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Reviewed by Gaius Konstantine for Readers' Favorite
‘It’s a matter of degree, that’s all. We all prostitute ourselves when it suits us; we only differ in how far we’re prepared to go.’ Two stories for the price of one await readers in The Seven Stars, a novel by Simon Leighton-Porter. And in both those intertwined tales, that sentiment holds. The novel opens in present-day Pompeii, where a startling discovery of 1st-century texts sees Oxford palaeography expert Flora Kemble dispatched to the excavation site. Yet what Flora seeks to discover, others would kill to keep hidden. A break-in at the site ignites a series of world-hopping missions when Flora is recruited by intelligence agencies hot on the trail of shady traffickers. Meanwhile, another story takes place 2,000 years earlier, when a man named Josephus undertakes a relentless and ruthless vendetta against the men responsible for his father's death. But these men are not easy to catch; they lie, manipulate, and perpetuate a great hoax as they are none other than the Apostles of Christ.
Sophisticated and intriguing, The Seven Stars by Simon Leighton-Porter is a dual timeline blend of modern adventure and historical fiction. The narrative follows two alternating plots connected by a common thread that transcends millennia, as the modern-day main character tries to unravel a conspiracy while searching for the truth behind what transpired thousands of years ago. Meanwhile, the events from that timeline offer a fictional glimpse of what actually occurred. Throughout both narratives, multiple themes are present, including ambition, personal agendas clashing with truth, and an unwavering reminder of how wretched humanity can be. Strong character development is one of the highlights of the book, and apart from the main cast, I was impressed by both Raymond as an antagonist and the descriptions of Nero, which presented him as more than just unhinged. With a fast pace, mystery, plenty of action, and spiritual similarities to works like The Da Vinci Code, The Seven Stars promises both entertainment and controversy.
