3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
incredibly fast-paced mystery, August 7, 2010
This review is from: Book of Nathan (Hardcover)
Former advertising executive Rick Bullock runs a homeless shelter in New Brunswick, New Jersey. His late wife who succumbed to cancer had a passion to help the homeless and now he does. He is taken aback when the police arrest someone he knows former East Jersey State prisoner and a frequent guest of Rick's facility, Zeus for the murder of a famous televangelist in Florida. Bullock refuses to believe that Zeus who would not hurt a fly killed anyone especially this gruesome homicide.
Bullock heads to Florida to determine what he can do. He is taken aback further when his amateur inquiry leads to a lost book of the Bible that contains a definitive answer to a disturbing question and the evidence that his friend is innocent. However, someone does not want the out of state person intruding on a slam dunk case and that unknown adversary is willing to kill to achieve Zeus' conviction.
Filled with numerous surprising spins, the Book of Nathan is an enjoyable incredibly fast-paced mystery as Rick's discovery of a manuscript has the mob, pro-lifers, pro-choicers and others demanding he hand over his find or else. Over the top of High Point, readers who appreciate a twisting story line faster than a speeding bullet and will want to join Rick on his odyssey.
Harriet Klausner
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Light Hearted Thriller (Reviewed by a Long Time Amazon Reviewer), August 9, 2010
This review is from: Book of Nathan (Hardcover)
I received an ARC (Advance Review Copy) of the BOOK OF NATHAN that was distributed at Thrillerfest, the annual convention of the International Thriller Writers which I attended. (The conference is great fun, and open to readers - I suggest that you consider attending it next year.) I enjoyed the story, although find it difficult to classify - it has elements of a thriller, but there is substantial comedic relief - bordering on farce at times. Part of the plot line also involves a very controversial social and political issue, although it is presented in a neutral way and does not involve the preachiness concerning their obvious agendas that some authors insert into their plots.
As the book opens, we meet Rick Bullock, the former ad executive who is now a director of a NJ homeless shelter. His initial encounter with a new client, Miklos (Zeus) Zeusenoerdorf both sets the stage for the main plot and generates the memories of Annie, his deceased wife, which are a crucial element of his current job and desire to help Zeus. Zeus is soon accused of committing a murder in Florida, and Bullock recruits his friend Doug Kool to help him visit Zeus in jail in order to attempt to overcome Zeus' limited communication skills and piece together what happened. Immediately Doug recruits Manny Maglio (the king of the strip clubs) as a benefactor if Bullet will aid in chaperoning his niece, Twyla Tharp (not the well known Twyla Tharp, but a stripper who has taken her name). And while the characters are very entertaining, they get even weirder, including Yigal Rosenblatt, Abraham Arcontius, Maurice Tyson, and Doc Waters.
There are multiple attempts apparently meant to distract and even kill Bullet (Doug's nickname for him), but after returning to NJ he perseveres and gradually uncovers the underlying cause for the murder of Benjamin Kurios, the "prince of evangelists" and supposed key to the wisdom in THE BOOK OF NATHAN. This title refers to one of the "missing books of the Bible", to which there are references elsewhere in the text. The BOOK OF NATHAN is mentioned in 2 Chronicles 9:29 (incorrectly identified in this first printing as 1 Chronicles, a fact amazingly not mentioned by any of the previous reviewers who rushed to get their reviews posted and couldn't even bother to check the reference in the text). The story is a wild ride, literally and figuratively. While the plot is very clever, I find it impossible to outline further without including spoilers.
The action is very fast paced, but the frequent injections of humor and weirdness kept the tension intermittent rather than letting it consistently build. In many ways the story was as much a mystery for Bullet to unravel as it was a real thriller. This is not a story to be skimmed, since much of the enjoyment and cleverness is in the details including the character development and humorous touches, particularly the Kielbasavan episode. In my view, the authors attempted to do too much, and my rating of what I view as a generous four stars is an attempt to balance the many diverse plusses and minuses of the book.
First, the plot had five star potential but I believe that the authors should have decided whether they wanted to write a mystery with comedic overtones or a thriller; I do not believe that they were totally successful in attempting to straddle those genres. They definitely deserve credit for the clever use of a unique Biblical anchor to the story.
Second, as I have mentioned, the contentious subject matter was handled in an informational and neutral way, and the outcome was not at all definitive regarding the conflicting viewpoints that were at the center of the story. Extremists on both sides were not painted in a very favorable light, and there was no attempt to influence the reader regarding the issue involved. This is not a book about religion; rather the religious beliefs of some characters are a central element of the plot.
Third, while most of the characters were relatively undeveloped, and in fact the majority could be described as caricatures and stereotypes, this treatment was in keeping with the overall style of the narrative. In opposition, the complexity of Bullet's motivation and the impact of his wife's death on his life's trajectory made his actions quite believable.
Fourth, the humor was really well done, even if jarring at times. It is a difficult feat to juxtapose scenes involving Weiner Man with the meaningful use of Latin references, yet somehow that was done in a manner that did not seem contrived.
Finally, the story is relatively short and an easy read; the authors did not attempt to pad it with extraneous characters or irrelevant plot additions.
So, the flaws and somewhat uneven writing (perhaps a function of co-authors) clearly kept if from being a five star novel in my estimation, but after considering my rating I decided that I had enjoyed it more than the books which I have rated three stars - so I settled on four stars.
Tucker Andersen 8/9/2010
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