I really wanted to like this book more. I liked the cover a lot, it was eye catching for me, and I thought the description was good. Like a <I>Da Vinci Code</I> but rumoured to be sharper, smarter? Unfortunately, the punctuation alone in this made it incredibly difficult to read. So many exclamation points, and in places they didn’t belong. It completely messed with the tone of the book for me. I also found the writing style a bit difficult to follow - so many characters and jumbled jumping about, and things happening so fast but no logical path to how we got there made for a confusing and frustrating time.

Ultimately this didn’t work for me. There’s a good story in there somewhere, but in the end it wasn’t my cup of tea. It wasn’t the easy, pacey read I had hoped for.

3.5 stars rounded up

If the Da Vinci code was more intellectual, for lack of a better word, it would be this book. The thriller / mystery was compelling and fast paced. Except the richest, smartest, most influential people in the world are already aware of the existence of the secret formula and what it means. This formula is the basis of much of the world's achievements including things as far back Stonehenge. Secrets can be found across history in books, art, religion, etc. This was fast-paced and kept me captivated.

Ultimately, what ruined this book for me was the the writing itself. The book skips around from character to character and it's hard to follow who is saying or doing what when which was very frustrating. The dialogue was extremely awkward and stilted, it felt like it was written in a high school creative writing class.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC ahead of publication.

Thank you to Netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review. This review is wholly my own.

OMG - was I excited to get an advance copy of this book!!! Historical Mystery/Thriller - yes, please!!!

I absolutely LOVE a good atmospheric story and this one was just simply amazing!

The story grips you from the very beginning and keeps your attention. At time, the build-up felt a little slow, but not slow enough to bore you.

And the ending - WOWZA! For someone who usually figures out the ending, I did not see that coming!

If you enjoy thrillers/mysteries, I DEFINITELY recommend this one.

When a journalist discovers a secret hidden in Salvador Dali's paintings, his life turns upside down, and he becomes a target of the Oxford Secret Five, a group of physicists. As Charles Clark's life changes, he finds himself drawn into a mystery that stretches back to the murder of his own parents years before.

This novel has all the fixings of a successful thriller--strong opening, intriguing art-science connection, and a fast-paced, unique plot.

My enjoyment of the novel was hindered by the stilted dialogue of its characters. Here is a good example:

"'I use the works of Salvador Dali to search the formula of genius,' she told Bonnet that evening, Leaving him breathless.

'Genes are like icicles. While melting, they form new authentic structures of molecules. Still, they are imbued with the same hydrogen particles, which are strongly influenced by magnetic and electric fields,' Bonnet replied, enchanted."

My thanks to the publisher through net galley for the opportunity to read an ARC.