This novel has a lot going for it. It has a strong plot - the discovery and theft of an ancient book from the secret archives of the Vatican. It has interesting and varied characters. Kotler's use of language is skilful and effective. It's the kind of book I expected to enjoy.

But I really didn't, for a number of reasons. The plot, while interesting, was constantly interrupted by chapters about the characters' pasts, or chapters containing little plot digressions that went nowhere, or chapters where the characters describe ideas that are interesting but not really relevant. Those chapters that advance the story itself were very compressed, so that the story would suddenly lurch forward toward the next problem or resolution.

Now, I don't mind a novel that has digressions, or fills in some backstory, where doing so adds richness to the plot, or where we learn more about the characters. But somehow, in this novel, this "other stuff" just seemed to get in the way, to muddy the plot.

I was also disappointed the dialogue. All the characters spoke in the same clipped, sentence-without-a-subject style, even though they were supposed to be different ages, to have come from different countries, and to have experienced very different lives. Furthermore, although having quite different philosophies, the characters never argued; instead, they seemed impossibly accepting of each others ideas.

If you like a book written in an interesting style, with snappy dialogue and a variety of ideas, then this book may be for you. For myself, I prefer books with a little more structure, a little more character development, and a plot with more focus.

"The Angle Quickest for Flight", Kotler's first novel, reads as well as any intellectual thriller in the past 5 years. It has everything you could ask for in a mystery: an ancient Kabbalistic text (the Sefer ha-Zaviot) stolen by the Catholic church during the inquisition, fabled archives of hidden knowledge, secret societies and the mad Padre Isosceles hell-bent upon acquiring the Zaviot for the knowledge within. All this, however, misses the true beauty of the book: outstanding character development. Most mysteries suffer from a host of 2-dimensional characters leaving the reader remembering the plot but forgetting who was in the story. Not so in this book- Kotler's characters are so real you will finish being convinced that you knew them at some point in your life. There's a lot of information packed into the beginning of the book as you are introduced to a cast of characters, several parallel plot lines and a brief history of mysticism. As you continue you will find all this tied together in a climax that won't let you put the book down and leaves you wanting more.

...it might look something like this novel. I can't think of higher praise, actually, for a book of this type: a brisk, engaging, I-can't-put-this-down type of read coupled with some serious metaphysical chops. The ragged crew of protagonists are all extremely intriguing as character studies as they go galavanting around the globe looking for spiritual enlightenment. The fact that they are a little bit mercenary (especially the rakish Coyote Blu) only adds to the charm of the novel (even when it's a very VIOLENT charm, I might add). In some ways this reminded me of Eco's fine novels, or even Pavic's Dictionary of the Khazars, but what Kotler brings to the table is a cinematic style of prose. It might seem off-putting and glib at first, but give it a chance, it tends to grow on you (yes, the characters quip a lot, but there are some one line zingers as well). The only flaw I could find in the book is that the characters smoke and drink (alcohol and coffee) all the time; not that I'm against that, mind you, but sometimes I felt that the author was using that as a prop when he didn't know what his character wanted to do in terms of body language. Other than that, though, this book is a crazy textual labyrinth, milking to the fullest the delights of both weird metaphysics AND a taut, Steve McQueen-esque thriller.