Customer Reviews

The Ezekiel Code

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

After taking over as director of a homeless shelter, seminarian dropout Ezekiel "Zeke" Banyon stumbles upon a mysterious document listing a strange series of phrases and numbers in his predecessor's office. He and Angela Martin, a recently hired employee of the shelter, become fascinated with the odd phrases and codes. They set out on a journey which leads them to believe that the English Alphabet may in fact be a cipher of some kind; that built into the very fabric of the language itself are coded messages that have been there for centuries. But where did this code come from? What message does it contain? What are the implications to humanity?

Zeke and Angela soon find they are not the only ones interested in discovering the secret of the code. Other more nefarious and conspiratorial organizations' power and future are in Zeke's hands. Some want to protect him while others want him destroyed.

Gary Tenuta's Ezekiel Code has elements of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code as well as the adventure of Preston and Child's The Ice Limit. Mostly, however, this novel is like an entire season of the X-files packed into one book. Tenuta covers a lot of ground and topics including: acoustic levitation, out of body experiences, area 51, ancient Catholic Church and Jesuit secrets, Mayan calendars and predictions, Isis and the great pyramids, Gematria, parallel universes, the Illuminati, conspiratorial organizations, parallel universes, electronic voice phenomenon, and more. This requires a fairly high suspension of disbelief factor by the reader and Tenuta does a good job integrating these diverse concepts into the story.

While English Gematria, which is the assignment of numerical equivalents of words usually associated with Hebrew, is the main concept driving the Ezekiel code, the pace of the novel can occasionally be interrupted by its frequent appearance. Regardless, I found myself engaged throughout the story and googling a number of the curious and fascinating concepts raised in order to learn more about them. Gary has clearly done considerable research in writing this novel. Fans of the X-files will enjoy The Ezekiel Code.

The Ezekiel Code is one of those rare books, that once you read it, you will never see the world in quite the same way - a mark of excellence in storytelling. It changes you because it opens a portal to so many fascinating concepts, some of which are right before your eyes, laced throughout our lives and history, and others, which exist just beyond our general understanding, that it will keep you thinking and wondering about what it presents long after you've read it.

As a story, The Ezekiel Code quickly became a `place' I wanted to escape to every day. I grew attached to its main characters, Zeke and Angela, and accustomed to being a part of their world, and I didn't want it to end. The characters are alive, fully formed people that seem very real, in richly detailed surroundings. They start out in the most ordinary of circumstances, but are drawn, through many twists and turns, through synchronicity, into a captivating mystery that begins to surround them and take over their lives. Their path is a dangerous and winding one where dark and light continuously battle for supremacy. Slowly, subtly, the main characters, and you, the reader, are taken down the rabbit hole, and you will wonder over & over again, could many of the things the author presents, be real, be true? There is a great deal of evidence to say that yes, much of it could be, and that only enhances an already engaging and compelling story. Indeed, this book is so loaded with mysteries & intriguing theories that a reader could then proceed to spend the next twenty years studying them with immense interest & zeal. Note: The Ezekiel Code could very well be the beginning of many an addiction to uncovering hidden truths, deep mysteries, secret societies, metaphysics, ancient knowledge, quantum physics, (and many other sciences and theoretical concepts that I will not mention for fear of giving too much away) - you have been warned!

I was struck by the breadth of knowledge and passion the author obviously has for his subject matter. In fact, this is one of those instances where I am as fascinated by the author, who embodies his work, as I am the story. Loads of research went into crafting this book. There are many novels that will *razzle-dazzle* you with technology, weapons, and smart, sophisticated "super-people" that none of us could ever relate to. These can be formulaic and forgettable. They may be good reads at the time, but they don't stay with you, simply blending into a sea of similar stories. The Ezekiel Code transcends this, because it is at once relatable, yet so dense in what it offers, that you will find yourself bringing things up that you learned from this book in conversation with your friends & family, and engaging in absorbing and lengthy discussions for a long time to come.

The Ezekiel Code is high-concept fiction, with great action & adventure, and is a completely unique story with a powerhouse ending. An unforgettable read!

Rai Aren

I was so excited to see that this book was available for a great price on Kindle, and it didn't take me long to figure out why.

Don't get me wrong; I love this theme. Anything where you pull in history, religion, mythology, scavenger hunts to save the world or locate some ancient artifact definitely appeal to my tastes. I love codes and mysteries and ideas along that line for books. When I read the synopsis for this book, I thought that this was right up my alley.

The premise is a good one; Numerology is fairly interesting, and finding patterns within certain words and texts definitely made an effort to draw me in. Why the one star, then?

I couldn't get past the rather simplistic and borderline offensive writing style that the author employs. The overall tone of the book appeared to me to be on the shallow side, and several times I felt as though the author was trying to lead me by the nose to his conclusions rather than trusting me to make those leaps of logic on my own. What was worse was, it wasn't hard to draw those conclusions in any case. I managed to make it through seven chapters before I finally deleted it off of my Kindle. I couldn't take reading about the main characters coming across like love-shy teenagers who made numerology connections after six pages when I had made them in six lines.

In short, great potential, even greater disappointment. :(

Though this book is considered fiction, one can see reality on most of the pages. If we look at our world with awareness, we will see it in the pages of The Ezekiel Code. A must read!

