About ‘The Man Who Stole the Moon’ (Book 2 in The Alexander Gambit) by Robert Leonard::
Genre: Science Fiction; Antihero; Romance
BOOK TWO in the Alexander Gambit Trilogy
Three Men
Two Missions
One body
Christopher Alexander is an artificial intelligence in a human-seeming body. He shares this body with his creator, a World War 2 and Korean War combat vet, and an unstoppable, merciless, murderous costumed vigilante. The three of them each have a role in trying to save Planet Earth from an apocalypse only they know is coming.
But can Chris learn what it means to truly be human before he destroys all that he is programmed to protect?
Will his effort to be more human cause him to fail in his mission?
Will he be able find a balance between the two?
Or was it these efforts that led him to him awakening, badly damaged and nearly destroyed, in the bottom of a massive, radioactive crater?
I have also reviewed these other titles by Robert Leonard:
The Wraith
The Alexander Gambit (Book 1)
Flight of Angels (Alexander Gambit book 3)
Hunter (Thomas Hunter book 1)
Hunted (Thomas Hunter book 2)
This book was even better than the first and that’s saying something, considering the first was awesome. This trilogy started off mostly confirming everything shown to us about Chris’ psyche in the companion novel ‘The Wraith.’ However, after the introduction of Carmen and Ana, Chris slowly begins to realize that he’s even more human than he previously thought; a revelation that the reader comes to alongside him.
While maintaining the antihero role, a different side to Chris comes to light; one that doesn’t seem quite as sociopathic as The Wraith or as I had judged him before ‘The Man Who Stole the Moon.’ This is arguably due to meeting the woman with whom he has so much in common with as well as respectful adoration for. It sets him on a path of deviating from his programming in order break one major rule his predecessor put in place: Do NOT get close to anyone.
It’s that one detail of how he could change his own programming that really points out just how human he is. None of this isn’t to say that Chris and his ‘alters’ aren’t still completely dangerous and ruthless. You’ll see more of the lengths to which they will go to achieve their goal in this installment, all equally as intelligent, manipulative, and terrifying as in the first (and The Wraith). Nonetheless, the evolution of his relationship with the two Spanish women he met does begin to affect (albeit in a very minor way) the way he does things. It also seems to re-determine his feelings in general.
I really could rave about so much that happened in this book, but I’m trying very hard not to spoil anything. The author has done an incredibly job with the development of the characters. Chris is not the only complex person. His two new friends are also expertly woven, including things that seemed to have been perfectly spelled out in the first book, yet in this one, are revealed to be even more intricate. I was amazed that the author put THAT much thought into each character, down to small details which initially didn’t appear to hold any meaning.
How well the author handled some pretty risky subjects and the fantastic details concerning our genius’ schemes are other testament to his abilities. Everything was truly impressive- perfectly planned AND executed. With all the hype about Chris’ new emotions for his friends, don’t forget for one second what he is capable of or you’ll end up being thrown for a loop several times by the end!
Buy the ebook on Amazon Kindle here!
(also available on Barnes & Noble Nook)
Buy the paperback on Amazon here!
(also available on Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million)
You can find Robert Leonard on:
Twitter @RobertLeonard3
Facebook @RobertMLeonardauthor
Goodreads
Amazon
Author Website
((Reviews have been submitted to Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, and Books-a-Million))
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~Sahreth ‘Baphy’ Bowden
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