Bone Chase by Weston Ochse
Gallery/Saga Press (December 1, 2020)
336 pages; $26 hardcover; $9.99 paperback
Reviewed by Dave Simms
A hunt for giants? Ties to the Bible? Rival factions that stretch back eons?
This is easily going to be one of the hottest thrillers of the year. Imagine if you will, Dan Brown writing with the pacing of Lee Child with the adventure factor of James Rollins. If that’s not enough to crack open this book, nothing will. Did I mention there are giants?
Weston Ochse has been burning up the adventure and horror scene for the past decade, with his Seal Team 666 and Dead Sky novels showcasing both his talent for strong plotting and killer characters. With Bone Chase, he hurdles the next few levels to a place few achieve. There’s not a weak spot in this story. Ochse himself has been heavily involved in Special Forces and intelligence missions, traveling to over 50 countries and recently finishing a tour in Afganistan. The man has been to the settings described in this plot and paints the scenes so well, readers feel the every nuance the characters live and breathe.
The story itself? The less known, the better. David McCloud hasn’t had much luck in life. He’s an out of work math teacher and without a wife or kids, something everyone else has in his immediate family tree. There’s not much out there for him to hang his hat on — which is exactly why David’s father calls him home to tackle the greatest puzzle of his life.
McCloud has been long a conspiracy nut and ran in groups that had David questioning his mental stability. Yet when he receives a strange package, the wheels begin to move and the gears set in motion unearth a hidden history that will upend mankind. David’s father knows he’s about to be killed, by either the Six-Fingered Man (are you serious?) or the Council of David, warring factions that have been at each other’s throats to keep one of the biggest secrets in the world.
David turns to the person he knows he can trust, but who cannot trust him, his ex-girlfriend Shannon Witherspoon. Her skills in the military just might keep both of them alive as they traverse the country in a ride that dares the reader to stop turning the pages (this reviewer knocked the novel off in two work nights — it’s that intoxicating).
The payoff which David and Shanny hope to find, his father’s legacy and life’s research, is the fact that giants have always lived among us, perhaps before humans. Their role in human history has been kept a secret for millennia — for good reason. The author has created an intriguing cast of characters, both antagonists and allies, with each propelling the mysteries into more buried secrets. The twists hit hard and fast, keeping the reader on his or her toes until the final reveal.
Weston Ochse has created a thriller in its finest form. The protagonist is the everyday man, with only his skills in math (try to figure that one out) who is drawn into the oldest mystery of mankind that will likely kill him.
The writing is crisp and clean yet incredibly intelligent, a feat rarely witnessed in this genre, or any. This has blockbuster movie written all over it and is destined to be the literary hit for the holiday season.
