Alpha, Omega [Paperback]

Lori Stephens (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 10, 2008

A defector from a cult called Omega has bled to death for no identifiable reason, and the only clue is the book he's clutching: the Librah Vae-ta, the holy scripture that the Omega cult founders created a century ago, unaware of its dangerous power. Dr. Gatsby Donovan resolves to help solve the mysterious murder. As she spirals deeper into the danger zone of spies and assassins, she realizes that the Omega script is based on the languages of ancient holy texts. Through an action-packed story, Alpha, Omega challenges readers to rethink the agendas of large religious organizations and how they have become global superpowers. With despotic cults, religious scriptures, ancient languages, neuro-addiction, murder, betrayal, revenge, and ultimately, love, Alpha Omega is a rollercoaster tale with a message that cannot be ignored, and readers may even suspect that their own Bible may contain more than maxims for moral living.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

LORI STEPHENS' editorial career spans 20 years and the full spectrum of content development, copywriting, editing, and publication management. She has edited over 80 published trade titles on topics from Neurolinguistic Programming to law to cutting-edge technology. In 2005, she founded Verbatim Editorial, an agency that helps writers to develop books on deep personal change. Ms. Stephens holds a Bachelor of Arts in English/Creative Writing from the University of Oregon, and she is certified as an NLP Practitioner. A resident of Seattle, one of the nation's greenest cities (literally), she works as a gadfly for social change and otherwise stirs up trouble. She is kept in line by two uppity Basenjis, Ziggy and Zhara.

Product Details

• Paperback: 286 pages
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing (September 10, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1419689258
• ISBN-13: 978-1419689253
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,848,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fast paced and interesting read, December 26, 2010

By 

John S. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alpha, Omega (Paperback)

A friend recently gave me a copy of two novels by Lori Stephens -- both "Deep Structure" (DS) and "Alpha Omega" (AO).

I started with DS, where the principle character Gatsby Donovan is introduced, along with her friend and practicing psychologist, Celia Devereaux. While I don't wish to offer comments on DS here, I found it to be an engaging book, a fast read and interesting from a scientific and technical perspective. I think one has to hand it to Stephens, she seems to have done her homework, when it comes to understanding, say, how a PET scanner actually works. That lent credibility to her work and increased my interest in it.

Having read DS, picking up AO was like meeting up with a good friend. But early in the book, I had the sense that Gatsby was in for a more intense -- and dangerous -- adventure. I was not wrong and I was not disappointed. I didn't read the book in a single sitting, but it wasn't more than three or four either. I liked the fact that Stephens kept her chapters relatively short; that helped me to better understand the interesting and dynamic interplay of the characters in the book.

My personal philosophy is not one that admits the possibility of the supernatural, and thank God, AO didn't try to take me down that path. It did, however, take me into an interesting world where the power of language to influence behavior at a very deep level was explored. While the book is definitely fiction, I had the sense that Stephens was sharing what must have been years of study and interest in this subject.

Bottom line, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and I don't hesitate to recommend it to anyone who wishes to begin contemplating the role of language in shaping behavior, while being wonderfully entertained at the same time.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great characters, intriguing story, December 15, 2011

By 

Steven Peterson - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Alpha, Omega (Paperback)

I love the way Lori Stephen's brought the characters to life. A facinating glipse into the world of a fanatical and mesmeric religous group and the science that uncovers their mysteries...

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Gripping" - "Thrilling adventure" - "Will keep you on the edge of your seat", November 30, 2008

By 

Book Reviewer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alpha, Omega (Paperback)

Alpha Omega
Review by Decia Rowland, PhD, Scholar of Religion
Cults have never been good news for the religions they parallel. Evil fairly drips from this story of a PTSS victim who now must face her boogeyman again as a scientist-detective delving into the religious psyche of the Omega group. I read this book in one sitting, convinced that as a believer, I would find something to roar about in Ms. Stephens' gripping portrayal of a nasty man and his nasty companions. Nothing good could come out of self-serving religion, the author seems to say. But I was caught by the emotional struggle of her two protagonists to create a real relationship, in the rawness of the present, in the hope of something honest. While The Da Vinci Code asks the question, "Is our eschatological symbol for goodness who we think he is?" Alpha Omega asks "Come on now, what does it really mean to be human?"

Alpha, Omega
Review by Katy McElroy
Can you trust what you read? In this thrilling adventure, Lori Stephens explores the potential language has to influence our beliefs and actions, and how dangerous the knowledge of this potential can be in the wrong hands. When a strange book is connected with a grisly murder, Gatsby Donovan is selected to help decode its cryptic language. But as she deciphers the strange syllables, she discovers that there is much more to this text than just the words on the pages--and even she may not be able to resist its power. Alpha, Omega will keep you on the edge of your seat as you follow Gatsby along the path of an investigation which soon consumes her life, ultimately forcing her to confront her own hidden, painful past.