Reviews:
Blood of the Incas
Allen&Unwin, April online.
Indiana Jones meets The Dangerous Book for Boys in this gripping new historical adventure. History will never be boring again. This new adventure should come with a warning for the faint-hearted. It’s history, but not as we know it.’
Jacqueline Perryman, Bendigo Weekly Online.
In Blood of the Incas author David Harris introduces his readership to historian and adventurer Hiram Bingham. With fearless courage Bingham leads a quest to uncover a lost city and the treasures of its people. Against the force of raging rivers, treacherous cliffs and head-hunting cannibals, Bingham maintains his vision for success - but will his spirit be strong enough to overcome the cultural and social challenges slowly emerging from a torrid landscape of secrets and dreams. . .? A fine piece of literature for author Harris - Blood of the Incas signals the launch of Time Raiders - a superb new series of action, adventure and surprise.
Russ Merrin. Magpies, Number Three, 2008.
In the early 20thC. Archeologist explorer Hiram Bingham makes several excursions into the wilderness of Peru, searching for the elusive ruins of a lost, hidden city which has largely been forgotten through time. With his team, particularly his assistant Castillo, he finally discovers the fabled city of Machu Picchu.
David Harris’s fictional retelling of Bingham’s adventures is beautifully crafted and the author’s lively storytelling and well-honed attention to detail, bring Bingham’s stirring travels vividly to life like a return to the stirring ‘Boys’ Own Adventures’ of yesteryear.
Although Blood of the Incas reads as an adventure pure and simple, the reader also learns much more about the realities of Bingham’s world as he searches for the lost city (which he is not sure even exists) despite the depredations of deadly creatures, uncharted landscapes, unpredictable weather changes and the threat of wild cannibals.
Bingham’s story is told in two separate stages, each prefaced by an extract from ‘The Cuzco Herald’, thus shortening long periods of time into a brief, bridging passage. A third extract at the end, an obituary, rounds off the story neatly. The tale concludes at the pinnacle of Bingham’s colourful life, when he finally reaches Machu Picchu and realises that this is, in fact, the lost city which the Spanish conquistadors never found. The writing is well-paced, well-written and exciting. Highly entertaining.
Robert, age 11, Canberra, Australia YARA Online reviews.
This book is a very appealing read that keeps you buried in it for hours on end with its non-stop storyline. The text is very readable and not too hard for young readers to comprehend. All in all I think this book is great novel for young readers aged 9 upwards who loved Indiana Jones and who adore a gripping adventure.
The Wagga Junior Advertiser, June 12, 2008.
This is a gripping new historical series in the spirit of Indiana Jones. Fearless historian and adventurer Hiram Bingham risks all as he battles storms, Condors, cannibals and treacherous cliffs on his quest to find the lost city of Machu Picchu. With local Castillo as his guide and a crew of mad desperados, Bingham’s quest to find the lost city of the Incas takes them into uncharted mountains of Peru, risking life among mile-high precipices, raging rivers and deep valleys ruled by cannibal head-hunters. Will he find the fabulous treasures of the vanished civilization?. This is history, but not as you know it!
This series is inspired by real-life archaeologists and will excite you about history.
