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Hell's Gate

A Thriller

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

When a Japanese submarine is discovered abandoned deep in the Brazilian wilderness, a smart, adventurous, and tough zoologist must derail a catastrophic plot in Hell's Gate.

1944. As war rages in Europe and the Pacific, Army Intel makes a shocking discovery: a 300-foot Japanese sub marooned and empty, deep in the Brazilian interior. A team of Army Rangers sent to investigate has already gone missing. Now, the military sends Captain R. J. MacCready, a quick-witted, brilliant scientific jack-of-all-trades to learn why the Japanese are there—and what they're planning.

Parachuting deep into the heart of Central Brazil, one of the most remote regions on the planet, Mac is unexpectedly reunited with his hometown friend and fellow scientist Bob Thorne. A botanist presumed dead for years, Thorne lives peacefully with Yanni, an indigenous woman who possesses mysterious and invaluable skills. Their wisdom and expertise are nothing short of lifesaving for Mac as he sets out on a trail into the unknown.

Mac makes the arduous trek into an ancient, fog-shrouded valley hidden beneath a 2000-foot plateau, where he learns of a diabolical Axis plot to destroy the United States and its allies. But the enemy isn't the only danger in this treacherous jungle paradise. Silently creeping from the forest, an even darker force is on the prowl, attacking at night and targeting both man and beast. Mac has to uncover the source of this emerging biological crisis and foil the enemy's plans . . . but will he be in time to save humanity from itself?

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    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from April 18, 2016
      Vertebrate zoologist Schutt (Dark Banquet: Blood and the Curious Lives of Blood-Feeding Creatures) makes his fiction debut with an exceptional crypto-zoological thriller, coauthored with the pseudonymous Finch, a painter and cave explorer. In 1944, U.S. Army Capt. R.J. MacCready, a zoologist, travels to Brazil on a mission to investigate a Japanese submarine, large enough to transport three bombers. The vessel was abandoned by German forces deep in the jungle near Hell’s Gate, the mysterious region where Col. Percy Fawcett and his team vanished during his search for the fabled City of Z in the 1920s. Meanwhile, some strange creatures, known to the natives of the target area as chupacabra, have begun picking off German soldiers. The biological basis for the monsters is solid, and the unusual effect they have on the minds of their prey is a plausible extrapolation from known species. The authors adeptly balance science and suspense, and a detailed afterword lays out how much of the story line is based in history. Michael Crichton fans will be pleased that the ending leaves room for a sequel. Agent: Gillian MacKenzie, Gillian MacKenzie Agency.

    • Kirkus

      Starred review from April 15, 2016
      A World War II thriller with plenty of action and suspense in a most unusual setting. In 1944, Capt. R.J. "Mac" MacCready, a tropical zoologist with a Cornell Ph.D., is sent deep into Brazil's Amazon region to find out what a huge Japanese submarine is doing there. The I-400 is believed to have a hangar big enough to hold three floatplane bombers, and it has run aground in the mud. So Mac's boss tells him to "find out what those Axis bastards are up to." They're up to a lot, as it happens. Mac guesses the sub was headed to Portao do Inferno, or Hell's Gate (a real place). "What could possibly go wrong?" he asks himself sarcastically. Again, a lot. Think launch rails for missiles that might turn the tide on Germany's Russian front and destroy entire American cities. Think evil Nazis and sentient vampire bats that take over parts of humans' brains. Think giant man-eating turtles, vampire caves that have guano galore and are crawling with--well, never mind. Just think Indiana Jones. For that matter, this yarn evokes more than a few reminders of Stephen King, Joseph Conrad, and Bram Stoker's Dracula. Readers will roll their eyes at the implausibility of certain details, but in a "Reality Check" after the epilogue, the authors convincingly explain themselves. For example, it won't spoil the story to know that they revived a few species from extinction just for the telling of the tale, and they say there is historical basis for the Nazi project depicted. If this book is ever made into a movie, and it should be, it will have plenty of spectacular visuals and gross-out scenes. 3-D would be nice. Fast-moving fun for thriller readers who enjoy a bit of horror and seeing bad guys get what's coming to them.

      COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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