If you want to forget about Christmas, why not embark on an adventure?

Hi all:

As  you know on Fridays I bring you new books or authors. I thought I might still be in time to bring you a few good reads before Christmas, and today I bring you some  authors I know whose work has been translated to English but you might not yet be familiar with. They are all good yarns, full of adventures and fast paced, so if you want a read to make you forget the weather and the “excitement” of Christmas and help you get lost somewhere  else…give them a go! In the case of the last one that I’ve been lucky enough to read very recently, I include my own review.

 

The Last Crypt by Fernando Gamboa

The Last Crypt by Fernando Gamboa

– MORE THAN 200,000 COPIES SOLD IN EUROPE
– #1 Bestseller in Spanish & Russian
– “Best Action and Adventure novel of 2012 for Kindle” According Amazon Spain
– LAUNCH OFFER -75% OFF

«I could not stop reading it!.»
«I understand why this novel has been so successful.»
«An impressive and surprising ending, which gives you goosebumps.»
«You can´t stop reading. It’s great, spectacular & lots of fun.»
«It is one of the best novels I’ve read in a while.»
«The truth is that I did not imagine this book could make me enjoy as much as it has.»
«A stunning setting, believable characters, a great story and an unexpected ending.»
«Amazing!!!»

Diver Ulysses Vidal finds a fourteenth-century bronze bell of Templar origin buried under a reef off the Honduras coast. It turns out it’s been lying there for more than one century, prior to Christopher Columbus’s discovery of America. Driven by curiosity and a sense of adventure, he begins the search for the legendary treasure of the Order of The Temple. Together with a medieval history professor and a daring Mexican archeologist they travel through Spain, the Mali desert, the Caribbean Sea and the Mexican jungle. They face innumerable riddles and dangers, but in the end this search will uncover a much more important mystery. A secret, kept hidden for centuries, which could transform the history of humankind, and the way we understand the universe.

Fernando Gamboa (Barcelona, Spain, 1970) has devoted most of his adult life to traveling through Africa, Asia and Latin America. He has lived in several countries and worked as a scuba diver, Spanish teacher, entrepreneur, poker player and adventure guide.
At present, he’s the #1 bestseller indie author in Spain. His books have been translated into Russian, Greek and Italian”

http://www.amazon.com/LAST-CRYPT-Fernando-Gamboa-ebook/dp/B00MRD6LRE/

http://www.amazon.co.uk/LAST-CRYPT-Fernando-Gamboa-ebook/dp/B00MRD6LRE/

Fernando Gamboa, author

About the Author

Fernando Gamboa (Barcelona, Spain, 1970) has devoted most of his adult life to traveling through Africa, Asia and Latin America. He has lived in several countries and worked as a scuba diver, Spanish teacher, entrepreneur, poker player and adventure guide. At present, he’s the #1 bestseller indie author in Spain. His books have been translated from Spanish to Russian, Greek and Italian. Among some of his bestselling titles in Spanish are: La última cripta, Ciudad Negra, Capitán Riley, Guinea.

http://www.amazon.com/Fernando-Gamboa-Gonz%C3%A1lez/e/B006RTHR9K/

The Kraken. Part 1 by Jonás Cobos

The Kraken: Part I (The Melville Files Book 1) by Jonás Cobos

Private Investigator John Melville, once a member of the Secret Services of Condal City, is convinced by his former employers to investigate the murder of his friend Alí Bey. His friend’s death seems to be related to the theft of hundreds of platinum bullion, stolen from national reserves in the neighboring Napoleonic Republic. The robbers used Aether Disrupters to freeze officials in time. But who are the so-called “Custodians of God?”

http://www.amazon.com/Kraken-Part-Melville-Files-Book-ebook/dp/B00PT1EQAK/

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kraken-Part-Melville-Files-Book-ebook/dp/B00PT1EQAK/

One of the 5 star reviews:

The Kraken is a short introduction to a series by Jonas Cobos. A mystery detective piece following Melville who is on the case of a national theft and the death of a close friend. The two seemingly disparate incidences become intwined and the plot thickens into an interesting mix of crime and mystery.

People that have enjoyed the work of Jules Verne or H.G.Wells will take to Jonas’ writing style. His clear, bold writing is well paced and consistent throughout, a well structured read. Although it is short, it sets up what could be a great series, filled with more of the same twists and characters.

I’ve felt for a while that reading work written these new authors is a really exciting, Jonas’ ‘The Kraken’ is no exception, having all the right ingredients to make a good series, a taste of what is to come. I look forward to the rest of the Melville Files series. Pick it up.

