Eternal Journey (Rogue Angel)

• Publisher:   Gold Eagle
• Number Of Pages:   320
• Publication Date:   2009-03-10
• ISBN-10 / ASIN:   0373621353
• ISBN-13 / EAN:   9780373621354

After shooting an episode of Chasing History's Monsters at a dig in Australia, Annja Creed is left feeling mildly unimpressed. The artifacts being uncovered are considered fringe by experts who doubt their authenticity. Annja is disappointed by the general lack of mystery involved. But her boredom is quickly replaced with fear when all that's left of her cameraman is a drop of blood on his hotel-room carpet.

As she looks for her friend, Annja narrowly escapes an attack by gunmen. She realizes her cameraman must have captured the image of something so valuable that someone would kill them for just having dared look at it. When it becomes clear that everyone on the dig is at risk, Annja begins to think they're in danger not because of what they saw, but who….

Some days you should never,ever get out of bed. You should just slip on a pair of Depends and hold out for tomorrow. It's a miracle Annja didn't go nuts trying to save her own butt, let alone the butts of several other oblivious, archaeological types. Why don't bad guys get the point before six feet of razor sharp steel bi-sects them?
Hello, hot chick swinging death your way, retire and go take care of mom. Sheesh

Alex Archer and Jean Rabe have given action adventure fans yet another fine entry in the Rogue Angel series. Educational, interesting, and action packed, as always, Eternal Journey takes us Downunder for an archaeological expedition in Australia of artifacts that are surprising and the target of much clandestine interest. Here, our heroine is truly on her own and must cope with a rapidly developing situation on the fly. While I liked the plotline about the artifacts much more than the plotline about the terrorist involved, what makes a continuing series interesting (and what I think most of the other reviewers don't understand), is that each adventure has to remain new and exciting and not simply be a rehash of characters and interactions we have seen before. The publisher, the editors, and the authors all understand the need to vary the mix within the confines of the character and the series and I think more thoughtful readers would agree. In Eternal Journey, we and Annja meet new and interesting characters who get swept into a sinister situation beyond their comprehension, yet meet it with bravery and quick thinking. Isn't that what action adventure is all about?

After being disappointed by Polar Quest, I had hopes that this one would get Annja back on track. Again, no. As another reviewer noted, no mention of Garin or Roux AT ALL, and no real need for this to be Annja rather than, say, Indiana Jones (except that his whip doesn't disappear when not needed). The writing was decent and the story entertaining, but it just isn't the Rogue Angel from the earlier books and has done ZERO to further the story behind/around the sword.

Having followed the Rogue Angel series from the beginning, I've been disappointed in the overall decline of the series over the last few months. When I picked up "Eternal Journey" I wasn't sure how it would be. While it was a pleasant surprise compared to recent offerings, it still wasn't up to the standards of the better books in the series. Annja Creed is finishing up a shoot on location in Australia for her TV show, Chasing History's Monsters. While the site she is covering - Egyptian relics found on Australian soil - is fascinating, everything else seems to be pretty routine... until her cameraman goes missing and she suspects foul play. With mysterious men on her trail, Annja finds herself in a race against time to save the professionals and students on the dig site, as well as the rest of humanity. Meanwhile, she must also solve the mystery of what - or who - she and her colleague saw while filming that could be so volatile people would want them dead to keep it a secret. In "Eternal Journey" we finally see the intelligent, good-under-pressure Annja from previous books. Some of the recent releases (like "Polar Quest") had Annja acting way out of character - being belligerent, calling unnecessary attention to herself, making stupid decisions. The only "bad" decision Annja makes here is not talking to the Sydney police right away, but it's also an understandable move. The Annja in "Eternal Journey" is the one we're familiar with (and like) - the reluctant hero who usually tries to go it solo so she doesn't hurt any innocents in her quest for justice and the greater good. Where I think "Eternal Journey" fails is in using the archaeology aspect as a backdrop instead of the main thing, which is usually what drives the series. In recent memory, the book that has been the best (for me, anyway) at doing that was "Swordsman's Legacy." Annja isn't pursuing some relic or even the site; it just serves as some sort background to fuel the bad character's motives. It felt a little weak to me. One thing I did find intriguing with "Eternal Journey" was the author tried to deepen Annja's connection to the sword and her Joan of Arc legacy. A lot of times Annja just "feels" something is going to happen, and she has to be there to take care of it. It was a good thought, but since not every book does that, it felt like it came out of nowhere. I don't mind if the books don't include Roux or Garin every time (although they are usually stronger when they do), as long as the overall story is solid. For what's been recently available, "Eternal Journey" is a better read, although as a longtime follower of the series, I felt they could have done a much better job with keeping in the usual Rogue Angel themes - mysterious archaeological "thing" that Annja must find/destroy/whatever to save the world. A phone call to comic relief Doug Morrell might have been interesting to put in, too. Longtime fans will find this a welcome change from what's been put on the shelves lately. If you're new to the series, try "Swordsman's Legacy" or better yet, the earlier books in the series (Destiny/Solomon's Jar/Spider Stone).

I have read all the books in this series and this one was very disappointing. I could tell by page 23 that this was a new author for the series. Roux and Garin were not mentioned AT ALL in the entire book. Not even as a thought. There were also lots of other little things that stood out.

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