100 Books Like The Hunt For Atlantis

When I opened this book, I first loved the main character, Cotton Malone, a guy who owns a bookshop in Copenhagen…really? Then he journeyed to Rennes Le Chateau, which I went to in 2013 while I led a tour to France in search of the Templar Knights's footprint and uncovering some of their myths and legends. You have to want to get there; it’s miles from anywhere and in the Pyrenees. In the 19th century, a priest suddenly became exorbitantly wealthy there, and Steve Berry’s book picks up the thread.

He’s a really great writer. You sit right in the middle of the action yourself. This book also introduces Cassiopa Vitt, an extraordinarily well thought through complex character. Malone finds that whichever way he turns, he gets himself deeper, and there are lots of little twists in this book. I read it in speedy time as I couldn’t put it… show more.

Clive Cussler sold a hundred million books, but for me Juan Cabrillo is by far my most favourite character. Why - because he speaks to me personally. I loved this book because it was written after Clive died, but it’s as good if not better than his early ones. Cabrillo is a team guy, and I love that. He always does the hardest stuff himself. As a leader, that speaks to me.

In this book, we deal with the Saudis as well as Mossad, the US Military, and private groups. How often do we find ourselves in these situations of having to keep everyone happy whilst playing one off against another? In this book, Cabrillo also has to deal with AI-induced soldiers as well as manage to complete the mission. It’s got everything in this book. History, modern opponents, high technology, and very real characters that you either love or… show more.

Ernest Dempsey is a maverick. He really pushes the gauntlet and what I like is that he has strong but flawed characters. I mean - who doesn’t want to own the International Archeological Agency - but its owner, Tommy, is actually just a pudgy rich kid.

Dempsey himself couldn’t get a book deal at all… for years, and then he persevered and just exploded. That’s like his plots and characters. They build and build, and they face lots of action. There is never a still moment in this book. Hero Sean Wyatt finds his friend kidnapped and a professor murdered, and this sets him off chasing a 4,000-year-old mystery.

This book is like Indiana Jones. You don’t quite take it seriously, but you enjoy it immensely. 

There is nothing like a good evil villain - one whom you don’t know whether to love, hate, feel sorry for, or simply hope they get killed off.

This is book 11 of David S. Brody’s Templar in America series. (yes, I have read them all). I love how, in each of his books, he postulates a new group who came to America before Columbus. Each book is smothered in proof. This book is about Rome in America and why ancient Jews may have run to America to hide away.

I love the way that David ages his characters by book, and in this case, the main protagonist, Cam, is starting to feel his years. Every one of us has to overcome bureaucracy, work with people we don’t like, and get the job done, sometimes at great personal risk.

This book spoke to me personally about my journey to find… show more.

“In walks these three girls in nothing but bathing suits.” That’s how Updike’s story A & P starts, and really, all I’m doing in recommending this book to you is actually recommending that you read the story A & P.

I once became an English major mostly because I was an unconfident student, and both of my parents were English teachers. I figured I could go home and get help with my homework if I needed it. I always say Updike’s A & P is the first story I ever really liked. Later, when I made the English Honor Society in college, I was asked to read a story that was important to me, and I chose this one.

I used to think all stories were old like Beowulf or MacBeth, but this one showed me stories could come from situations I’d lived. After all, I had worked in… show more.

This book is like nothing I’ve ever read.

Fraimow combines a con-job storyline, a space diaspora setting, a 1920s aesthetic, and an unexpected sapphic romance, and somehow, it all works. I found myself totally immersed in the fragile glitz of New Monte, a kind of Monaco-in-space clinging to a satellite, where debutantes wear breathers as fashion accessories and extravagance masks the threat of scarcity.

And I fell in love with the characters: Ruthi, the cool, competent protagonist with a gift for wisecracks and a tender underside, and Sol, the chivalrous, sharp-suited, hoverbike-riding love interest, who develops from an intriguing antagonist into a fully-rounded human being who is Ruthi’s perfect match.

I love the Timber Creek K-9 Mystery series and Mizushima’s latest book was one of my favorites. As a retired K-9 handler, sometimes books with working dogs get facts wrong. I could tell that Mizushima put a lot of research time into each of her books. I love the fictional K-9, Robo, and Mizushima’s accurate portrayal of the bond between handler and dog. 

Mattie Cobb, the main character, is intriguing and makes the reader cheer for her. The dashing veterinarian, Cole Walker, adds a little romance to the storyline. I would recommend starting with the first book, Killing Trail. While each book stands on its own, reading about the mystery of Mattie’s family makes the conclusion of Standing Dead even more thrilling. 

This is a non-business book that I use for storytelling and while it was primarily written for writers, business owners can easily use the information to create better stories for audiences.

I am always looking to craft strong narratives, and this book helps me to think beyond typical master characters to make them more compelling. I will admit it can get a bit dull in sections, but I keep going back to it as a character-guide.

I love every one of Jane Austen’s novels. I have no favorites, so I can’t recommend only one. They are so funny, but they’re also full of life, love, sadness, loss, families, friends, disappointments, and surprises.

They all end in a marriage, but so do Shakespeare’s comedies–it’s just what happens in a comedy, along with many other things. I’ve read them all more times than I can count but I always find something new to love every time I reread any of them.

The choices Forugh Farrokhzad made shocked me at times, which made the story even more compelling. This Iranian poet broke my heart with her desperation to live her life true to herself. I’m gutted by the fact that in another country, Forugh wouldn’t have needed to make such drastic choices to be a poet and a woman with dreams and needs.

Listening to the story read by Mozhan Marno, a favorite actress of mine, magnified the intensity of the story. Feminism takes many forms and is highly impacted by our surroundings. This story made me dig deep into how far I’d push my personal boundaries for what I believe in. I will read anything Jasmin Dapzink publishes.