Two Thumbs up for Gary Val Tenuta's tomb of a book, The Ezekiel Code. It is a thrill of a ride right from the beginning with suspense, love, murder, mayhem and just enough doomsday, alien and quantum theory thrown in to keep you guessing what will happen, what did happen and could any of this actually be real? Listen to my upcoming interview with Gary on Quantum Radio, www.blogtalkradio.com/quantumradio on March 24th, 2009 at 11:00 am est....the Unstoppable Coach Frankie Picasso,founder for the Institute for Quantum Living and Conscious Design,Life Coach, Radio Host, Author -Midlife Mojo, www.instituteforquantumliving.com

I could write a book about why this book is so bad, but don't worry, I'll keep it short.
1. My 12 year old could write better dialog. "Oh, wow. That's pretty interesting and wierd!"
2. The author's idea of building suspense involves telling you that the main characters are being discussed in a dark room by men that mean them no good.
3. The main character went to school, but was never exposed to a computer. At one point the author has him try to use the CD tray as a coffee cup holder (gee, never heard that one before). Of couse, 15 minutes later he surfing the web and researching his "code" obsession.

I was going to keep going, but I think you get the idea and I did promise to keep it short. I only wish the author had made the same promise.

Note: If I could have givine this book less than 1 star, I would have.

What a tome! It was with some trepidation I picked up this volume. I'd been pre warned it was a lengthy read and the plot complicated. So, setting my reservations aside I dove in only to find that the whirlpool of Gary V. Tenuta's writing would drag me under for hours. In fact when I surfaced it was 3 am and I'd missed my meds and sorely needed to take care of my bodily functions. I am sad to report I didn't get much else done for 2 days except to read. This book lives up to it's billing. A grand philosophical adventure of the mind that will make you think. You shouldn't miss this one. Good show Gary. Write some more!

There are a lot of good books out there - by new and established authors-
there are some seasoned authors who just don't try as hard anymore -
They better take a good look at this book and see what the new face of competition is...Gary V. Tenuta's The Ezekiel Code!
This book is a compilation of so many philosophies, theories, New Age info, ancient and biblical prophecies - I can tell you this was everything I have learned in my journey of awareness and it all merged into one fantastic book. And it all creates a hold your breath I can't stop reading type of book....
Zeke Banyon, is running the Seattle Gospel Mission - a homeless shelter -
He was going to be a priest, but changed his mind - many of the folks at the shelter call him Father - Ezekiel was named by his mother - she had a dream the night before she gave birth to Zeke that he should be named Ezekiel - and that's what happened....
Zeke needed someone to help him at the Mission and a young woman, Angela Martin seems to be the perfect fit. She organizes the offices and even brings Zeke into the computer age by setting up a computer in her office.
As Zeke comes to the bottom of his pile on his desk, he sees the last shelter manager's 'doodles' on an old calendar - numbers...strange series of numbers.
Together they start a journey that encompasses a mystical code, and references to the Ezekiel Code - Remember Ezekiel? He wrote of a strange craft that really seems like a close encounter of the third kind!!!
Many pieces fit together and they find a mystery unfolding of biblical proportions -
There are powers at work here - the good guys - Members of Nine, and the bad guys, people from organized church who don't want the truth to be told....
Zeke Banyon it seems, is 'The Chosen One' to save the world...really a big burden to weigh on your shoulders, isn't it?
But as this story of discovery blossoms, the right people and information enfolds before Zeke and Angela - synchronicity - there are no coincidences -
You will find yourself playing with the numeric code and even google more than a few things mentioned in the book. Even a healthy dose of the 2012 Mayan prophecy looming and handled in a wondrous style...
You don't have to be an expert on anything - just sit back and fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be the ride of your life!
It was no coincidence I was to read this book.
You will be amazed at this book - big book that speeds by!

The book is a trip! Entertaining, intellectually stimulating and emotionally satisfying all in one. But hard to catagorize. The X-Files meets One Step Beyond? Dan Brown meets Rod Serling? Religious thriller? Speculative fiction? Sci-fi? A little of each, I guess. All I know is I couldn't stop reading until I at least found out what it was those two guys in the prologue were talking about and why the one guy never called the other guy like he said he would. Did somebody kill him? But before the answer to that mystery was revealed other mysteries were already in play. Right in the first chapter a completely innocent young lady leaves a homeless shelter where she'd just interviewed for a part time job and as she walks out the door somebody in a car across the street focuses a telephoto lens on her and snaps off a few frames. Why? Who was taking the pictures? And why did the clock on the wall in the homeless shelter suddenly loose several hours? Or did it gain several hours? And what is the deal with the number 9? It's just one puzzle after another and you sort of fall into the flow of the two main characters (Banyon and Angela) as they begin to realize something odd is going on. Other characters are introduced gradually as the story builds and becomes more complex and Banyon discovers something about himself that he reluctantly realizes he must accept. And then the dramatic ending! I couldn't turn those last few pages fast enough! Like I said, the book is a trip! If you're looking for something different, this is it.

I purchased this book after reading other reviews, it seemed like an exciting adventure thriller - but to my surprise, it was horrible. I had understood that it had a slow beginning, but the entire book was slow. I am an average reader, and the constant streams of numbers and codes words and phrases was overwhelming, it distracted me to the point of being boring. I kept skipping through most of those inserts to find the characters reviewing the previous pages in a few sentences, and the ending. duh I read it through to the end, because I was not going to give up, but I certainly feel I wasted time and money on a book I would not recommend to anyone. I didn't purchase this book of fiction to find clarity in my life, or to enhance my outlook of the world. I bought it for its entertainment value, a good story, a good plot and good characters. I don't feel I got any of that.