Author Ted Tayler continues his Phoenix series with this taut and well plotted fourth book, In the Lap of the Gods. This compact book takes place in approximately a month of time, a month where intense and dramatic changes take place in the lives of Phoenix, Athena, and other members of the Olympus Project. As the group continues their professional brand of vigilante justice, more about their personal lives is revealed.
The action is fast paced and the criminal element is particularly violent as innocent people are involved in random attacks around England. The arbitrary assaults leave the population terrified, uncertain if and where the next strike might occur. While local police attempt to discover who the thugs are Phoenix and his team go into action. Determined to identify the gang and put an end to their murderous rampages the group makes use of their special skills to hunt down and destroy the gangsters before more innocent lives are lost.
While criminals are being dealt with Phoenix and Athena are both called to a meeting with the ruling committee of Olympus. Tayler has created a fascinating array of characters to represent these highly placed individuals who have committed to directing the elite members of the project. As with the Larcombe Manor group, these leaders use the names of ancient gods and goddesses instead of their real names.
Tayler also deals with social issues, identifying the corruption of wealthy landlords exploiting the need for housing of the poor immigrants who have streamed into Britain. This is a gentle reminder that not all criminals carry guns, some carry checkbooks and land deeds. The Olympus Project fights all types of crime and injustice.
The suspense grows and tension thickens as personal issues arise that could change the relationships within both Larcombe Manor and the Project as a whole. There may be a faction in the upper echelons of the project working toward moving the group in a darker direction.
While this book in the series could be read as a stand-alone story, it is even more exciting when the earlier books are read first. The development of the characters and their relationships are beautifully handled. Tayler offers a teaser with a snippet of the next book in the series. Needless to say I’m eager to read it and discover who the mole is and what will happen to the Olympus Project and their honorable if somewhat illegal goals.
Book Blurb
This is the fourth book in the series so far, and it takes the stories featuring the Olympus Project in a new and exciting direction. From Larcombe Manor, Phoenix and Athena have battles to win against vicious gangsters on home soil and urgently need to identify factions within the organization plotting to take it in a different, far more sinister direction.
The opening scenes at Glastonbury 2013 to the closing chapter cover little more than a month in time. Yet in that short month, the landscape surrounding the Project is altered forever. The action is non-stop as it switches from the West Country to Windsor, then from England to the Mediterranean.
Take a deep breath; once you start you’ll want to keep turning pages until the end.
vigilante justice, secret organisation, crime thriller, action adventure, closure, revenge, suspense
Ted Tayler’s Amazon Author Page
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