Mandrake's Cabinet of Readables & Curiosities

I've just finished Robert Liparulo's latest offering Deadfall, and I must say that it was an awesome read! Although it has no strong Christian message in it, it is full of Christian morals, and it tackles a very relevant issue which is sadly going under the rader of most people today... the effects of violent first-person shooters (video games) on our youth culture.

The story is action-packed, has great characters, and has a plausable plot that is not too far fetched. This is the second Liparulo book I have read (Germ is the other one) and I must say that His story climaxes are exciting, intelligent, surprising and read like an action movie ending.

Three things (in my opinion) that stopped Deadfall earning a 5 star rating...

- Parts of the plot were just a little unrealistic for me.
- I would have enjoyed a little more character development.
- A little slow moving at the beginning.

Deadlock, Lipaulo's sequel to Deadfall, is coming out in March. Yet another read I am eagerly looking forward to! If you enjoy an action-packed thrillers with no profanity and great morals, you will love Deadfall.

Imagine an airborne strain of the Ebola virus that targets only the people who has the DNA strands encoded within it. No one is safe, and if you breathe, it will find you. To prove it, the germ's creator targets ten thousand victims: politicians, housewives, children. Only three people can possibly stop it: a pastor, a doctor and a federal agent... if they survive long enough.

'Germ' is the first Robert Liparulo novel I've read. I must say that until now, my favourite Christian action author has been James Byron Huggins. My preference may be changing... The plot is fast moving and emmersive, and the action scenes are realistic and remind me of 'Bourne on paper.'

Germ is not an overtly Christian novel but successfully combines a terrifingly realistic plot, suspense, mayhem, brutal action and Christian morality to make it a very compelling read.

I finished Alton Gansky's 'A Treasure Deep' the other day. When I saw it on sale and read the backcover, the Indiana Jones inside of me just couldn't resist.

The book's plot revolves around one archaelogical dig containing a relic which will undoubtedly be the biggest discovery in modern history, effectively re-writing all the history books and confirming the Christian faith beyond all doubt. The problem is that the reader is kept guessing as to what the 'relic' is for most of the book. Cleverly written, fun and fustrating. Gansky's writing contains less action than I usually enjoy, but his characters and the cleverly written dialoge between them makes up for it.

'A Treasure Deep' is Book One in a trilogy of 'Perry Sachs' mysteries. It is followed by 'Beneath The Ice' and 'Submerged'.

One word to describe Mike Dellosso's debut novel... Excellent. If I likened 'Hunted' to another novel, it would have to be Frank Peretti's 'The Oath'. 'Hunted' screams 'Peretti influence' in every chapter. It's not a bad thing at all. Many Christians love Peretti's style, but draw the line at Dekker. While I actually prefer Dekker, Mike Dellosso is a very pleasant surprise, and an author which I will eagerly look forward to reading more of (his next book 'Scream' is coming out March, 2009). As one reviewer said...

Mike Dellosso could very well be the next Frank Peretti-if you liked The Oath and Monster, you are going to love The Hunted. (C.J. Darlington, Cofounder and book editor, Titletrakk.com)

If you love Christian suspense/thrillers with supernatural elements, get 'The Hunted' for your personal library as soon as you can!

I've always loved Veggietales (PJ and I used to hire them even before we had kids ;-). I just counted the number of Veggietales DVD's/videos we own... 14. A few years ago I heard the rumour that Veggietales had gone into liquidation, that everything had hit the fan, and had wondered why God allowed it to happen. This book explains why.

It is excellent, and I believe it is a 'must read' for anyone who has had big dreams for God... started to see them come to pass, only to see them fall apart. Phil Vischer is very transparent retelling his story, his dreams, his ambition, his shortcomings, his failure and his disillusionment... and I really, really appreciate him for it.

This book will appeal to anyone who is...

... a veggietales fans
... into computer animation
... into entertainment industry
... a christian businessman or woman
... a christian leader

In the first chapters of 'Nephilim', Art Mackenzie, a alcoholic reporter, stumbles upon evidence of a government cover-up. He infiltrates the restricted floor of a mental hospital, where patients, all women, are kept sedated and restrained. One woman tells him that something fathered an inhuman child in her (a Nephilim - the offspring of a fallen angel and a human mother). Thus begins the story of what really happened at Roswell New Mexico, cattle mutilations, alien abductions, secret underground bases, black-op military units, conspiracies within conspiracies, and a clever story which links UFO phenomena with the Biblical account of the Nephilim in Genesis 6.

The book explores a fascinating and refreshing end-time theory which, while a bit bizarre for the average person, is disturbingly believable. About 'Nephilim' Chuck Missler, renowned Bible scholar, states the following:

"A very provocative scenario. It appears Lynn Marzulli has done his homework."

I have always been interesting in UFO phenomena and how it fits within a Christian World view, so I couldn't wait to read 'Nephilim'. I found the story to be between average and good. My reasons follow...

