4 stars!

I was not expecting such a graphic book so I would definitely put that as a note for anyone interested in reading. But this book truly hooked me! I loved the historical components that were woven in about Cleopatra, and the empowerment of women in this novel. Definitely a fun novel!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Avanti Centrae http://www.avanticentrae.com is the author of four novels. I had the opportunity to interview Ms. Centrae in September of 2020. Cleopatra’s Vendetta was published in 2022 and is the first novel in her Stryker Thriller series. This is the 84th book I completed in 2022.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R. The primary character is Think Tank Special Ops leader Timothy Stryker, but the story begins in the time of Cleopatra. Her empire is brought down, and she dies due to the conspiracy of others. Before her death, she sets in motion a plot to destroy those that brought her down.

Stryker is in Italy with his wife, Angie, and daughter on holiday. When the women are kidnapped, Stryker uses all of his resources to find and rescue them. His investigations disclose that the group behind the kidnapping is The Sons of Adam. The ancient group is responsible for a series of assassinations. They have a reputation for having a long-standing conspiracy against women.

Stryker reaches out to his wife’s sister, Sam, to help in his search. As a CIA agent, she will have access to information. Stryker and Sam desperately search for Angie and her daughter. Meanwhile, Angie is doing what she can as a captive. Will Angie be found in time? Can Stryker and his team bring the long-standing plot initiated by Cleopatra to fruition and destroy the Sons of Adam?

I enjoyed the 7.5 hours I spent reading this 398-page thriller. I have now had the opportunity to read all of Ms. Centrae’s novels. The earlier ones are VanOps: The Lost Power, Solstice Shadows, and The Doomsday Medallion. In an unexpected personal connection, while the group Stryker is in is fictitious, the real Army Futures Command happens to be headquartered in Central Texas. I enjoyed this engaging story. I like the chosen cover art, it is very eye-catching. I give this novel a rating of 3.8 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Trigger warning: This book depicts women held captive by sex traffickers. While there are no graphic sex scenes, there is some physical mistreatment of the women.

Holy heck, what a book! Avanti Centrae has a fascinating premise – that Cleopatra, knowing her death was imminent, took control of the time she had left and engineered her demise rather than waiting on Octavian to do her in. She didn’t really die by the bite of an asp, and she left behind hidden information in a secret location, hidden information that would be vital in taking down an ancient group with a long-held grudge against women.

Jump forward to modern day. Timothy and Angie Stryker lost their infant son, and it’s taken a toll on their marriage. Angie has been trying to keep her pain at bay with alcohol. Stryker hopes they can restore their strained relationship with a family vacation to Italy. But before that happens, Angie and their four-year-old daughter, Harper, are kidnapped by a group eventually identified as the Sons of Adam.

Stryker, a Special Ops commander, is able to get help from his team to start the search. They soon realize that the kidnapping may have some connection to the assassin (or assassins) taking out world leaders that they’ve been trying to get a line on. It may also be connected to Cleopatra and her missing journal.

This book took off right out of the gate and didn’t let up. Avanti Centrae lays the foundation with a look at Cleopatra’s last hours, and then really ramps up with Stryker and the team chasing assassins and Angie and Harper being taken. There were no slow moments. I know you hear books described as “unputdownable,” but this one really was. I was up way later than I should have been on a work night reading.

What I know of Cleopatra is limited to the generally accepted view of her as a seductress and as having died by suicide by snake. But she was also a powerful ruler in her own right, and Centrae creates a believable possibility of how things really went down for the dethroned queen. I enjoyed the historical tidbits woven in and the centuries-long battle of good versus evil.

The characters were all well written, to my reading. Even the relatively minor characters had back story. Zola, the cook on the island where Angie, Harper, and the other captives were held, was one of my favorites. Though it seemed that she had no power, no way to impact her situation, in the end she played a vital role and was an absolute badass.

Sam, Angie’s sister and one of Stryker’s teammates, was another fantastic character. Her interest in and knowledge of Cleopatra was vital to the team as they tried to track down the lost journal, and she was as tough as any of the men on the team.

Fast-paced, gripping, and worth staying up late to read. Five big stars for Cleopatra’s Vendetta, and I can’t wait to read more from Avanti Centrae!

