The Tower: A Novel (The Sanctus Trilogy, 3)

The conclusion of the Sanctus trilogy is thrilling, but if anyone is strongly invested in Liv and Gabriel, the heroine and hero of the first two books, be prepared: this book focuses more on another hero. Agent Shepherd (all the names in all the books have strong significance, by the way) is a rookie with the FBI, yet somehow gets partnered with an experienced agent and the two are sent to investigate an extremely high-profile event: sabotage of the Hubble space telescope. They're hampered by a lot more than the usual villains. There is a religious conspiracy at play, with seemingly unlimited funds and other resources. The weather has turned on its head everywhere, and people are taking to the road in unprecedented and unstoppable hordes. Everyone is going home, whatever home means to them. Liv is out in the desert, pregnant and apparently in charge as a motley assortment of refugees make their way to her side. Gabriel is tied to a bed in the Citadel, the ominous home of an ancient order of monks. A seemingly incurable disease is wiping out people. And Shepherd has more at stake than tracking down bad guys. I was satisfied with this book, but I would have liked to have read more about Liv and Gabriel. Still, there was a thrilling and satisfying conclusion. The author has a new series on tap, and the first book of it was already terrific, so I'm going to stick with Mr. Toyne for future adventures.

This novel (and one has to keep reminding oneself that Ruin does not really exist), is a good ending to the Sanctus Trilogy.The author does a really nice job of describing the various places in which he sets this book - including locations in the US, like Charleston, SC; Cherokee, NC; and the Goddard Space Flight Center in MD. He really makes you feel like you are there.I wondered how he was going to end the trilogy, without having the earth destroyed, but he manages to do so in a convincing manner. My only criticism is that in his Epilogue he only really deals with the Citadel's after the event, and does not give us any closure on Liv, Gabriel, or Shepherd and Hevva.The only item that struck a sour cord with me was the statement that the nearest FBI Field Office to Charleston, SC was in Charlotte, NC - not true. There is a field office in Columbia, SC that was established in 1965.These three books (Sanctus, The Key, and The Tower) should be read in order.

The thrilling and phenomenal conclusion to the Sancti trilogy, The Tower will keep you riveted from the first page to the last. Put on your comfy reading clothes, set your phone on do not disturb and line up your snacks because once you start reading you will find it hard to put this book down. Absolutely sensational.

"The Tower" is in many ways almost a completely different story than "Sanctus" or "The Key." In fact, when I finished the first book, then heard it was a part of a trilogy, I wondered how; it seemed as though most loose ends had been tied up. And while "The Key" wasn't quite as good as the first, it still had very strong ties to "Sanctus." "The Tower," however, seemed even farther removed. Don't misunderstand--it has all the same characters, but they really play a much smaller role. "The Tower" seemed to have been written not because we needed a third book to finish the story, but because trilogies are cool (I guess).In "The Tower," we meet a novice FBI agent Joe Shepherd, and veteran FBI agent Ben Franklin. These two are tasked with investigating strange threats to Marshall Space Center, where the Hubble Telescope has somehow been compromised. Meanwhile, there are assassins trying to kill key NASA personnel tied to projects designed to see deeper into space than ever before.In flashbacks, we follow Liv Anderson who's found a desert oasis, and Gabriel, who's made his way back to Ruin because he suffers from the blight--the disease that has now escaped the Citadel and threatens to spread farther. What happens to these two is no surprise--although I think it's meant to be.I think author Simon Toyne should have wrapped up "The Key" by leaving off the supposed cliffhanger and finishing the series at two books. It's not that "The Tower" is bad, it just really didn't seem that connected to the first two books.

Did not come togetherWillRethink reading another one Story to massive to cover the world I needed more stup

Good conclusion to a great series. Plot moved well. Kept me entertained.I had a few questions of some plot holes. .

I have read this authors previous two novels and found them very entertaining and will continue to look for new works from this author. There are several different story lines at work here and each one could almost be a separate story unto itself. The action is fast paced and no where along the line could I draw any conclusions where we were heading. I did not anticipate the conclusion, so the author did a very good job there. Typically page turner, well written and ties many story lines together. It helps if you read the first two books so you knew what really was going on in the Citadel and what the Sacrament really was. Otherwise a very enjoyable read.

