Book Reviews

Amazon UK Reviews

• Jonathan Oakey: “Page-turner with a fascinating background”  – July 2012

… The book is a real page-turner. The story is exciting and fast-paced, and there is some very interesting historical background underlying the plot. It’s a very enjoyable read…

• Cynthia Hendaoui: “Mitchell’s book gives you plenty to think about….” – July 2012

… I likes Mitchell’s writing style. I want a book that grabs my attention and entertains me, and this book did just that. I find the development of the chapters enjoyable. I think they make it feel more fast-paced as the chapters quickly jump to different parts of the world…

• fdemeyer: “A fast-paced, intelligent action thriller written by an author who clearly knows his stuff” – August 2012

An archaeological thriller set first against the backdrop of the Iraq war, then moving to Israel and Cambridge as it gains momentum to reach an action-packed apotheosis in exotic Thailand….

• Mo: “Loved it!” – September 2012

… I first saw this book in a pile of books not for sale. I couldn’t wait till it came out and I wasn’t disappointed. It is a page turner and the last chapter well….. Leaves a mark on all book lovers waiting for the next one. Don’t make it a long time. Brilliant.

• Paul S: “Hard to stop reading” – October 2012

Found this to be a real page turner on an intercontinental flight, was almost sorry when we landed that I could not finish it but now I did – Clay tablets have never excited me like this before 🙂 – as always the problem is you want more and part 2 is not out yet (sigh)…

• Ronnie: “Great book” – October 2012

A thoroughly good read, compelling. I particularly like the accurate and expert background to a gripping story. I cant wait for the next one in the series.

• Eric Melloul: “The 13th tablet” – October 2012

… Here is an interesting cast of characters including shady artdealers, ruthless businessmen, secretive kabbalists and a disillusioned US army officer. But the character I loved the most is Mina Osman, the sexy Yale scholar of Iraqi descent who drops her promising Phd to head to Mosul and help in the restitution of looted Iraqi antiquities. A female Indiana Jones if you like but very human: she has doubts and flaws and practices … yoga.

• “A gripping read” – May 2014

… the story is so well written it’s almost hard to believe it is fictional. I found the descriptions of places and artefacts very clear, and also of the characters in the book, I had a clear image in my mind of what they looked like. The two main characters, Mona and Jack, I felt almost an affinity to, when the story ended I felt I wanted to know more, I didn’t want it to end. 13th tablet is an exciting book.

• cathk – “Cracking tale”  – October 2017

Highly recommend this fast paced thriller. Loved the background Jewish history. Looking forward to reading more of the author’s work

• Mr. Brian Nicholson – “Wonderful” – February 2014

Brilliant story with brilliant sympathetic characters. If you like thrillers, this is for you. The sort of book I thought the Da Vinci Code might be.

• Roseanya – “kickass heroine” – February 2014

Some of her escapes are unlikely in the same way as Bond and Indiana Jones, but the story got me nonetheless and I thoroughly enjoyed having a woman doing the rescuing, and yes, it qualifies as thriller.

• Edmond O – “A thriller with a difference” – December 2012

Alex Mitchell managed to make archeology sexy. What a thriller!The 13th Tablet has got everything: fast-moving action, romance, sex and a lot of mystery. We are introduced to the world of archeology and shady traders and chasers of artefacts; we penetrate the fascinating and esoteric circle of Mystics and Kabbalists. Suspense all the way throughout the book.I enjoyed every minute of it and I highly recommend it.
More of it, soon…Please!

• A. R. Banbury – “Good read” – June 2014

Good escapist stuff. Mina goes from one bad situation to another – but you always know that there will be a happy ending. I like happy endings when the villain gets their cumuppance!

• Christine Dodds – “surprised at how good” – March 2014

Really surprised at how good it was, it kept me reading on and on. hurry up with a new book along these lines

• JR – “Brilliant” – November 2014

Loved this book, an excellent page turner. Please Dr Alex Mitchell, write more books on Mina s. Adventures with Jack.

• DesVDP – “A Thriller with a Twist” – November 2012

I really enjoyed the story. It was set in 2004 Iraq which was a really interesting setting. I REALLY liked how he intertwined history into it and I was definitely at the edge of my seat till the very end! Hoping he writes book 2 ASAP!

• Misty Meanor – “Great story, genuine characters” – August 2014

The author’s academic background sets the tone of the plot and gives us an intelligent well-written thriller. The Iraq war is looked at from a different perspective making the reader aware of the tremendous loss to historical research caused by destruction and looting, into this is mixed the living conditions of many of the population. Mina is the archaeologist who is helping to track down lost artefacts to whom a strange clay tablet is passed. Trying to find the site of its excavation she is introduced to Jack who is helping villagers find a reliable water source. As it transpires, Jack is not all he seems, nor is the clay tablet. Once details of the strange secret tablet is leaked, interested parties start to follow Mina and some of her friends.What follows is a fast-paced search to decipher the cuneiform message, assess its potential impact and decide how the information should be used. Real-life events are woven into the story which causes a frisson of fear when the reader realises what is coming.

• Vennwood – “Not a bad read all in all” – June 2014

This is the first Alex Mitchell book I’ve read and quite liked it. For the most part all the story was “believable” – something I like in a thriller. The climax is known and remembered by all so perhaps out to have had a tad more detail. If I’m being critical then the “main villains” ought to have had more prominence and reason but that was not to be – prehaps that is left for the next book… Overall worth reading and would look out for other books by this author

• byer – “it was unlucky!” – October 2014

This is a very interesting and well-written tale involving cuneiform tablets written thoousands of years ago and forecasting God-given calamities on the human race millenia later.
The human characters living through the legend are carefully depicted and the reader is convinced they could have acted in the ways described. Good one!

• Mrs. Pamela Henderson – “Liked it ?any more of these to come ?” – June 2014

Interesting with a different location and theme to a lot of thrillers – will we be catching up with Mina anytime soon ? hope so

• Sean Hanson – “Well worth a read” – May 2014

An interesting view of a natural disaster. action was well worked and characters are believable and easy to accept. I’ll be looking out for the next one

• fussell – “Enjoyable” – December 2015

Good mixture of adventure, characters and religious ideas linked to make fast paced storytelling. Look forward to next instalment by this author.

• Irene Trafford – “An interesting and exciting read” – February 2014

Exciting; never knowing what will happen next. I was intrigued by all the interesting information about ancient history and civilisations. Mina came across as a very real character.

• Aphrodite – “A clever thriller” – January 2013

It was a good story, not particularly ‘literary’, but a sort of airport read. I had the feeling that the author was deliberately keeping things fairly simple so that the audience would understand what was going on. Alex Mitchell is clearly very knowledgeable on the subjects that the novel touches on, however he manages to make things accessible to the less informed reader. Having said that, this is a convincing tale and one I’d recommend.

• AnneB – “History with two capitals H” – November 2012

Because Alexander Mitchell is also a scientist and has at heart to be fully accurate , the book is not only a page turner, it is also so instructive for anyone interested by that region and its history. Characters become familiar and loveable, the story accelerates, you don’t want to leave them… I greatly enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good thriller, well written and with serious historical background