The Bone Labyrinth

The Bone Labyrinth: A Sigma Force Novel
James Rollins
William Morrow
Harper Collins Publishers
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-06-238164-4
Hardcover
2015
$ 27.99
496 pages

Baako is a young gorilla being raised by Dr. Maria Crandall.  She is "Mama" to the isolated creature.  Along with her twin sister, Lena, the two are pursuing the quest to discover a genetic advancement in human intelligence.  
Who would attack a primate research center near Atlanta, Georgia kidnapping a gorilla, his handler and his mama, better known as head researcher? 
Taking some pieces of well-known facts to create an action/adventure novel which provokes further research and thinking is what master storyteller James Rollins has again accomplished in his latest novel, The Bone Labyrinth.  Along this reading journey is a page-turning education with the members of Sigma Force from nine previous Rollins' novels featuring Gray, Monk, Kim, Seichan, Kowalski and Kat.  The author relies on the reader knowing the characters from the previous novels and spends the time on plot rather than character development while the story travels around the world from Atlanta, Georgia to China to Croatia to Ecuador Why would governments be investing their time and money into archeology and anthropology?  What is the significance of the numbers 37 and 73 except that they are mirror images of each other?  Why was Neil Armstrong involved in an expedition to Ecuador in the mid-1970s? Why did the Great Leap Forward happen years ago advancing the intelligence of humankind? Can the Great Leap Forward be reproduced to currently enhance society today? Could a new Great Leap Forward change human DNA? What can be learned from Neanderthals, hominids and primates that could affect a Great Leap Forward? Which countries could be involved with research into changing DNA to pursue a new Great Leap Forward? Who were Father Athanasius Kircher and Father Carlos Crespi and what did they learn in their years of study? Could the moon be the product of some intelligent design?  Why were two minutes missing in the transmission from the original moon landing? Where was Atlantis?  What do we really know about Atlantis?  All of these are combined into one enthralling thriller that is amazingly well-organized into one logical and memorable adventure.
Although this is one of my favorite Rollins' novels, I would not recommend this to someone not acquainted with the Sigma Force characters.  This is James Rollins back to his old formula for a phenomenal thriller.  .
Like other novels in this series, James Rollins includes notes separating the facts from his fictional tale along with drawings and maps throughout this novel.
The Bone Labyrinth combines great storytelling with real research, mysteries of the world, scientific genetic advances, historical explorations, respect of other cultures and morality into a fast-paced novel that makes the reader stop and think.
Who would enjoy The Bone Labyrinth?   Anyone who enjoyed Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code would be delighted reading this latest Rollins' novel.