Thank You to Thunder Creek Press and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I Loved This Book!!!

I knew that I would because I have loved all off Avanti Centrae's books and if you haven't read anything by this author, you really need to add her to your TBR list.
Her books are filled with action, fully realized characters that are complex and this one has an archeological aspect that is right up my alley. Not only did I love reading this novel but it left me with a need to investigate the life of Cleopatra and the times she lived in.
Can't wait or the next Avanti Centrae novel to hit the shelves!

A historical thriller that plays like an action and adventure story. The story has it all, drama, history, action, suspense and mystery. A breathtaking story that is exciting and stirring. The characters and plot are well written. This is a great story that I would like to see become a movie.

Disclaimer: Thank you to NetGalley and Thunder Creek Press for this review copy, I received this review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A great read with a sting in the tail. One of those books that it’s hard to put down, even though you know you have real world things to do.

Centrae has given readers another action packed adventure in international intrigue enveloped in interesting historical information. I love the cutting edge technical equipment the team has, even custom made silicone masks for disguises. The characters do lots of travel and the various setting include a wealth of cultural information. I really appreciated the author note at the end, explaining historical facts and cutting edge technical feats, like creating deepfake photos and videos.

The plot has centuries old roots in the life and death of Cleopatra. I appreciated the information included about her. There are several twists and turns in the action, as well as a surprise mole hampering the work of the team. And what a thought provoking exploration of whether God is male or not.

This novel centers more on the character Stryker and his family. I like how the character of Stryker's wife is well developed in her experiences. There is a good balance of personal life and action throughout the fast paced novel.

This is another good novel from Centrae for readers who like international intrigue, adventure and suspense, interesting historical information and the latest in technology and equipment.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Cleopatras Vendetta (A Stryker Thriller) by Avanti Centrae

398 Pages
Publisher: Thunder Creek Press, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members’ Titles
Release Date: November 15, 2022

Fiction (Adult), General Fiction (Adult), Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Special Ops

The story begins with Cleopatra’s death but then jumps to present day. Special Ops leader Timothy Stryker and his wife, Angie are on holiday in Italy. They have been coming to terms with the death of their infant son. While Angie is out with her girlfriends, they are drugged and kidnapped. Stryker and his team must find the group holding the women and stop an assassination for happening.

The book is fast paced, the characters are developed, and it is written in the third person point of view. I like how Angie is written as a survivor. She did not realize how broken she was until she was held captive and made to face reality. If you like books about Special Ops, you will definitely enjoy the pace and story of this book.

My opinion is in the minority here. I did not like this book. I still gave it 2 stars, because it was marginally alright, and people who are better able to suspend disbelief may enjoy this novel more than I did. This is the first in a series, and I doubt I will read another. Why? This is a Dan Brown wannabe that just didn’t work. Everything fell into the laps of the people solving the mystery too easily. Some of it was actually absurd. Here are 2 prime examples.
Somebody claims to have had Cleopatra’s personal diary in his family for 2000 years. No one questions this. No one calls BS. No one laughs. The British royal family cannot even trace their history 2000 years, and this dude's people just happened to have Cleo's diary for 2000 years. Secondly, the team finds a letter written by Cleo and one of the team reads it word for word, translating on the fly. None of the content is difficult to translate, smeared, broken off, etc. Nope, it translates perfectly into modern English. I am simply unable to buy this. It is absolutely absurd.
The connection between Cleopatra and this sex trafficking ring is tenuous to forced. If the author did not spell it out, it would be completely lost. A novel about sex trafficking should be somewhat gritty; this is a serious subject. However, I did not find this book gritty at all. The topic is mature, but the narrative was written at a PG13 level. I just expect more adult content in a novel that deals with this topic. Maybe people who want a special ops thriller without any four-letter words will appreciate this. I just couldn’t. It was too silly on multiple levels.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

A thrilling read from start to finish!
The story takes us back to the late Egyptian empire in the time of Cleopatra, before heading straight back in to the modern world, but not as we know it.
A specialist team race against time to get to the bottom of high profile assassinations, family kidnappings and age old conspiracy theories.

The ideas behind this story really make you question your own thinking as a human being and make you wonder just why we live our lives as we do today.

