Gatehaven - A book review

  Gatehaven, by Molly Noble Bull, was an interesting surprise. Though billed as a Christian Gothic story for young readers, which I do not usually enjoy, I enjoyed it. Here I need to admit, however, that I am not a pre-teen or teen any longer. In my younger days I would have found the story tense. Though the plot involves the stalking and capture of Shannon, a naïve young lady, by grown men with dishonorable intent to her and her family Bull handles the situations appropriately for her younger audience. The two heroes, Ian and Peter, do their best to save and help Shannon see the danger and to see what love really is before it is too late but, to their frustration, she learns the hard way. Bull cites a lot of Bible scriptures, which I really enjoyed, but they could be irritating to someone who believes differently than I do. I found that for the most part the scriptures fit with the plot where they are used.  

   Shannon is sometimes very irritating in her naivety, but not unlike some friends I grew up with. The characters Peter and Ian were believable up to and including their frustration with Shannon. The protagonists were a bit shallow but did the job well enough to carry the storyline. Cally, a minor character but a catalyst in the plot, had a depth that I enjoyed. All of the characters Bull presents had a purpose in fleshing out the storyline so that by the end of the novel closure was realized.

   I will read Gatehaven again and will recommend it to Christian preteen and young teen readers. Like the setting, Victorian era, I found the style and the moral of the storyline obvious but tasteful. Good job Ms. Bull.

Angel War by Phillip Dodd - a book review

I found Phillip Dodd’s Angel War novel very interesting. It is one of those books that I had to sit back and think about after reading it. The fictional story of who Satan is and how he came to be who he is as told from his own perspective. Dodd has truly written a Christian Sci-Fi.

 

The story begins with the emergence of God himself and then from the time of the creation of the angels and the heavens and continues through the history of man to the end of the earth, at least as we know it. One of main things that make this novel so unique is that in all of the creations of God, the Angels, and Satan with his fallen angels, machines are used to create. They also use time jump and vortexes along with space ships and magical weapons in the conflicts of the story. Angel War emphasizes the love and connection of family and friends and the loneliness of the loss of these relationships. Also, there seems to be little difference between the society of Heaven, the society of Hell, and the society of Earth in that all beings have purpose, jobs, relationships, and individuality. No one rests on clouds plucking harps or writhes in flames scaring lost souls. The main difference is in the attitude or moods that the societies live and work with.

 

Dodd does very well with weaving the Bible, creation in particular, into this science fiction story. My first impulse while reading was rejection of some of Dodd’s creativity because I started out reading it from a Christian perspective. I needed to regularly to remind myself that this was a science fiction story with a biblical theme. The beginning was slow for me, with the history of the creation of the clans of angels and how it all began. However, as the story played out I realized how important the beginning history is to understand the events throughout the story. Dodd has woven an interesting story from a very unique perspective. This is one of those novels that will need to be reread to see the whole story – possibly several times.  

A Gift of Fire by Stephen B5 Jones

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20802109-a-gift-of-fire" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="A Gift of Fire" border="0" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1392266529m/20802109.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20802109-a-gift-of-fire">A Gift of Fire</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4895526.Stephen_B5_Jones">Stephen B5 Jones</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/905088445">4 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I enjoyed A Gift of Fire: The Last God War. Book One by Stephen B5 Jones. The story is well told with a complexity to some of the characters that I enjoyed. The picture parallel with the dystopian society of Cityscape and many societies of today that have only two castes is drawn well. Jones made an interesting move when separating the ‘middle class’ of the Shanties to a hidden and distant region of Perma The creation of a new yet visual world is well done. The characters were like people I know so I related well with all of them, even the ‘villians’. Jones threw in some twists that make the plot more interesting. Some of the twists were not a surprise but some I did not see coming, which I enjoyed very much. <br><br>I had a little confusion with one of the time jumps but can see how the jump between time is necessary to understand some characters and actions in the story and in some of the historical references made by characters. Changes in the characters of Angla, Jenna, Awyna, and even Rafe to resolve conflict and point the way to closing the gaps between the three castes and cultures of Perma was smooth and well done. I must say, however, that Gabri was my favorite change and my favorite surprise. Well done Stephen B5 Jones. This is a story I will read more than once over the course of time, just to enjoy it.<br>
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