The Six Messiahs

In looking at some of the reviews here there seems to be an element of wistfulness for the List of Seven and an opinion that this is not as good as novel as it's precursor. I was fortunate enough to wait two years between reading the two, so while I can agree that this may not be as good as the List of Seven, which was a six-star book in my opinion, this is still a great, wonderful, compelling, and extraordinarily fun read. It's definitely still a five-star book in it's own right and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. If you have read List of Seven, then keep on going and read this one too. It's full of occult forces, evil organizations, weird magic, weirder heroes, and our good old Arthur Conan Doyle, 15 years older and now a successful and world famous author. If you haven't read the List of Seven, then for pity's sake man, order it today and set aside a day for some wonderful fun. In the Six Messiahs, AC goes to America for a book signing tour and promptly gets swept up into a shocking and bewildering murder mystery on the German cruise liner that is ferrying him to the States. He reconnects to Jack, the secret agent, who is not himself and strangely withdrawn, sullen, and distant (probably the primary reason most people didn't like this sequel as much.) Upon reaching the States they are swept up into a mystery regarding the thefts of the world's most sacred religious tomes and must journey, along with several holy people, to the American Southwest to confront a strange cult and try to reccover the tomes. Many of the original cast of the List of Seven return, but as in real life, they are not quite the people they were fifteen years ago, for better or worse. This novel ties up the loose ends left in the first and is a very satisyfing and exceptionally fun read. Ignore the nay-sayers, you will enjoy this book too. If you finish this one and want more stories of AC Doyle battling the dark forces of the occult, make sure to get Thomas Wheeler's "The Arcanum". It's great read in a similar vein as this one.

I was not nearly as disappointed by this sequel to Mark Frost's The List of 7 as many of the other "customer-reviewers." In fact, although I understand the reasons for this disappointment, they are minor compared with the deeper treasure of this two-book story: it is a well-crafted tale of evil, redemption, love, and forgiveness, written with the clever, suspenseful build of the Victorian adventure novel. The addition of so many new characters may leave fans of the first novel feeling bereft of that book's tightly-woven play of Sparks-off-Doyle and vice versa, but the scenes where they communicate directly: darker, more mature, human, and alive than in the more light-hearted List - are a superb, deeply felt address to the question of the nature of evil as it exists in its most powerful tools: human beings. As for the ending: do not mistake "abruptness" for the power of brevity. Although many readers would love to see the story continue, it would meander and lose meaning if an Epilogue were provided within this novel. The last sentence of the book beautifully sums the whole of the two books: Sparks redeemed by his own choice, true friend Doyle waiting with open arms. Classic and well-worth the read. Thank you, Mr. Frost, for continuing the original story of us all. Any chance of a third book? After all, there's always life after redemption.

Although it has been a few years since I read The list of 7and the 6 Messiahs, both left me craving perhaps Frosts nexttrip into Doyle and sparks next adventure. I was lessenthusiastic with The 6 Messiahs, and thought it should have been longer. yet all in all both books were thouroughly enjoyable.

After reading The 6 Messiah's I came looking for more from Mark Frost, and was stunned to see less than 5 star ratings. The author combines a fantastic blend of thriller, mystery and horror with a taste of humor. If your looking for flat horror & gore this is probably not your style. The 6 Messiah's pulls you into a story line that grows and twist with each turn of the page. I loved every minute of it and am looking for more!

I just found myself wishing that the Jack Spark character could have played a more central role in this one, as he did in the first book. But there are still some great scenes in this one. I especially enjoyed the scenes in which they were on the boat in the Atlantic--great setting!