Review: Modern suspense with an historical twist
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 5, 2012
I thoroughly enjoyed The Spanish Helmet. I liked the blending of the 16th century Spanish journal which paints a picture of NZ before it was settled by the British, and the modern day attempt to discover the "truth" of the Spanish exploration, which paints beautiful vignettes of various parts of NZ today. All this is linked together with a plausible conspiracy, intriguing mystery and gripping suspense.I grew up in NZ and was taught the traditional stories of the exploration of New Zealand, but this book has now left me wondering "I wonder who else found their way to these distant shores and when?"Warning to all expat Kiwis, this book is likely to invoke feelings of homesickness ;-).Overall the book is well-written but some of the transitions from scene to scene were a bit abrupt which dropped it to a four star experience for me.