I love Peter James, especially his Roy Grace series, which I 'double dip'; read and then listen on audio, that's how good they are. I was really excited to get a copy of Absolute Proof via NetGalley, but, but, but. Full confession, I didn't like it. I'm trying to work out what it was I didn't like about it and I don't think it's one big thing, more like a few little things. Maybe the problem was that I didn't warm to Ross Hunter. It was never explained why he didn't like his brother and that irritated me. I found the whole book very long, (it is 570 pages), and it just never clicked with me. I'm not going to write a whole list of the things that I didn't like because the fact is Peter James has worked very hard and very long to be a successful author and I'm not going to sit here in my little office and criticise. At least Mr James is brave enough to put his work out there. So let's just agree that this one wasn't my cup of tea and the issue is me, not the writing or the author. I will still read anything that Mr James put out there because he is a fabulous writer. I'm just a rubbish reader.

One of the most unusual thrillers I have read for a while. A very well written thriller with believable characters. A blockbuster ending for a jolly good read.

Im sorry Peter James,I have loved all your books that I have read previously, but this I just found incredibly boring. I hate to write a bad review, and I'm sure this will appeal to some people. just not me.

It’s a solid summer read in which you know what you’re getting, the pace is swift and the writing is excellent.

This read was extremely complex which included a long list of characters which sometimes made it a little difficult for me to keep track of what was happening. It was very interesting and reminded me of a Dan Brown novel. I do believe that this was very long winded and I started to lose interest in the middle. But overall I did enjoy this book.

As a lover of Egyptian history and mythology, I was immediately drawn to this book by the eye-catching hieroglyphs on the cover and I've also read a few of Peter James' Roy Grace series so I know that he is an excellent writer. At over 500 pages, it's quite a chunky book with a complex plot and a lot of characters so it did take me longer than I expected to read it.

The whole premise of this book intrigued me: what would happen if proof of God's existence came to light and what lengths would some people or organisations go to prevent this happening? This is the question that Peter James explores in Absolute Proof which injects the thriller element into the story at just the right time to keep me interested. As reporter Ross Hunter gathers the evidence to prove God's existence, it really did feel like there were lots of people out to stop him and I had no idea who he could trust.

I think I was a little guilty of my own hype as I expected to love this book but found it a little hard going in places, so I ended up liking but not loving it. I'm glad I've read it but it's not a book I'd recommend and I think I'd rather stick with the amazing Roy Grace series.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

A freelance journalist starts a journey to prove their is a God following a phone call from a Dr Cook. The story is fast paced and thought provoking.

I remember first reading a novel by Peter James many man moons ago, Host, and I was absolutely bowled over by it and I knew I had read something pretty special and by a writer who was a force to be reckoned with. I have since read some of the brilliant Roy Grace series and reading Absolute Proof has made me realise I need to delve deeper in to the world of Peter James and read more of his work as he is so incredibly clever.

Absolute Proof is an epic story encompassing one of the biggest questions mankind can ask – Is God real? And what would it take to prove to even the most staunch of atheists that God truly does exist?

Ross Hunter is a well-respected journalist and when an elderly man contacts him saying he has absolute proof of God’s existence his initial reaction is to dismiss him as a crackpot, but something about the man, his urgency and his words, pushes Ross to agree to investigate further. Almost immediately Ross and his wife Imogen being to receive threats if he doesn’t drop the story but this leaves him even more determined to pursue things. With a ruthless top pharmaceutical firm, a money grabbing evangelist, the Vatican and MI5 on his tail, Ross feels the responsibility of the whole of mankind on his shoulders as he forges on, no matter what.

What results is a rollercoaster ride of a tale, taking the reader from Brighton to Egypt and onwards to Los Angeles. If you enjoyed books such as The Da Vinci Code, you will absolutely love this. I actually found this much more relatable than The Da Vinci Code for some reason , I think it may be down to James’ writing style and the story feeling more relevant with its references to other religions and the various parties who might want to stop such news being made public.

One thing I will say is that it took me a while to read. I’ve never been a massively fast reader but I did feel at times like I was somewhat trudging through the book and waiting for the various elements to link up. Maybe it was just the January blues as this is a great book and written fantastically? I cannot imagine the amount of research that must have gone into bringing it all together. Plus, when the various elements of the books do collide it is the most incredible explosion! I certainly feel it was well worth the time spent reading it and I thoroughly recommend if you fancy something a bit different and very thought provoking!

Thank you to #NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing me with a copy of #Absolute in return for an honest review.

Enjoyed this gripping read - apparently based on the interaction of the author himself with a mysterious man.

The plot has all the elements needed for a fast-paced thriller - international and British settings, ambitious author, mysterious strangers, supernatural elements and people, murder, evil corporate baddies, corrupt religious baddie(s) and more. I could imagine this being made into a movie.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in return for my honest review.

* I would have given this 5 stars, but found some sections a teensy bit longwinded and felt that they could have been written more concisely. Also found the ending a little abrupt to be honest. But perhaps there will be a sequel?

An entertaining read and an intriguing concept, but my god there was a lot of incidental detail. Ross would have a meal in a motorway cafe and we'd be informed of every single condiment he picked up. Was James worried he wouldn't reach the word count? It could have easily been 300 pages long. But, diverting enough, and did make me think about how the second coming would be handled by the modern world, if it ever happened.