Cracking job, 5/5.

The story starts off with Cleopatra awaiting her fate at the hands of Octavian. Before her end she learns of a secret organization called the ons of Adam. Prior to her death she leaves a 'treasure' that only she knows where it is as does her faithful servant that hides it. When she dies, he dies with her, so the fate of the treasure is lost forever. Or is it?

Three American women and two children are kidnapped while on vacation while in a bar in Bari, Italy. This starts the adventure in the story, Angie, one of the kidnapped women is the wife of Special Ops Timothy Stryker. He needs to find his wife and daughter, Harper before they are killed.

While doing this he learns that everything is dependent on finding the Cleopatra treasure and eradicating the sons of Adam. He and his team travel to Egypt, India and the Ionian Islands to follow the clues.

This story is an exciting edition to the genre, great characters, a plot that will keep you thinking about the book long after you finish. I really enjoyed it, and it was a fast read. I love a great mystery/thriller, and this was a fun read!

5 stars for sure!

Cleopatra's Vendetta by Avanti Centrae- The Cleopatra legends lay groundwork for a beginning. Angie, the mother, and her kick-a$$ momma protective survival skills build a thrilling center; Stryker and his international hit men kick in and add on to a high intensity thriller that keeps you turning the pages! Recommend!

I always love a good thriller, especially after finishing a Dan Brown book and looking for another that will be just as entertaining. When I saw Cleopatra’s Vendetta by Avanti Centrae, never having read the author before, I was intrigued. How can a reader pass up a thriller with a well known Egyptian Queen worked into the plot? And, the book turned out to have some exciting notions about Cleopatra, starting with her defeat by the Roman heir “to the throne” (so to speak, as anyone would have been as Julius Caesar’s heir) Octavian. Being a great fan of Rome on HBO, I stayed with the two seasons engrossed, until the end, and this book brought me back to the memories of what was portrayed there. As ROME ends with Octavian’s defeat of Cleopatra and Marc Anthony, the beginning picks up as Cleoparta is angered over Octavian and his defeat.

And, while I love a good television series, a good book is always better as it exudes much more than a tv show. We can know the emotions of characters and their very thoughts rather than interpreting body language and tone of voice (among other things) to get other information, on screen. I loved reading the sentence “This sultry city put the bastard’s rat-infested town to shame” as Cleopatra describes the last year, waiting for Octavian to invade her beautiful city. Her ultimate end. And, Cleopatra, a woman portrayed (and, I believe, quite right, by many authors, as one who knew the decisions she was making were the correct ones, never one to question what she needed to do) knew this, that there would be no concessions made for her by Octavian. She was too dangerous to the boy, as her son was.

Cleopatra knows that if she is captured, or if she turns herself over to Octavian, she will only find herself taken to Rome, in chains, to be paraded through the streets wearing only golden shackles. So she sets in motion a last, desperate, plan. The cobra, a sign of “royalty and divine authority” will end Cleopatra, she will not let this boy plan her end, this “son of Caesar” (by Roman decree). And, here, in Cleopatra’s Vendetta we read her last moments. Her final journey begins. And Octavian puts an end to a two thousand year old war, the struggle between Egypt and Rome.

Before Cleopatra’s end she is told that her spies have finally found the stronghold to Octavian’s cult known as the sons of Adam. It is on an island that they hadn’t known about until these last moments, before Cleopatra’s death. This victory, finally defeating the careful, sneaky, supporters of Rome, of Octavian, is ever so sweet to Cleopatra, before her death. She tells her own man to record where the supporters are located and to seal and hide the information. He is then given orders to go, buy a coffin for himself and join his great Queen in death. And this, a great honor for him.

Cleopatra would leave a vault of treasures despite her life being over, despite the end of Egypt. Among many riches, it would contain much information about the sons of Adam. Everything she had been able to obtain about their “hundreds of years or propaganda and abuse,” for future eyes to discover. Hopefully this would help to destroy the sons of Adam, in the future. And, when a kidnapping happens many years into the future it may be just the discovery needed to help solve the crime, so that Timothy Stryker can get his wife back.

