Official Review: The Gettysburg Cypher by K. R. Eckert

[Insomniac07]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Gettysburg Cypher" by K. R. Eckert.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The Gettysburg Cypher by K. R. Eckert is a conspiracy fiction novel much like Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon series such as the 'Angels and Demons' and 'The Da Vinci Code'. It is the second installment in 'The History Hunters' series with the same protagonists; Sara Walsh and Paul Davenport. I haven't read the first book and still had no problem understanding the story.

The novel begins on 3rd July 1863, as the Battle of Gettysburg comes to an end, a Confederate spy enters the Union Army’s Camp. Unfortunately, his own army's cannons kill him, and his mission remains unaccomplished. However, before he dies he passed along a Bible containing secret messages, codes, and ciphers to an unwitting accomplice, Reverend Thomas O’Herlihy.

About 150 years later, in present-day Washington DC, a law school student recovers an ancient journal from the supreme court building. His uncle, Dr. George Chapman, later identifies this as a journal belonging to William Rudd; a spy ring leader of the Confederates during the civil war. The journal exposes a previously unknown attempt to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. Soon it becomes clear that the journal holds many other secrets too.

The descendants of the original plotters (called the Brigade) still operate out of Asheville, North Carolina and still hold hope of 'winning' the war. They believe the USA shall return to the old ways of black slavery and white supremacy. However, until that time they have to keep their secrets safe. The Bible and the Journal threaten to expose those. The Brigade decides that both these items should be back in their possession, and they are willing to do whatever it takes.

The book delivers on its promise of a fast-paced, action-packed novel with an interesting storyline. It's a fun and entertaining read that can get you to the edge of your seat. The plot is somewhat predictable but still has plenty of twists and turns to keep readers engaged. The characters are fully fleshed out and are believable. I also really enjoyed the writing, particularly in the first few chapters. The author manages to hook the readers into the story right from the first page. The war descriptions were especially well written. Considering that I've never read much about the American Civil War, I appreciated the tidbits of factual information about it. However, the book isn't without its share of flaws.

Firstly, even though the main protagonists were well written, sometimes they acted out of character for no apparent reason except to move the plot forward. There was one character in particular that was almost irrelevant to the story. Moreover, towards the end of the book, the body count skyrocketed to slightly unrealistic numbers. There were a few grammatical errors, but thankfully they hadn't been too distracting.

Overall, this was an enjoyable novel, and I’d rate it as a 3 out of 4 stars. It has some very mild swearing and some violence, so I’d recommend the book for older teens and adults, who like historical conspiracy fiction.

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The Gettysburg Cypher
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Like Insomniac07's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Silvermoon]

I love Dan Brown's Robert Langdon, so this sounds like something that I would like to read. Good job on the review.

[Insomniac07]

I love Dan Brown's Robert Langdon, so this sounds like something that I would like to read. Good job on the review.

Thanks

[Alexandra2016]

Conspiracy, war I really am curious. Great review!

[Ashley 1820]

hmm....sounds interesting.I gotta try.nice work on the review!

[danielle47]

Great review! Vey intrigued, can't wait to read it!

[kimmyschemy06]

Sounds like an exciting and action-packed novel. It seems like the author was very successful in integrating fiction with history and came up with one great read, except for the errors. Great job on the review.

[Insomniac07]

Thanks for commenting everyone. If you do read the book lemme know your thoughts.

[Kia]

This doesn't sound like my kind of book, but I can appreciate why a person would like it. Great job on the review!

[Clifora]

This doesn't sound like my kind of book, but I can appreciate why a person would like it. Great job on the review!

Same here! This probably isn't my cup of tea, but it still seems like a great book. Thank you for the great review.

[Insomniac07]

This doesn't sound like my kind of book, but I can appreciate why a person would like it. Great job on the review!

Same here! This probably isn't my cup of tea, but it still seems like a great book. Thank you for the great review.

Thank you both!