Dual review with Swedish first and then English!

SWEDISH REVIEW

Jag tycker om att läsa en bok om Ben Hope mellan varven. Handlingarna är intressanta och har ofta kopplingar till historiska händelser och personer. Kodnamn Kassandra är inget undantag. I denna bok så träffar Ben på Raul Fuentes, en man som nyligen har förlurat sin syster, Catalina Fuentes. Allting tyder på självmord, men Raul tror att syster forfarande lever då man aldrig fann kroppen. Ben har svårt att tro honom, men minns själv hur han gav upp hoppet om sin egen syster när hon försvann när de var små för att sedan få reda på många år senare att hon lever. Ben beslutar sig för att hjälpa Raul trots att han innerst inne tror att Catalina är död.

Kodnamn Kassandra var mycket trevlig att läsa. Även om berättelsen om den försvunna systersn var bra, var jag mest fascinerad över information man fick angående Bens egen barndom. Jag har inte läst alla böckerna i serien, så Bens bakgrund var okänd för mig. Och jag måste erkänna att Bens personliga historia, som bara är en liten del av boken, gjorde ett större intryck än huvudhistorien. Inte för att Rauls jakt på sin syster var tråkig, det var mer den delen av berättelsen kändes en aning förutsägbar mellan varven.

Jag tyckte om att läsa boken och jag ser fram emot att läsa både nästa bok i serien och de andra tidigare publicerade som jag har missat att läsa.

Tack HarperCollins Nordic för recensionsexemplaret!

ENGLISH REVIEW

I always enjoy reading a Ben Hope novel now and then, the stories in the book are interesting and they often have links with historical events and people. The Cassandra Sanction is no exception. In this book, Ben meets Raul Fuentes, a man who has recently lost his sister, Catalina Fuentes. Everything implies suicide, but Raul believes that sister is still alive since the body has never been found. Ben has difficulty believing him, but remembers himself how he gave up the hope of his own sister when she disappeared when they were little only to find out many years later that she was alive. Ben decides to help Raul even though he believes Catalina is dead.

I found this book to be very pleasant to read. Although the story was good, the missing sister, was I mostly intrigued by the snippet we got from Ben's own childhood I've not read all the books so much about Ben is still unknown to me. And, I have to admit that Ben's personal story, although just a small part of the book, made a bigger impression than the main story. Not that Raul's hunt for his sister was boring, it was more that part of the story felt a bit predictable.

I did enjoy reading the book, and I'm looking forward to both reading the next book in the series and getting to the first books that I've missed.

Thanks HarperCollins Nordic for the review copy! ( )

Exciting enough with plenty of Ben Hope action, but a somewhat different take on things in this book. A very chance meeting sees Ben on the lookout for someone who appears to have committed suicide, but whose twin brother dos not believe that to be the case. The premise behind the book centres on Global Green issues, with those apparently protecting the planet from global warming having other ideas. There is a great deal of exposition of such global issues, obviously well-researched by Scott Mariani, although I felt that some of it was a little bit of a stretch. However, I am not an expert, and it did make for a good read. There is a great deal of action in the book, but it did not quite hold my attention as others have. That may have been too much factual detail detracting from the pace of the story. Perhaps the next in the series will show Ben back to his best.

Overall, a good ride - all the usual twists and turns and action. A worthy Mariani book.

[Spoiler] One minor thing - the plot point of 'man-made climate change is a hoax' got my hackles up, but I guess I can let that slide under the headling of 'poetic license.'

Also, a word about the "Ben Hope universe" - others have said that it's not necessary to read them in order, and strictly speaking that's true in the sense that each book is a self-contained story.
However, Mariani does tend to reference earlier incidents in all of his books. Thus, reading them in order allows you to understand those references - this, along with the deeper understanding of the Ben Hope psyche, provides a greater reading experience in my opinion. ( )

Sometimes I bite off a bit more than I can chew on the old reading front. When I need a rest I pick up a Ben Hope thriller. I'll not make any outrageous claims for these books reaching the heights of Ludlum or Harris, but neither do they stoop to their depths, because Scott Mariani is a professional. ( )