: 9780747238904) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Series: | Mortalis #1 |
Ilustration In Favor Of Books The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1)
”In Greek mythology, the god of love once offered a rose to the god of silence, as a bribe, to keep that god from disclosing the weaknesses of the other gods. In time, the rose became the symbol for silence and secrecy. In the Middle ages, a rose was customarily suspended from the ceiling of a council chamber. The members of the council pledged themselves not to reveal what they discussed in the room, sub rosa under the rose.” There once were two boys named Romulus and Remus, not the two founders of Rome, but two boys who found each other in an orphanage in Pennsylvania. They became closer than brothers. Isn’t that the case with many of us, finding our close friends to be more our brothers and sisters than our own flesh and blood? Chris (Remus) is visited periodically by a gray faced man named Eliot who starts every visit by extending a Baby Ruth candy bar. In an orphanage you are more likely to find a bar of gold than a bar of chocolate. He takes Chris on backpacking trips and fishing trips. Soon Saul (Romulus) joins them. As they grow up their foster father suggests certain activities for them such as Karate. When they are old enough he suggests they join the military. They are sent to Vietnam. Suggestions from Eliot are the same as commands. They don’t know it until later, but Eliot has several pairs of orphaned boys from various cities. Castor and Pollux, Cadmus and Cilix, Amphion and Zethus, Butes and Erectheus, and Atlas and Prometheus. They are all trained to be operatives for a shadowy sector of the CIA. The reverence they all show for Eliot borders on worship. Eliot is also part of a national coalition of spies that formed a system called the Abelard Sanctuary. "I had come there as a fugitive and, in the depths of my despair, was granted some comfort by the grace of God.” Peter Abélard (1079-1142) was a brilliant rising star of theology, philosophy, and logician who fell in love with the scholar of classical letters Héloïse. They are secretly married to appease her uncle, but when he announces the marriage publicly it is denied by the couple. The Uncle is sure that Abélard is up to no good so he hires some thugs to pay him a visit. They castrate him. The letters of longing between Abélard and Héloïse become some of the most famous love letters of all time and forever immortalized the couple among the most legendary of doomed lovers rivaled only by Shakespeare’s creation of Romeo and Juliet. Abélard becomes a monk, but has difficulties with the monastery system and eventually retires to a chapel at Paraclete. He went there seeking sanctuary. If he wished to remain anonymous or forgotten it did not work. Students appeared living in tents around the chapel and soon he is teaching once again. The coalition of spies from all over the world find that there are times when they need sanctuary. They reach an agreement to place these Abelard Sanctuaries strategically all over the world. For those that have seen the recent movie John Wick, starring Keanu Reeves, the hotel in the movie is based on the same concept as an Abelard Sanctuary. No one is allowed to kill within the walls of sanctuary. If someone breaks the truce all of the nations participating are forced by the rules of the contract to do their best to execute the killer. It is a place where enemies can mingle without fear. Everything is going fine until Saul is ordered to blow up a close friend of the President of the United States. The assassination was made to look like the Israelis for political reasons. When Saul goes to his designated safe house some men are there to try to kill him. He has been blacklisted. His first thought is to call his foster father, but that was the source of the safe house location. Is it possible that the person he revers most in the world could be wanting to kill him? Saul is forced on the run for his life. He meets up with Chris and between the two of them they come up with a plan of survival. Betrayals begat betrayals and soon all that they think they believe in is suddenly nothing more than an enigma of deception. To survive they will have to embrace revenge. The pacing of the novel is excellent. It is certainly a page turner. David Morrell is an old hand at deftly keeping the plot from faltering. The secrecy attributed to the rose becomes an obsession for many of the Abelard Sanctuary group. Many of them begin cultivating them as a hobby, all becoming as bewitched by their beauty as the Dutch were about tulips in the 17th century. Some reviewers have found the sanctuary concept, a truce between foes, to be verging on science fiction, but for me it makes sense. The men and women who work behind the cloak of secrecy have much more in common with each other than they do with the countries they call home. By the definition of their careers they are lonely people, cut off from their families and friends, and reluctant to form relationships that could in the end compromise them. Sometimes your enemy knows you best and with them there are no pretenses about the job. My favorite David Morrell so far is: Murder As a Fine Art a book about Thomas De Quincey the famous British Opium Eater. The second book with De Quincey is scheduled to release in March. Murder as a Fine Art ReviewBe Specific About Epithetical Books The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1)
| Title | : | The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1) |
| Author | : | David Morrell |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 416 pages |
| Published | : | July 16th 1992 by Headline Book Publishing (first published 1983) |
| Categories | : | Thriller. Fiction. Mystery. Spy Thriller. Espionage. Mystery Thriller |
Rating Epithetical Books The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1)
Ratings: 4.14 From 6342 Users | 224 ReviewsJudgment Epithetical Books The Brotherhood of the Rose (Mortalis #1)
4.5 stars for this book. I loved it...spies & espionage. Non stop action...David Morrell writes really well and doesn't waffle on trying to fill pages like so many authors do these days. It was written in the 80s and is a little dated in sections, i.e. the technology but I don't think that matters. Great read!Like all Morrell books, a good bit of action Synopsis: Brotherhood of the Rose is set in the Cold War era in the world of big time spies. Two orphans living in an orphanage, Saul and Chris, were singled out for education and training that led to them being paired together as super spies working for the CIA. Now, the man who trained them - the man they consider to be their father - has betrayed them. Saul and Chris avoid all sorts of troubles as they unravel an international plot against them
I'm really glad I reread this. It's been too long & I'd forgotten many of the details. Morrell does a great job spinning conspiracy theories together into an action packed, but quite believable adventure. If you like "The Black List" on TV (the 1st season) you'll love this book. I reread for Action/Adventure Aficionados group April 2016https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...Morrell's writing is tight and the characters are well drawn. The conspiracies are deep, but easy to believe. Eliot is
If you are a reader who loves taut, suspenseful spy thrillers from the cold war era with a good dose of plot twists and turns then you will definitely love The Brotherhood of the Rose. Written by David Morrell - the man who created the legendary character John Rambo - this classic espionage thriller, which is the first book in a trilogy, is full of spies, killers, trade-craft and high-octane action spread across locations all over the globe. The author is a master in controlling the suspense
Another excellent book by MorrellThis book was a real pioneer in the genre of espionage thrillers. It's smart, fast-paced, and just a great introduction to the character of Saul, The character the even today I believe would make a great hero for the big screen. David Morrell has done an interesting thing in the way it's in pairs then a violence with secret religious orders. There is a strong sense of grace in this book for even men that have committed unforgivable crimes. It's deeper than your
I love this book so much I read it three times over the years. Two highly trained CIA operatives that were once orphans are betrayed by the only father they ever knew. They desperately attempt to discover the truth as operatives from every network in the world hunt them down with orders to kill. It's a fast-paced race against time with plenty of plot twists and suspense to keep you glued to your reading chair! It was also a pretty cool TV movie about 20 years ago with Peter Strauss, David Morse,
Ah, just saw someone reading a Morrell novel and thought I'd check if it was the same writer. It is indeed. I read this years ago, and I LOVED it. It was made into a TV mini-series too, which, if I recall, was almost as good.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.