Book review: Sigma Force returns in 'The Last Odyssey,' one of Rollins' best

"The Last Odyssey" by James Rollins; Morrow; 437 pages

In James Rollins' latest installment of the Sigma Force series, the force must solve a riddle going back centuries in order to save the modern world.

The Sigma Force is made up of former special forces soldiers, including scientists, historians and weapons experts, formed to defend against global threats.

In this latest adventure, an archaeologist is persuaded to go to Greenland, where a mysterious vessel has been located buried deep in the middle of a glacier. She and other researchers discover materials dating back to the Bronze Age. If they are real, that would mean this ship visited the area before even the Vikings braved the Atlantic Ocean.

But what the researchers find inside the captain's quarters is a true game-changer. Before they can process their discovery, however, the ship and everyone aboard is attacked by a group that has been searching for the treasure on this ship for several centuries.

The Sigma Force gets the call to stage a rescue, but that turns into something worse when they learn there are multiple interests involved. Each faction has its own motives, and one literally holds a key to solving the vast puzzle. The pieces add up to something intriguing: What if Homer's "The Odyssey" was an actual historical account?

Rollins balances action-adventure, history, mythology and science in a truly imaginative story. All of the elements harmonize in this page-turner, which takes his team of adventurers into the very gates of Hell. This is one of Rollins' best novels, and a perfect book to get immersed in during these turbulent times.