THE QUEST by Nelson DeMille is not his best work. In fact, if lands near the bottom of the pile. I have read all of his other books and enjoyed them immensely. Unfortunately, this one starts out slow and I almost stopped reading it on several occasions. Surely, this was not expected. I don't know what it is, but I found the same issue with some of Clive Cussler's and James Patterson's books - boring at the beginning and slow to unfold. Maybe they're ready for retirement.

The story follows two reporters, Frank and Henry, and a photographer, Vivian, through the death-filled country of Ethiopia during their civil war. DeMille 'shows' the violence and mutilation, leaving nothing to the imagination. Initially, the crew is reporting on the war until they come upon a dying priest who recently escaped imprisonment during the last forty years. He claims to have seen the '"Holy Grail" in a secluded monastery before his capture; he finished his story short of exposing the location before dying. This results in the team changing direction and beginning a Quest to locate this holy relic.

They are captured by one of the feuding armies and threatened with death. They do barely escape and return to Rome. There, they plan a return to Ethiopia and their search for the relic, knowing full well that there is a high chance of being captured and tortured by the same army they escaped from earlier. Much of the story is dialog and planning their quest, a love tryst is also included as Vivian plays both of the men during their time together.

The story was just OKAY but could have had much more action. Seemed like only the last 20% was compelling to the point that I didn't want to put the book down. I was also disappointed with the ending. This makes me wary of purchasing his next book. ( )

Nelson DeMille is without a doubt one of my favorite authors, but I don't think this book even cracks my top 10 of DeMille's books. Although, I don't think that that is a criticism of this book as much as it is acclaim for some of his others. I wasn't enamored with the religious aspects of this book, but that doesn't really impact my feelings about this book. The plot was awesome, as well as the settings. My main flaw with this book was probably the characters. I didn't find many of them too like able, and it was probably due to the love triangle, which I thought was really flawed. I just really didn't like the way it played out. I vacillate between Purcell and Gann as my favorite characters, with Purcell's problem the aforementioned love triangle problems, and Gann's problem probably being too much of a strait man. Then again, what this book lacks in a protagonist, it more than overcompensates with an extreme antagonist, couldn't ask for more in a bad guy then you get in Getachu. All in all, a good but not great book. ( )

Nelson DeMille reworked a book he originally published in 1975, in which the protagonists seek the holy grail in war-torn Ethiopia. Two journalists and a photographer come across a dying priest, who has been imprisoned for 40 years in a country ravaged by jungle lords and national armies. The three decide to seek the relic from the Last Supper, but have a very twisted relationship. Not as good as Raiders of the Lost Ark, not even close. ( )

My favorite Nelson DeMille book is even better in this longer, updated version of The Quest. In this story the reader finds flawed, oh-so-human characters in the Ethiopian civil war, warriors fighting to save the royal dynasty, rebels fighting for Marxism, and journalists caught in between who are on a quest of their own. Magnificent! ( )

The Quest: As far a I can make out, these people are searching in the jungle in Africa for a goblet (a small gob?) or cup (grail?) used by their “saviour” to imbibe his last drop of wine before he snuffed it. They appear to think it is important. I could not share their feelings or understand so I bailed out at about page 12. I did not feel that they needed me along. They may still be there .. .. .. .. ( )