Map of Bones review:4 stars (Better than da vinci, but different.) - I have to say that James Rollins is a better writer than Dan Brown. His characters have more depth, and furthermore, his plots are more completely thought out. I've been disappointed in some of Brown's books, because although the action is fun, the plots are pretty lame. I just don't care if they found a meteor with fossils in it. Rollins however, has ventured away from his normal formula of taking people underground, throwing in weird creatures, and having the hero escape. It's nice to see him grow as an author, and hopefully someday he'll have movies made based on his books.4 stars (The Map is great) - Great little book, many thrills and chills. Another great novel about to be pulled from the shelves and revamped by a nameless publisher is, "Behind the Dark Curtain" by Adam W. Gibson. Pick up you're first edition independent copy's today, so you can turn around and sell them to the highest bidder on "ebay" . Trust me, they won't be around forever.3 stars (Map of Bones...just a little too talky!) - Having read all of James Rollins' novels, Map of Bones comes off as a verbose attempt to justify Rollins' intense research into Catholic ritual, history, and dogma. While the basic military action of the story captures the reader's interest, the novel bogs down in the author's attempt to display his research in a clumsy, didactic fashion. If you've ever heard Tim McCarver literally ruin a World Series telecast with irrelvant, decades old minutia, then you'll appreciate how James Rollins should have reduced the history lessons and simply got on with the novel's action, especially as it leads to the climax.