Moroni Smith--In the Land of Zarahemla

Thom Duncan

Review

Dr. L. DeLeon Ardis, BYU professor of archaeology, is on a church expedition to try to find the Lost City of Zarahemla. As Zarahemla's exact location is being radioed to church headquarters, communication is interrupted. Church leaders suspect foul play. Moroni Smith, Orrin Porter Rockwell VII and Gadget Gunderson, of the church special projects division, are sent to discover the fate of the Ardis expedition.

Shot down as they approach the area, the trio push through the jungle and find the city still intact, with descendants of the Nephites struggling for their freedom.

As they fight to protect the city and its people from the evil Reverend Maximus Deil, leader of the anti-Mormon group, The Unity, they are repeatedly confronted with ominous challenges. They fight their way out of massive jungle fires, escape from dark dungeon traps, are spared from death by fire at the stake, and even manage to escape the ancient mighty mammoth beast, the curelom! They find the stone the brother of Jared used to light his way across the waters to the promised land. But only Moroni can control the righteous power of the stone and protect the ancient City of Zarahemla and its people from the evil Unity forces and their wicked philosophies.

You'll cheer Moroni in his fierce fight to preserve Zarahemla; his attraction to Gadget, his beautiful and proficient electronics expert; and his deep friendship and love for his sidekick, Port. Compared to Moroni Smith, Indiana Jones is only a second stringer. The challenges come fast and furious in this exciting book, and every chapter is a "cliff-hanger." This is teen action and adventure writing at its best—a book you can't put down until the final page!

Table of Contents

1. How It All Began, 9

2. How It All Almost Ended, 16

3. Crash and Burn!, 22

4. Over the Edge, 28

5. A Startling Discovery, 35

6. Over the Edge, 41

7. Into the Cave, 49

8. We Meet the Natives, 57

9. Another Startling Discovery, 66

10. The Treasure Room, 73

11. To Zarahemla, 83

12. Bluff of the Century, 88

13. 1 Really Is An Unlucky Number, 96

14. I'm Invited to a Barbecue—My Own, 105

15. "Out of the Fire, Into, 112

16. Olam's Story, 119

17. The Power of the Stone, 125

18. Battle with the Angels, 133

19. The Laughing Face, 141

20. Face to Face with the Devil!, 145

21. The Call of a Curelom, 153

22. How It All Ended, 163

Sample Page

Well, Mr Impulsive! I thought. What are you going to do now? Hanging from the underside of a jet helibopter! Lot of good that’ll do! Especially when a man could just lean out, point a gun at you, and start firing.
Our altitude dropped. We were now about fifteen feet above the floor of the clearing. I could risk a drop but, if the copter could right itself somehow, Port, Gadget and I would be where we were before: sitting ducks for a crazed copter pilot. I had to stay on until the whirlybird was out of commission.
Which would be shortly, as fate (or luck, or providence) would have it. With the copter leaning heavily to the right, its ailerons nicked the ground, coughing up dirt and rocks. This sent the copter whirling out of control toward the outer perimeter of the clearing. Now was the time to get off. It was hard to tell when we were close enough, but at the last minute, I dropped to the ground.
As my face hit the grass, I saw the copter reel past me. It slammed into the trees, seemed to pause in space for a moment, then fell.
I stood.
The copter exploded.
I dropped as a fiery piece of metal whizzed by my head. The noise and heat were everywhere. I covered my head with my arms and buried my face in the grass. As the din died down, I looked up.
The forest was on fire.
My first thoughts were for my companions. In my tangle with the copter, I had become disoriented; I didn't know where to turn to see them. I heard rushing sounds behind me and the sound of heavy breathing. I turned, expecting to see Port's wide smiling face—
The huge elephant-like monster was running straight toward me!
It was weird. With the helicopter, I had been galvanized into action; now, with a potentially more lethal danger quickly approaching me, I was struck immobile. All I could do was stand and watch as death approached me. Strange, unrelated thoughts kept going through my mind: Why was The Unity after us? What was this creature out of Arthur Conan Doyle's Lost World doing here in a Latin American jungle, and why was it running toward me?
The beast was in the very act of leaping upon me when, quick as lightning, Port leapt out of nowhere, grabbed me around the waist, and buried us both in the grass as the monster thundered past us.
Port was immediately on his feet, pulling me up with him.
"You jerk!" he said. "Why'd you just stand there?"
I couldn't answer. I tried. I opened my mouth but nothing came out. "Never mind,” said Port. "Let's get outa here. The fire's makin' the animals stampede. Are you okay?"
"I'm okay;” I said. "I can make it."
"Glad to have you back;” said Port.
I saw Gadget, standing at the edge of the forest, waiting for us. "Hurry!" she cried, trying to raise her voice above the rising noise of licking flames and stampeding animals. "I've found a way through it!"
We followed her trail, keeping just beyond the reach of the quickly spreading flames. I had no idea where we were going. I couldn't see the use in running into a burning bunch of trees, but I didn't question it. When it came to matters of life and death, we trusted each other completely. Whatever the plan was that Port and Gadget had worked out for our survival, I knew it would work.

	Order Information

Title: Moroni Smith--In the Land of Zarahemla Author: Thom Duncan Retail Price: $10.98 Available: Now ISBN: 0-88290-415-9 Order Number (SKU): 1977 Pages: 168 Size: 6" X 9" Binding: Paperback