Angie is vacationing with her daughter Zoe and her friend and their child. When they go to a pub in Bari, Italy, to relax and have drinks, they find themself having been drugged and eventually are transported to an unknown location. When Tim Stryker finds out about the disappearance he begins to put the pieces together and the hidden mystery that Cleopatra has left, will it be of any help, any aide, in the end? And, if he can piece together what Cleopatra has left, about the sons of Adam, how will this ancient hidden cult be of any help, all those hundreds of years later?

Cleopatra’s Vendetta is a fast-paced thriller that, once you begin, you won’t be able to put down. If you are a fan of the Queen, a History buff, just have a love of excitement, intrigue, and mystery you are going to want to obtain a copy! I not only enjoyed this part of the storyline but also the fact that, at the time of his wife's abduction, the pair are going through an emotional crisis, the death of their child. It really shows how, when important things happen, couples bond together, take care of what is really important, rather than things that can be overcome.

The death of a child is something that many couples cannot overcome, after the loss. A little over 90% don't survive, end the relationship. In this story the couple were struggling with that same pain. And, in losing one another, in having to think about never seeing their loved one again, readers gain insight into what should be important. Losing a child is hard, I have experienced it myself. And, the relationship didn't survive. But, had something happened where we realized how important the other was to us, a dire situation such as the couple here experience, maybe things would have been different. Not that I'd ever wish to be kidnapped or that the father of the child that passed would have been. But, twenty years later, we still matter to one another, just as friends, we still have a connection. There was something good there. And, I wish he, I, had worked harder at the time to see that.

Though this is a non-fiction thriller that deals with concepts far outside what people normally deal with in their lives, I would express the importance of reading it for couples who are thinking about ending relationships. If not only to ask the question, “what if”? Do I love someone that much? What would happen if now, at this moment, my significant other had to save me in some crisis? Would they? And, even if the odds are against them, would they do everything humanly possible to save me? Because twenty years after our son passed, not many people are in our lives that have been there that long, my ex and I. And, we are both in situations that cannot be reversed, he with a wife and children and I, the same. However, I believe we both know now that there was something good there, something we should have tried harder to preserve. And, when I read this book I almost wished that something happened that we could have overcome together, that made us see the other's importance, so that we could have seen how we really had something worthwhile and just needed to get over a hump, rather than part.

Some things are meant to be lasting in life and sometimes we don't see that until it is too late. However fictional this book helped me look at a lot of things in my life because losing a child is hard and, when you have lost one, even when you read about another woman in that situation, it always brings up issues. I am really glad the book had a successful outcome and wish I could have read it, learned these things a long time ago. Maybe I would have done something different.
But there is a happy ending for Cleopatra’s Vendetta, you get to read a lot about the cult of the sons of Adam, discover what they have done, how they evolved and the terrible things they are doing, now. So ironic, the name of the group, you think, after you are done. As I mentioned, the book was rewarding on so many levels, an adventure into myself, the past, a subject I love to read about (Cleopatra and Rome). Anyone who loves a fun adventure wants to look here!

Happy Reading!

Someone is assassinating politicians across the world. Agent Tim Stryker was called away from an Italian holiday with his wife Angie and daughter Harper to investigate a threat to a Saudi prince with his partner Rey. In the midst of his assignment he receives a call from his sister-in-law Sam to let him know that Angie and Harper are missing and presumed kidnapped. After attending a wedding they had gone for drinks with friends and never returned. While Rey continues their assignment with Jane, a British agent, Stryker and Sam’s investigation puts them in the path of a cult whose origins date back to Rome in the time of Caesar. It was a cult that Cleopatra threatened to destroy. At her death she had discovered the location of their secret base and left clues in her diary. The race is on to find the lost diary, following in Cleopatra’s footsteps.

Angie and Harper are being held at the cult’s base along with a number of other kidnapped women. They are used to serve the men and clean for one week while being starved into submission. They are then sold into servitude. Angie has that one week to discover their location and find a way out for herself and the others. This cult is responsible for the assassinations and are planning a movement against the American President-elect that could lead to civil war.

This is an action packed thriller that draws you in from the first page and does not let go until the final confrontation. If you are a fan of Steve Berry’s mixture of history and adventure or Dan Brown’s thrillers then Avanti Centrae should be added to your must read lists. I would like to thank NetGalley and Thunder Creek Press for providing this book for my review.