Author Jonás Cobos

About the author:

Jonas Cobos (1967) was born in Balearic Islands, Spain, grew up in Minorca. At 12 years Old he discovered a book by Agatha Christie, and that turn him in a book eater. In 2010 studied Creative Wrinting with the writer Holly Lisle. In 2012 published “Susurros en la Oscuridad” and really fast become a best seller in the terror genre in Amazon Spain. It’s one of the first Spanish writers in Steampunk genre. And his book LA CARACOLA DE NEPTUNO (Steampunk) becomes a best seller in his genre. Now his book is translated to an English and Italian.

http://www.amazon.com/Jonas-Cobos/e/B009BTWC9I/

The Manuscript I. The Secret by Blanca Miosi

The Manuscript I The Secret by Blanca Miosi

When a mysterious man hands Nicholas Blohm a strange manuscript, the unsuccessful author stumbles upon the chance to write the best novel of his life. However, as he starts reading it, he soon discovers that at one point or another, the story is interrupted, and the last pages left blank. Nicholas then decides to find out whether the story in the unfinished novel is fact or fiction.

He readily gathers information and confirms the characters portrayed in the manuscript do exist. Moreover, he could even meet them: the story is real. Fascinated by the possibility, he travels to Rome to acquaint himself with the cast of characters. As a result, he becomes deeply involved in the search for a secret, a missing part of the formula left by Count Claudio Contini-Massera to his nephew, Dante. Nicholas and Dante embark on a two-week action-packed adventure. All through their relentless journey, we find mystery, suspicion, clues, scientists, murder and finally, the most wanted Nazi of all, Josep Mengele.

Set in Rome, Hereford, Capri and New York, The Secret is the first of a series on which Nicholas Blohm always shows up with the manuscript.

http://www.amazon.com/Manuscript-I-Secret-Blanca-Miosi-ebook/dp/B00QFLRTN4/

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Manuscript-I-Secret-Blanca-Miosi-ebook/dp/B00QFLRTN4/

Author Blanca Miosi

About the author:

Born in Lima (Perú) of a Japanese father and Peruvian mother, Blanca Miosi has been living for the last three decades in Venezuela. She is the author of Waldek, the boy who confronted the Nazis a novel based on the life of her husband, a survivor of the Auschwitz and Mauthausen camps. First published in its original Spanish as La Búsqueda (Editorial Roca) the work received international acclaim and won the 2007 Thriller Award. In 2009, Miosi published El Legado (Editorial Viceversa), a family saga based on Erik Hanussen, the notorious Berlin clairvoyant and personal counsel to Adolf Hitler. In 2011, and as an independent author with Amazon.com, Blanca Miosi published La búsqueda, El Legado, Dimitri Galunov, El Manuscrito I. El Secreto; El Manuscrito II El coleccionista,Amanda and now “Waldek, the boy who defied the Nazis” (La búsqueda in English Language) Her novels occupy first ranking positions among Amazon´s best sold titles in Spanish.

http://www.amazon.com/Blanca-Miosi/e/B005C7603C/

My own review of the book:

A small book hiding a big secret:

As a writer, a book titled ‘The Manuscript’ will always be intriguing to me, and Blanca Miosi’s book did not disappoint me. From the very beginning you are thrown in at the deep end and have many questions that make you keep reading.

The writer protagonist of the book, Nicholas, is having trouble writing. And right in cue, a strange man gives him a magical manuscript of sorts. It is unclear what the magic is, but Nicholas becomes fascinated by the content of the manuscript to the point that he has to go and pursue the story, no matter at what cost.

The novel flows well, and the changes in point of view narration add layers of complexity to the book, and make us feel closer to the characters, a complex array of people, from all walks of life and different corners of the world. Business corporations, Mafia, Colombia cartels, Nazi concentration camps’ experiments, writers block, love triangles, genetics…all have a part to play in this novel that’s deceptively simple. Fictional situations mix with well-known historical characters and create a compelling narrative that will leave you wanting more.

I’ve read many books and one can’t help but guess what will come next. Believe me, I tried, but the book kept going in unexpected directions.

Well-paced, with a great story, likeable main characters and some fantastic minor ones, a great dose of intrigue (and some magic) it is not surprising it was a best-seller in its Spanish version. I’d be surprised if the English version doesn’t do even better.

 Ah, and I wanted to thank my friend and incredibly talented writer Dariel Raye for featuring me in her fabulous blog. Come and pay a visit:

http://pendarielraye.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/dariels-feature-meet-my-friend-olga.html?zx=fba1021076a90388

Thanks to all the authors for bringing us their books, thanks to you all for reading, enjoy the coming holiday season, and you know, if you’ve enjoyed it, like, comment, share, and of course, CLICK!