Posted on by Jacquie Biggar

The Gate: An Invasion Universe Novel (Astral Conspiracy Book 1) by @StaciTroilo writing as D.L. Cross #SciFi #BookReview


He lost his job. He lost his girl. Now it’s all he can do not to lose his life.

Landon Thorne is a disgraced archaeologist, a laughing stock in his field because of his unconventional beliefs – he’s an ancient astronaut theorist. No one takes him seriously.

Until an alien armada targets Earth.

Now Landon’s in high demand – by the US government and someone far more sinister.

They race across two continents to the Gate of the Gods, the one place on Earth that might give humans an advantage over the aliens. But no one is prepared for what they’ll find.

And not everyone will make it out alive.

Fans of action, intrigue, and aliens will love The Gate, the first book in the Astral Conspiracy series. Pick up your copy now!

Biography

D.L. Cross has loved science fiction ever since she was a young girl and fell for Major Don West on television’s Lost in Space. To this day, she still quotes the show, though her favorite lines were spoken by the robot and the antagonist. Parallel universes or alternate realities, aliens or dinosaurs, superpowers or super viruses, time travel or AI… no sci-fi theme is off limits and all of them fascinate her. D.L. Cross also writes other genre fiction under the name Staci Troilo, and you can find more information about all her identities and all her work at her website: https://stacitroilo.com.

Photo by Amanda Kerr on Pexels.com

My Review

A cross between Indiana Jones and Men in Black!

When emergency broadcasting sends out a notice of the impending invasion of aliens, disgraced archeology professor Landon Thorne suddenly becomes a hot commodity.

Betrayed by the woman he loved- an AATIP Agent- Thorne decides to help a fellow agent instead of her and lands himself in hot water at the hands of a band of merciless mercenaries.

The race is on to save the human race. Landon must use his archeological theories to make contact with the aliens and avert a worldwide crisis before it’s too late, but all is not as it seems. The danger he faces on earth may be more than anything from outer space.

An amazing amount of research went into this story and lifts it above the average read for me. I enjoy learning new things when I pick up a book and this one taught a bit of ancient history as well as scientific theory that was truly interesting.

The author did a fantastic job building tension and yet the layers of humor kept the subject matter from becoming too forbidding.

Favorite Lines

Where did he begin? Where did he end? Did he even exist at all? Purple music waltzed up his arms, cool and wet. It tasted of ozone. Or was he tasting himself, consuming his own essence? An ouroboros of flesh and blood and bone and soul, born of the Earth and of the Heavens themselves.

Cross, D.L.. The Gate: An Invasion Universe Novel (Astral Conspiracy Book 1) . Sterling & Stone. Kindle Edition.

Landon took a deep breath, then he rose up on his knee. Stretching his other leg back for leverage, he leaned over Wolf, bracing his hand on the stone floor for balance. If it was a yoga pose, it had to be called Suicidal Man.

Cross, D.L.. The Gate: An Invasion Universe Novel (Astral Conspiracy Book 1) . Sterling & Stone. Kindle Edition.

I give The Gate 5+ lovely kisses- well worth the read!

44 Replies to “The Gate: An Invasion Universe Novel (Astral Conspiracy Book 1) by @StaciTroilo writing as D.L. Cross #SciFi #BookReview”

  2. That’s an exceptional review, Jacquie! I loved this book, too, and am already eagerly looking forward to the next in the series. I loved your description of Indian Jones meets Men in Black. So true!

    Congrats to Staci/D.L.!

    Liked by 3 people

  4. Hi, Jacquie. I haven’t been keeping up with blog posts because my daughter is in town for a visit. But I saw a bunch of these in my Twitter feed and clicked to see what was going on.

    What a wonderful surprise!

    Thank you so much for the kind words and wonderful review. It really made my morning. My day! Heck, probably my week (if you don’t count my daughter still being here for a few more days). I really appreciate it.

    I’m so glad you made the comparison you did between Indiana Jones and Men in Black. When I pitched the series, I said Indiana Jones meets Falling Skies, but there are definitely MIB elements, too. It feels so good to know my readers get it.

    Again, many thanks! 👽

    Liked by 3 people

  6. Great review of The Gate! I read it and loved it, too. I love legends and myths, and the Serpent Mound and the skeletons of TWO alien races were wonderful. Loved it all.

    Liked by 3 people

  8. My pre-order arrived while I was busy honeymooning, and after reading this review, I absolutely cannot wait to read it! Thanks for sharing, Jacquie. Best of luck with this and the rest of the series, Staci. Something tells me this is going to turn into one of those unputdownable series for me! 🙂 Reblogged this on: https://harmonykent.co.uk/the-gate-an-invasion-universe-novel-astral-conspiracy-book-1-by-stacitroilo-writing-as-d-l-cross-scifi-bookreview/

    Liked by 2 people

  10. Pingback: #BookReview- The Stones: Astral Conspiracy Book 2 by @STACITROILO writing as D. L. Cross #SciFiSuspense – Jacquie Biggar-USA Today Best-selling author

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