Altar of Eden (#36) is James Rollins' book published in 2010. I heard him speak at my library's annual author event Bookmania! last January, and he discussed this book. Rollins, who is himself a veterinarian, said he was always being asked by his fans when he was going to write a novel that featured animals. This book is his answer.
Altar of Eden is a stand alone thriller whose heroine, Lorna Polk, is a veterinarian who is called in by the Border Patrol to investigate an abandoned trawler with a cargo of exotic animals found in the Louisiana bayou. Jack Menard and his team have discovered some disturbing evidence aboard the boat and need Lorna's expertise in endangered species and genetics to help them figure out what is going on. But of course, these are no ordinary exotic animals as they soon find out. A huge cat has escaped but left her saber-toothed cub behind. And what about the featherless parrot that soothes himself and the other animals by reciting an endless (and accurate!) numerical string of pi? But other mysterious forces are equally determined to keep these animals' existence a secret and will stop at nothing to leave no traces and no witnesses behind.
Although this book does deliver a page-turning thriller with its usual high body count, Mr. Rollins has provided more of a back story with Lorna and Jack. Their history is revealed as the story progresses with a couple of satisfactory twists.
If you liked Mr. Rollins' other books, you'll enjoy Altar of Eden.
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