Indiana Jones & the Lost Treasure of Sheba

 Indiana Jones & the Lost Treasure of Sheba (1984) by Rose Estes
A Find Your Fate Adventure #2 (very similar to the Choose Your Own Adventure Books)

Dr. Roger Ballentyne, a military engineer and colleague of the famous Indiana Jones, has developed a plan for  anew diamond laser that will cut through anything in moments and he also has discovered a map that leads to the long-lost treasure of the Queen of Sheba. A treasure that is said to consist of a lot of diamonds [what a coincidence!]. The Nazis are very interested in both things and arrange for Dr. Ballantyne to be kidnapped. His son George is in the apartment at the time, but manages to grab the plans for the laser and escape--right into the arms of Indiana Jones who is on his way to see Ballantyne. They aren't able to prevent the doctor's abduction, so Indy and George set off for Ethiopia to rescue the boy's father and--maybe--find the treasure along the way.

But there's a catch...in this story, YOU are George and you will make all the decisions about how the story goes. Choose wisely and you'll solve the mysteries and rescue your dad. Choose even more wisely and you'll bag the treasure as well. But...choose unwisely and at best you'll be waiting a long time in a Nazi jail while the war rages and at worst you'll be trapped in an underground cavern surrounded by jewels but with no hope of escape.

I couldn't resist this one when I found it at our annual community book fair about four years ago. I loved the Choose Your Own Adventure books when I was growing up and I loved Harrison Ford and the Indiana Jones movies. I don't remember the Find Your Fate books being in the bookstores like the CYOA books were. But maybe it's because by the mid-1980s I'd moved on to mystery novels like Agatha Christie and science fiction from Asimov, Silverberg, Clarke, etc. 

Anyway...back on subject...this was a fun adventure that, at times, caught the flavor of of the Indiana Jones franchise. Estes made a good attempt at capturing the action/adventure on the page, but the dialog wasn't quite as true. I tried very hard to hear Ford when Indy was talking, but the rhythm just didn't seem quite right. Some of the scenarios seemed more plausible (as Indy scenarios) than others, but I'm sure that it would be difficult to come up with enough variety to provide 12-15 endings that would ring true in the Indy universe. Overall, a good read. ★★★

First line:  It was ten-thirty on a windy fall evening.

Last line: As we watched the African coast disappear over the horizon, Jones and my father lifted a glass and toasted the day when we would return to the treasure of Sheba.