I just finished Cleopatra's Vendetta, A Stryker Thriller
by Avanti Centrae and here is my review.

Timothy Stryker and his wife Angie often don’t see eye to eye so they decide to head to italy for a vacation. A vacation that ends when Angie and their daughter are kidnapped!

Desperate to get them back, Stryker discovers the captors have been up to all kinds of criminal activity in the last 7 days and when he finds out why they took his daughter, it's go time.
Angie soon discovers the cabal is hiding a secret tracing back to the time of Cleopatra. Can Stryker reach his family in time before the worst can happen?
Already a solid fan of the series and this book didn’t disappoint! I already love Stryker so seeing some new depth added to his character was amazing to see.
I really loved the plot. It was a refreshing take on a Cleopatra twist. Book was well written and while it did drag in places a little, it wasn’t enough to distract from how entertaining this book really was!!
4 stars!! If you love a good thriller with a little mix of history, this is the one for you! Pick up the whole series!

Avanti Centrae has given us another great story. She takes a historical event and uses it to set up the current day tale. I like how she uses her narrative to address issues in society today. Mankind pursuing power and money – themes as old as our species. In such pursuits some become mannotsokind. Big fan – keep’em coming Avanti! #CleopatrasVendetta #NetGalley

This is an action-packed story involving clues left by Cleopatra herself thousands of years ago, in order to stop a child-trafficking operation.

Members of the Special Ops team's family are also put at risk in the attempt to bring down an organisation with its roots in ancient times.

I loved the mix of past and present running throughout this book, which was pretty seamless. The author has clearly done a lot of research.

I would have loved more puzzles and riddles to solve, as it did seem as if the characters stumbled across the solutions to their problems a bit too easily at times.

However, overall this was a full-on, never a dull moment story, with engaging characters and I would be happy to continue the series in future.

Thanks to the author and publisher for the eARC of this book.

CLEOPATRA’S VENDETTA by Avanti Centrae is an edge-of-your-seat contemporary thriller full of history and conspiracies featuring a high-tech, highly trained team of military misfits. I read this first book in hopefully a future series very quickly and was unable to put it down.

Tim Stryker, his wife, Angie and their young daughter, Harper are on a much-needed vacation in Italy. It has been a year since the death of their infant son from brain cancer and the family is still suffering. While Stryker has been using meditation and avoidance to deal with his pain, Angie has been abusing alcohol to bury her pain.

Stryker is the lead commander of a group of specialized military operatives who are all highly intelligent, but all also have some reason they do not fit into regular service. He is called away from the family vacation when intel is uncovered that another head of state is marked for assassination which has become a string of assassinations no one has been able to stop. While away, Stryker’s wife and daughter are kidnapped. They are held in an island prison with many other women being sold into a sex-trafficking operation, and while Angie knows Stryker will come for them, she is CIA trained and determined to protect Harper. While she looks for a way to escape, she uncovers a conspiracy that ties the current assassinations to the historical Cleopatra and her plot to destroy her enemies even after her suicide.

I loved how this exciting thriller weaves two intertwining historical and present-day cabals in an eternal battle and search for treasure and power. The plot is a mystery/conspiracy thriller with plenty of action that blends fact and fiction seamlessly and leaves the reader contemplating many beliefs and mores in our current society. Stryker and his team are all well drawn special ops warriors and I enjoyed the twist of each having some flaw that makes them unable to work on a regular team but binds them all together perfectly.

I highly recommend this exciting thriller!

I love anything to do with Ancient Egypt so this book was a perfect pick for me. A fantastic blend of historical and modern day with great characters and an exciting plot. I will certainly look out for more from this author in the future.

When I read the title and premise for this book, I was only to happy to read this book! I have been a fan of Cleopatra ever since I learned about Egyptian history in elementary school. The idea of a woman being in a position of power always fascinated me. I know the group Sons of Adam is made up but maybe there is some truth to this theory. Ever since I was little, the religion I was taught, told me that women were the root of all evil. Then as I grew up, history only seemed to try and prove this theory. Women are as powerful as men, otherwise why would there be so much oppression of women. I enjoyed this book so much. I am glad to review this book.