The Vikings of Loch Morar

The Creation Seekers, Book 2

By: William Burt

Narrated by: Matthew S Newbold

Jonathan Oliver is chasing down an intruder on Lake Oswego’s Iron Mountain when he discovers some long-buried artifacts. One of these relics sparks a remarkable spinoff from the Oliver family’s antigravity inventions. Together, Jon and his father incorporate their breakthrough into a revolutionary submersible design. At the invitation of Dr. Graham MacKenzie, the Gyrosensors team travels to one of Scotland’s wildest and remotest regions—and its deepest lake—to develop their secret prototype. While staying at Dr. MacKenzie’s retreat center, they meet a pretty but mysterious Frenchwoman going under an assumed name. Across the loch, the crusty, reclusive caretaker of a Victorian-era hunting lodge is hiding staggering secrets of his own. During the prototype's construction and sea trials, Jon and his family confront enemies on land, in the air, and under the water. In the end, Jon rekindles a long-lost love from the ashes of his youth and uncovers an ancient, holy treasure-hoard.

©2019 William D. Burt (P)2022 William D. Burt

Real locations and possibly real history

(This review is written by Matthew's wife)

My absolute favorite aspect of this book is that all the locations mentioned appear to be real places. A quick internet search pulls up pictures of beautiful Lake Oswego, deep Loch Morar, and even the hunting lodge Swordlands.

As for the rest of the story, if you liked the first book, The Lake Lights, you'll probably love this one. More inventions, more strange creatures, more villainy, and more excitement over history and science.

For me, I appreciated some maturing in the characters' relationships with each other and the one way Christ really seemed to impact them--forgiveness. Otherwise, I still felt frustrated by the (to me) oversimplification of characters and relationships, especially the mom, who seemed to be emotions and nothing else. A new character and relationship is introduced, which almost takes over the whole story. This would be fine, except I felt it was based purely on appearances and fluttery feelings, so it made me more uncomfortable than delighted. Except for this minor drawback, I would recommend the book to its intended audience of pre-teens.

I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review. My opinions are my own.

A Review from Mary (age 13)

A fantastic mix of Viking lore, science fiction, and Christian romance; The Vikings of Loch Morar had me edge of my seat the entire listen. The narration was wonderful, and the character development was stunning. The beautifully redemptive ending left me in tears.