I suspect that this book might be of more interest to Christians or those who enjoy theological debates. As it is, the subject matter wasn't as interesting for me as I'd hoped, particularly when there were big theological discussion. Still, it was intriguing enough for me to want to know what was going to happen. How exactly was God going to supply Absolute Proof that would be utterly irrefutable even to the most ardent of atheists?

It was quite fast paced and it did keep me wanting to know what would happen next, but I also felt that some parts were a little lacking or not fully thought through, with the consequence that not everything was fully explained. Maybe it's the kind of book that doesn't need that, but I personally found it frustrating not to have all loose ends tied up.

Still, overall, it was pretty enjoyable.

When freelance journalist Ross Hunter receives a phone call from a man who claims to have absolute proof of God, his world is turned upside-down. Who can he trust on his quest for the truth?

Absolute Proof is very reminiscent of early Dan Brown books, chapters flick through character perspectives and different plot lines before converging together to create the final story. This is by no means a bad thing - the book is long but enjoyable and easy to read. It has a fairly formulaic plot; three sets of coordinates need to be found and there is a few evil corporations and religions thwarting Ross’ progress. I thought for the first two sets of coordinates the story was well paced but then the third set and last part of the book did drag a little at times.

I did think a few parts of the story were a little unrealistic – there were some very silly mistakes being made throughout (who leaves a priceless manuscript with no copy in a café?). The handling of artefacts (and destroying them, in some cases) also made me cringe at times and Ross does seem to have very convenient connections in his industry that he can call on at opportune moments. You do have to suspend your disbelief at the spiritual side towards the end and also to the idea of mediums and psychics as well. In general, there are some plot points that perhaps work best if you don’t think about them too hard! I thought the ending was quite well done though and I enjoyed the various characters we are introduced to throughout.

Overall I enjoyed Absolute Proof, it’s an engaging read with an interesting plot. Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for a copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This new standalone book from Peter James reminded me of some early Dan Brown's novels. A little slow to start with, it eventually developed into an intriguing and gripping thriller that we came to expect from this author. Definitely worth a read.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

This book has everything you would expect from a Peter James novel. Loved it. Highly recommended as always.

A fabulous 4 stars.

I have never read any of Peter James's DI Grace books, but I loved his 'Perfect People' (thinking of the end of that one still makes me cry!!) The premise of this book looked interesting so I was keen to read it.

Ross Hunter is a respected investigative journalist. When he receives a phone call from Harry Cook RAF retired) starting that he has conclusive proof as to the existence of God, Ross is intrigued. There are three co-ordinates that will lead him to the answers.

The quest, as other readers have mentioned, bears some similarities to the Da Vinci Code but I didn't find this was a bad thing. Ross's search is not without dangers. There are dead bodies, his house is vandalised & his pregnant wife begs him to give it up. He is approached by people from powerful religious sectors offering huge amounts of money to be the ones to possess the answer. Ross cannot let it rest until the mystery is solved.

This book sweeps the reader along at a cracking pace. Does it have the answers? You'll have to read it to find out!

Thanks to Netgalley & the publishers for letting me read & review this book.

Peter James delivers a story line with an outstanding premise - that one can prove the existence of God.

The book could have gone badly wrong, but with James in control, it results in a thought provoking, challenging novel.

In many ways different to what I expected, in others, exactly what I wanted.

Whether you are a believer in a "higher being" or not, this book should interest you.

Intriguing, interesting and definitely thought provoking. I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this book, but I did. It is dsuch a clever read, makes you think ' what if' a little long but a fascinating read. RECOMMENDED.

A slow start to this book and I was thinking about giving up, but just as I started to think about it, I suddenly got gripped and could hardly put it down.

Worth persevering with.

This was generally an okay read. I felt the storyline could however have been tighter. I didn't really connect to the main character either.

3.5 stars

Absolute Proof is a long book and at times I struggled to carry on reading as, although for the most part it is fast-paced, it is slow going in parts. And it certainly tested my ability to suspend my disbelief several times. I’ve only read two of Peter James’ books previously, both crime fiction set in Brighton featuring Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. Absolute Proof is a standalone thriller and is very different from the Roy Grace books. It has similarities to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, as the search is on for proof of God’s existence.

Ross Hunter is married to Imogen and they are expecting their first child – however he has serious doubts about his marriage and suspects Imogen of cheating on him. The story of their marriage unfolds, underlying the main plotline. Dr Harry F Cook, a former RAF officer and retired history of art professor, contacts Ross and drip feeds him information that Cook claims proves that God exists.

The grid references Cook gives Hunter takes him to various places including Glastonbury, where he visits the Chalice Well in search of the Holy Grail, and Egypt in search of Queen Hatshepsut’s Temple. All the time he is in danger of death as he is pursued by those who do not want Cook’s claims to be made public. It’s a dramatic and hair-raising story that made me want to know what happened next at the same time as it made me question its credibility. It is certainly thought provoking and entertaining.

One of the things that intrigued me was that in his Acknowledgements Peter James explains that the book began with a phone call he received in 1989 from someone who did indeed claim that he had been given absolute proof of God’s existence and that he had been given Peter James’s name as an author who would help him to get taken seriously. This started James’s ‘journey of exploration into what might be considered absolute proof – and just what the consequences might be.’ During the intervening years he has talked to many people from different faiths and had discussions with scientists, academics, theologians and clerics. He has certainly done his research and gives a long list of the people who have helped him, plus a list of his sources of reference, giving me yet more details of books I’d like to read.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for provided a review copy of this book.