In Blood of the Reich, critically acclaimed and bestselling author William Dietrich weaves two stories separated by place and time yet deeply intertwined by the dangerous secret they share. On the eve of World War II, explorer Kurt Raeder receives orders from Reichsfuhrer-SS Heinrich Himmler to set out from Berlin in search of a legendary energy source hidden among the mountains of Tibet - one that could bring victory to the Nazis. Only one man can stop Raeder and his team of SS officers: wealthy American zoologist Benjamin Hood. Together with aviatrix Beth Calloway, he must race to the Buddhist kingdom before the tides of history run red with blood. Decades later, in present-day Seattle, software publicist Rominy Pickett is saved from certain death by a mysterious journalist who claims to know the truth about her family. Rominy's history and courage hold the key to defeating, once and for all, the evil forces again on the rise. Moving from the remote woods of the Pacific Northwest to the underground laboratories of the CERN supercollider in France and Switzerland and to the mystical temples of Tibet, Blood of the Reich is a white-knuckle thrill ride filled with adventure, authentic historical detail, and unforgettable characters. This is William Dietrich at his very best.

From Publishers Weekly

Last seen in Dietrich's Napoleon's Pyramids, fleeing the forces of evil in a runaway hot-air balloon over Egypt, Ethan Gage undergoes further life-threatening adventures in this rollicking sequel. Nine months before the balloon incident, Gage arrived in the Holy Land with his benefactor, Napoleon Bonaparte. After various misunderstandings involving the secrets of the Great Pyramid, Bonaparte became his implacable enemy. Now, accused of treason by Napoleon's minions, Pierre Najac and Najac's boss, the French-Italian count and sorcerer Alessandro Silano, Gage flees to Jerusalem, where he searches for his former lover, Astiza, who he fears has fallen into Silano's hands. Gage is also hunting clues that may lead him to the fabled Book of Toth, an ancient tome that promises to reveal the secrets of the universe. Ever the incorrigible gambler and all-around scamp, Gage makes an irresistible antihero. The ending promises more volumes in what one hopes will be a long series. 8-city author tour. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From

The sequel to Napoleon’s Pyramids (2007)picks up pretty much where that book left off. Ethan Gage, the American adventurer, having barely escaped death during his time in Egypt with Napoleon, is looking for a little peace and quiet, but when he’s approached with another can’t-miss Indiana Jones–like treasure hunt, he’s off again, this time to find the fabled Book of Thoth, the possibly apocryphal ancient Egyptian scroll with supposedly magical properties. Much capering about late-eighteenth-century Egypt results, with Gage dodging all variety of assailants while attempting to get his hands on yet another elusive artifact with the power to both entrance and corrupt all who seek it. Like Napoleon’s Pyramids, this is a fast-paced, lively historical-adventure yarn that combines entertaining characters, an intriguing story, and lots of derring-do. Dietrich has a real knack for these slightly over-the-top thrillers, and readers familiar with the work of, say, James Rollins or Matthew Reilly (7 Deadly Wonders, 2006, for example) need only be told that this fine novel is right up their alley. --David Pitt

In The Barbed Crown, the sixth tale of rogue and adventurer Ethan Gage by William Dietrich, our hero returns to Paris and London. Against a background of imperial pomp and the gathering clouds of war, Gage plots revenge on Napoleon Bonaparte for the kidnap of his son.Paris, the “City of Lights,” shines – but alongside its splendor is great squalor. Heroic patriotism rubs against mean ambition, while grand strategy and back-alley conspiracy are never far apart.While Ethan spies on the French court, his wife, Astiza, works to sabotage Napoleon’s coronation using the Crown of Thorns, a legendary relic said to have come from the Crucifixion itself. But when Napoleon is crowned nonetheless, they flee to England.At Walmer Castle on the English coast, Gage joins a daring campaign by Smith, Fulton, rocket inventor William Congreve and smuggler Tom Johnstone to halt Napoleon’s intended invasion of England – a campaign which leads Ethan to take a role in the Battle of Trafalgar itself…

Review

“Ethan Gage is not a man to let the grass grow under his feet. A non-stop page-turning adventure of wit, entertaining history, and characters who roll with the punches of fate.” (Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series )
“Utilizing his trademark combination of wit, wile, and homespun American common sense, Ethan successfully integrates himself into the sophisticated intrigue of the Old World.” (Booklist )
“Rich in historical detail. . . . The battle of Trafalgar is narrated magnificently. There are also plots, twists, and counterplots along with searches for religious relics . . . Historical fiction fans will relish this over-the-top romp as they wallow in the color and the history.” (Library Journal )
“Brilliantly conceived and crafted from the first word. Dietrich puts great characters in seemingly impossible scenarios on every page. A fun, fast, exhilarating read. I haven’t read a historical novel this good since Ken Follet’s Pillars of the Earth.” (Robert Dugoni, author of The Conviction )
“Dietrich’s creation Ethan Gage is no typical action hero. . . . Dietrich has the Gage series down to a formula, blending history with entertaining tall tales and a good deal of irreverence.” (Kirkus Reviews )
“I am a big fan of William Dietrich’s Ethan Gage novels and The Barbed Crown is a great addition to the series. Gage is a rascal and he’s in trouble again. . . . An exciting, funny, and educational read.” (Phillip Margolin, author of Capitol Murder )
“What a blast! The Barbed Crown is as funny as it is smart. . . . It is impossible not to love Ethan Gage. It is impossible not to love this book!” (Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain )
“Exuberant . . . . Along the way readers will be treated to Dietrich’s fascinating historical detail and Gage’s infectious personality, one part humble global servant and two parts self-directed opportunist who simply has to be where the action is.” (Publishers Weekly )

