Finding Sheba by H.B. Moore

  Finding Sheba by H.B. Moore An ancient legend is reborn . . . One that might prove the Bible false. For centuries, historians have theorized the Queen of Sheba as only a seductive legend, and scholars have debated over the legitimacy of King David or King Solomon. When undercover Israeli agent, Omar Zagouri, stumbles onto a tomb in Northern Jerusalem he unknowingly finds the final clue that threatens to overthrow government claim to the Holy Land, pits wealthy collectors against one another, and sends ruthless archaeologists scrambling to find the queen’s secret burial place. An assassination attempt on the Coptic Pope, His Holiness, Patriarch Stephanus II, is only the first in the chain of lethal crimes. Omar must find a way to prevent the greatest discovery of the century from becoming the most deadly.

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Moore admits that her concept for Finding Sheba was inspired by the popularity of Dan Brown's novels. I think I enjoyed Moore’s attempt more than Brown’s books. As an experienced historical novelist I feel like she does a much better job of blending her historical information into her narrative making her text read smoothly and naturally rather than the stop and go of Brown’s info dumpy style. So I found this to be a really fun read for the historical thriller genre. The concept centers around the life of the Queen of Sheba and her legacy.  Her historical legitimacy lends many different countries with the historical context for their claim to political power. I love how twisty and complex that she makes the Queen of Sheba’s life, making it possible for all of the different factions warring for more information to have legitimate claims, or at the very least still preserves that need for more historical information to come to light before any solid conclusions can be ascertained. Yet, we get the meat of a very compelling and interesting story about a strong woman and her leadership.  I enjoyed that the author included a point of view from the Queen of Sheba herself so we could hear her story in her own words.

If you love a fun historical thriller a la Dan Brown or the National Treasure genre then this is an excellent and enjoyable read.