The first half of the book was relatively slow for me. I'm used to high suspense, high action novels, and although this has some great action and suspense, it is definitely not in the same league as anything by Dekker or Huggins. However, one must realise that the background and foundation of the story takes a lot of explaining, and it really does set up the whole trilogy. I've read that the second book is a total roller-coaster ride, so here's hoping.

This book is also blatantly Christian and makes no apologies for being so, which I find quite refreshing. There are many Christian authors who include Christian ideas throughout their stories to cover both the Christian and secular market, there is nothing wrong with this, but I did enjoy the non-compromising nature of the book.

If you enjoy a good story, with smatterings of suspense horror and action, and have an interest in aliens and the paranormal, Christian or non-Christian... you will find this a very enjoyable and thought provoking read. I'm looking forward to Book 2: Unholy Deception.

Adam is Ted Dekker's best and most compelling work to date, and also the most disturbing. If it were to be compared to a movie, 'The Exorcist' would be the closest. I quote Dekker when he says,

"This is one of the only books I've ever written, where, honestly, I was so disturbed by what I discovered that I had trouble going to sleep at night."

One of the editors who worked on 'Adam' commented,

"... by the way, I'm sleeping with the lights on as I'm reading this book. And when that doesn't work, I'm praying harder."

For this very reason many Christians heavily critise Dekker's work as being too dark, and unedifying. Indeed, Dekker's writing is dark, but for a very good reason I believe... To really understand how great the light is, one must understand how great the evil is. And ultimately, 'Adam' is a very powerful story about great hope.

I absolutely loved 'Adam', and have lost not a few hours sleep over the last couple of days as a result of not being able to put it down.

Dekker is an extremily gifted author, who writes intelligent, adrenaline-laced stories, which Christian message is loud and clear, and is not forgotten quickly. It comes as no surprise that he is my favourite author.

If you enjoy fast-paced physiological/supernatural thrillers (which border on horror), then buy "Adam' today.

I finished this book in a day (a personal record). I never thought an historical biography could be more riveting than action-fiction, but this book proved me very wrong.

The vivid, true life account of whale attacks, shipwrecks, shark attacks, killer whale attacks, starvation, cannabilism, death, faith and survival.

A few things really impacted me in this book...

- The hardship that was 'normal life' for whalers in the early 19th century. They lived their lives 3 years at sea, 3 months at home, then back to sea for 3 years.

- The age of the whalers and the weight of responsibility that rested on their young shoulders (the captain of the Essex was in his 20's).

- How weak leadership and bad decisions can cost many innocent lives.

- The extremes the human body can endure, and the unimaginable things people will do to survive.

Phenomenal book. Buy it today.

Christian Fantasy fiction at its best! 'Beyond the Summerland' is the first book in a 5 book epic called 'Binding Of The Blade'. First half was just a tad slow, but very understandable as the foundation of the series needed to be laid. The second book 'Bringer Of Storms' is said to be better than Summerland. The books look like 'teen fiction' (the covers don't do them any justice), but don't be fooled... this is no cuddly Aslan story.

James Byron Huggins is one of my favourite all-time authors. Sorcerer is his most recent work.

For those of you who who are unfamiliar with Huggins' books, let me educate you to the classic Huggins formula for a riveting yarn:

A) Disillusioned protagonist with elite weapons skills and unparalleled military training (will gladly give his life to save C from B).

B) Very nasty superhuman/supernatural antagonistic, hell-bent on killing A, C, and D.

C) Normal everyday people people close to A that need rescuing from B.

D) Wise but reluctant religious mentor usually gives his life to protect A who then can kill B thus saving C.

Although cliched, the above formula is the foundation for most action adventure novels and movies. I Love it! Another characteristic of Huggins' books is that they are packed with masterfully-written action sequences. I will go as far as to say... No one does action like James Byron Huggins. Just in case you disagree...

Nobody, and I mean nobody, can write action scenes like James Byron Huggins. (Brian Reeves - top Amazon reviewer)

When it comes to action, no one does it better than James Byron Huggins. (fantasticfiction.org)

The premise of Sorcerer's story is awesome. Without giving too much away, here's the blurb:

Retiring to rural New England, ex-detective Michael Thorn discovers a mysterious skeleton in his new home! When it suddenly disappears, his investigation unearths the stunning revelation that the bones belong to an ancient Egyptian sorcerer who fought Moses! Can Thorn defeat the necromancer before he wreaks havoc on the world?

The 'Sorcerer' in Sorcerer actually scared me a bit, and I remember having to lock the chickens up in our native bush laden backyard late one night while in the middle of reading a scary part. Needless to say, I didn't stay outside any longer than I had to ;-)

Some of Huggins' previous works: Cain and Hunter contain smatterings of blasphemy (why I ask?) but in all other Huggins books I have read (excluding Wolf Story, Rora, and Nightbringer) although not blatant, the Christian message shines through and the reading, although violent at times is extremely enjoyable to the soul.

Upside of Sorcerer:
- The Catholic Church's secret bodyguards (pure awesomeness!)
- The storyline
- The action sequences

Downside of Sorcerer:
Unlike other Huggins' stories I was slightly disappointed with the ending of Sorcerer. Although very original, was a little too weak IMO.