From the Back Cover

In this latest adventure by New York Times bestselling author William Dietrich, Ethan Gage is out to foil Napoleon's coronation as emperor, play double agent between France and England, and turn the tide of war—while attempting to save his own life and his marriage.Gage fought beside Napoleon Bonaparte in Egypt and was his agent in Italy, America, and Greece. But this relationship, which at the best of times was uneasy, has gone sour, and now Ethan wants to make Napoleon pay for kidnapping his son, Harry, and nearly killing his wife, Astiza.Smuggled into France with a beautiful royalist agent, Gage is determined to thwart Bonaparte's ambitions to take Europe. Surprises abound as a conspiracy collapses, Astiza reappears at Gage's side, and agents on all fronts try to recruit Ethan to their cause. Desperate, he devises a mad plan to sabotage Napoleon's coronation by replacing the power-hungry emperor's crown of golden laurel with a religious relic—the Crown of Thorns purportedly worn by Christ at his crucifixion. It is a scheme that requires a daring theft, perfect timing, and trust among the plotters; when it goes awry, Gage is soon on the run to England.There Ethan joins a circle of brilliant renegades, including Robert Fulton, designer of the first submarine; rocket artillery pioneer Sir William Congreve; and smuggler Tom Johnstone. As two empires face off at sea, Gage is plunged into the decisive and lethal Battle of Trafalgar, trapped on board a French ship as Nelson's Victory bears down on him.Moving from the glittering boulevards and squalid back alleys of Napoleonic France to the high seas of Regency England, filled with romance, danger, intrigue, and glory, The Barbed Crown is a thrilling romp that sees Ethan Gage once again embroiled in European history . . . and the fate of the modern world.

The year is 1803. Swashbuckling, ribald, and irreverent hero Ethan Gage has outsmarted wily enemies and survived dangerous challenges across the globe, from the wilds of the American frontier to the pyramids of Egypt. Now the rakish hero finds himself in the Caribbean with his wife, Astiza, on a desperate hunt to secure the lost treasure of Montezuma—a legendary hoard rumored to have been hidden from CortÉs's plundering Spanish conquistadors. Hot on his heels are British agents who want the gold to finance a black slave revolt in Saint-Domingue, robbing hostile France of its richest colony. The French, too, seek the treasure for the secrets it contains, the key to an incredible new means of invasion that can ensure Britain's defeat—on its own land.Caught between the French and the rebel slave forces, Ethan and Astiza are in a race for gold and glory that will thrust them into the center of a bloody struggle for freedom as they try to rescue their son. And this time, Gage's luck may be running out.Brilliantly combining science, history, mythology, and wit, William Dietrich has woven a larger-than-life tale that sees Ethan embroiled in the Napoleonic era's ideals, opportunism, and inventions, which gave rise to the modern world. Filled with intrigue, voodoo, a hurricane, violent political unrest, and unexpected passion, The Emerald Storm is Dietrich's most captivating work to date.

From Booklist

Starred Review Ethan Gage, the nineteenth-century adventurer, returns in this fourth novel in the series. Set in 1803, it tells a wildly implausible story: Gage, planning to sell an emerald he came into via a questionable set of circumstances, is taken captive by a renegade French policeman who wants to know all about the Lost Treasure of Montezuma. Gage is rescued by the British, who want to know about the same lost treasure, and blackmailed into breaking into a French prison and liberating Toussaint L’Ouverture, the (real-life) leader of the Haitian Revolution, who (fictionally) knows the secret of the treasure. And that’s just for starters. With the usual mixture of real and made-up characters and historical events, the book is a breathlessly exciting adventure, as fast paced as an Indiana Jones movie and just about as entertaining. Gage is a tremendously appealing character, a world-class adventurer who would, he keeps reminding us, be much happier if he were living a quiet life somewhere back in his home country, America. He doesn’t seek out adventure; it just sort of keeps on finding him. And that’s good news for fans of the series, who will want to read the next installment as soon as they’ve finished this one. --David Pitt

Review

“Entertaining. . . . Dietrich seamlessly blends historical figures such as Napoleon and Toussaint L’Ouverture, the liberator of Haiti, with fictional characters like Gage’s nemesis, “renegade secret policeman” Leon Martel, in this amusing swashbuckler.” (Publishers Weekly )
“Dietrich seamlessly blends historical fact with fiction. . . . [He] also has a knack for making the world of 1803 come alive.” (Associated Press )
“The Emerald Storm is a whirl of adventure, international diplomacy and vivid political commentary. . . . A wonderful romp through a complicated period of history.” (Bellingham Herald )