aluricky

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. It's still an honest review, but the FTC wanted you to know... ---------------- This book seemed to me like "Gnosticism for Dummies" wrapped up in a thin candy Scooby-Doo shell (the only thing missing was the crazy old man who dressed up like a ghost/alien/monster). I was excited to receive the book when I saw it on first reads--it sounded like an adventure novel along the same lines as the DaVinci code. My first hint that it was not the case was the classification on the back cover: Spirituality/Fiction. Spirituality? Not mystery, thriller or adventure? Hmmm. Nonetheless, I dove in, hoping for the best. The book felt like it had been written by a high school student, both in style and story. The characters were flat and insipid. The entire book was merely a platform to explain Gnostic ideas, with the "adventure" and "detective work" being merely a secondary concern (if that). I also found it surprising that two of the main characters were so quick to accept ideas shared with them by two professors--in the course of two days, they essentially drop their Catholic upbringings and accept the Gnostic ideas they are told. No heavy internal wrestlings? Not much of a spiritual struggle, it seemed. Now for the good (because there was some). I applaud Mr. Davila for having written a book about something that he obviously believes and wants to share with others. Second, I felt like he provided a (mostly) realistic view of the middle east. I appreciated being able to "see" Jerusalem and Palestine and the description of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank. It's stuff that I hear about on the news, but don't know what it looks like. Tariq ends up being the most interesting and deepest character of the book--maybe it should have focused on him instead of everyone else. There was exactly one moment in the whole book where I felt connected emotionally to the story: page 155 where ***SPOILER*** (view spoiler) ***END SPOILER*** That was the only time that I cared about anyone in the whole book. And the only time that the book actually felt like an adventure. The good news: you can get published if you want to write a book badly enough.

2022-10-15 06:00