Toyne has done his homework in weaving an Adventure which contains original material, ancient history, spirituality, religion and science into a modern telling of an old story. I hope it doesn't end here.

The plots of the Sancti trilogy are ingenious and interesting.However, the books were spoilt for me by sloppy writing and poor editing.Surely a writer who takes the trouble to research side arms, ammunition and the Middle East and is writing about a monastic order should know that monks don't wear cassocks; they wear habits. Heck, the books’ dustjackets even have pictures of monks in habits!Cardinals do not wear black surplices.Sikorsky helicopters, despite the name, are not Russian.Americans don’t use A5 paper.On the language front the writer and his editors don’t know inter alia the difference between aid and aide, span and spun, lay and laid, shrunk and shrunken, capital and capitol, shall and shalt. What are editors for?Moreover, what language do these characters speak? Are we really to believe that the lingua franca used by monks in some ancient and ultra-traditionalist monastery in Turkey even today would be modern idiomatic English? Latin would be much more likely.Perhaps not damning flaws, but jolly annoying to an attentive reader.Top novelists just don’t make so many mistakes; they hire good editors.

THE TOWER - SIMON TOYNEThe final part of the trilogy which started with Sanctus. A book that had me googling Ruin and citadels. The Key - still had Liv and Gabriel on the run from the Sanctus and now The Tower.We find ourselves in America, with rookie FBI agent Joe Shepherd desperately trying to find out why Hubble and other hugely expensive satellite programmes have suddenly either gone off-course or been destroyed. The more he tries to find his former professors, the more he feels as though someone is always that one step ahead of him.Gabriel has left Liv in the desert with the starmapp while he returns to the citadel because he has caught the Lamentation disease. With the help of the policeman Arkadian, he persuades the remaining monks to turn the citadel into an isolation centre for others who have caught this disease.Liv finds herself in the desert and is joined by a people looking for "home".I HAD to read this final book in the series. I started the book and wondered if I'd somehow missed the plot when I came across Joe Shepherd, so had to go back and re-read THE KEY. It helped me get back into the "mood" of this series. I'm giving it five stars because I think that the whole concept of a place like the Citadel, the monks and people trying to stop anyone from finding the truth, was simply brilliant and I honestly don't think Simon Toyne could have finished the trilogy any other way. But, I still think that the first book, Sanctus, was the most believable.

I found this book just as captivating as the first!,Makes you want to feel that there is hope out there for us all, whether you believe in ANYTHING or not. The parallel between faith and science was well written and thought out. I think one of the major strengths of this series has been the excellent standard of characterisation, and although The Tower gives Toyne the chance to further flesh out some familiar figures, the introduction of some new faces further illustrates his adept hand at this. I particularly took to newly qualified FBI Agent Joe Shepherd and his boss Special Agent Benjamin Franklin and the nature of their professional relationship with the seeds of distrust between them sown by some unspoken secrets of Shepherd’s past. And here endeth the lesson in how to write a really good religious conspiracy thriller, as The Tower brings to a close this excellent trilogy.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series. People describe it as a bit like Dan Brown, but I think that's unfair. Whilst the subject matter is not a million miles away, Toyne is a much better writer. And his city of Ruin and its central Citadel are very convincingly conjured. It's just that this one runs out of steam. The same characters are there, although there are yet more prophecies and tablets and mysterious plotters, but I got a bit tired of them this time.I'm glad to read it and find out how the whole thing wrapped up, but it all felt a bit superfluous.

after reading Sanctus and the Key I waited with fevered anticipation for the Tower, charged up the kindle, tried not to keep checking it....had pre ordered the Tower months before, waited...waited....watched it load...ooooo could hardly wait....snuggled down all cosy to read in bed...for hours.....hyperventilated in several places, husband momentarily concerned then laughed when I said it was a good bit and I was pacing myself.....only put it down because I was cross eyed with tiredness....the next evening was a repeat with added coffee and oxygen on standby.....couldn't put the book down. husband went to sleep after asking to read it after me......some hours later I finished the Tower and exclaimed aloud. husband shot bolt upright what? what? christ he say's I thought something had happened. it has I said. I finished the book. brilliant. absolutely brilliant.