When a dark stranger comes to the town of Paradise offering love and grace, most of the townspeople take him at his word. But Johnny sees a dark side to the preacher and refuses to be taken in by his promises.
At the same time, an isolated monastery is beginning to come apart at the seams, due to the rebellion of its members. The way these plots intertwine forms a compelling read.

Reading when you want a thrill and a peek into the darkness of the heart. It grabs you in the first chapter and doesn't let go till the end.

How this novel was tied in with the Circle trilogy. I also enjoyed his characterization and the tension he kept running throughout the book.

Some parts were quite violent. In fact, two episodes in particular made me actually feel sick. However, these actions were used to point out the fact that we all have a capacity for evil, so I think they were justified.

Read his next book.

Is Ted Dekker, a Christian writer who always tells a good story without preaching. He's one of my favorite authors.

It is sort of like "Lord of the Flies". It has a redemptive message and is a loose allegory of the Gospel. The writing style is excellent and the story is well-paced.

If you are offended by violence, you might want to skip this book. There is also a small section where the women of the town are hinting at sexual misconduct with the preacher.

This is one of Dekker's most edgy books yet. The villain is perfect, suave and yet so evil. And the heroes are far from perfect themselves, yet they find the strength to do the right thing most of the time. I couldn't put it down.

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Created Jan 24, 2006 at 10:59am • Submit your own review...