Customer Reviews

Ezekiel's Shadow

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you're looking for Christian fiction that delivers a message without preaching, you'll love "Ezekiel's Shadow."

David Ryan Long subtly builds the suspense, while bringing us deeper into the tortured world of horror novelist, Ian Merchant. Merchant, though, has had a change of heart: he wants to follow God. This presents a problem as he begins working on his newest novel, with a deadline hanging over his head. And that's not all that's hanging over his head! Merchant begins receiving disturbing messages that indicate his past is coming back to haunt him. He ends up keeping an eye out vigilantly for this mysterious intruder.

David Ryan Long draws us into his character's world, and we relate to his struggle for something deeper in his walk with God. Despite Merchant's decision to turn to a new life, it doesn't all come easy for him--and that makes it seem real. Though Merchant's marriage might come across exceptionally peaceful to many readers, and his lack of courage to face his stalker head-on might seem a bit pansy-ish (at least it did to me, once or twice), I related to him and related to the steps he took to find answers. The ending seemed a bit rushed to me and didn't totally pay out on the suspense that seemed to be building, but the pieces all fit satisfactorily.

I will rush to store when Long's next book comes out. This is one author I'll be keeping an eye out for.

This book starts out STRONG! Very few books catch you from the prologue, but this one does. Unfortunately, it starts to slow down in the middle and the ending is unsatisfying. Basically, it seems like Mr. Long just got tired of writing the book and decided to end it. The payoff you're waiting for (and I won't go into it here because I don't want to spoil the ending for you) never occurs. It all just suddently wraps itself up neat and tidy - game over. While this could be excused for a short story, a huge novel like this deserves more. I have to admit that the character development of Ian and his wife are realistic, and I loved the way things turned out for them at the end. The picnic director/planner was another great character, but he was only in a few pages. If you're looking for a great suspense novel, there are certainly many suspenseful pages in here - but don't look for a satisfactory payoff on all of it. If you're looking for a good story about a man's wrestling with his faith in view of his old life, you've found it here. I mean, think about it: if Stephen King became a Christian, what would he do about his writing? Definitely worth a read for that aspect of it alone.

Ezekiel's Shadow is a good book written by a new writer. Several characters in the novel are really compelling. Ian Merchant's character could have a bit more pesonality, otherwise I would have given the book 5 stars. The desert diaries were particularly engrossing and the train conductor, although a minor character was fleshed out beautifully.

I was so impressed with the way Long has portrayed real people struggling with real spirituality. The main character's spiritual journey includes past regrets, present failures and future fears. The suspenseful undertone of the man's past literally coming back to haunt him is mastefully woven into the very real crisis of the character confronting a rare spiritual awakening. Looking forward to future endeavors from this author!

This debut novel reads well and captures the feelings of those of us often have doubts about our lives and what is really of value. I liked the questions that Ian faced and his way of facing them.

Imagine you are Stephen King. Any horrific novel you write becomes an instant bestseller. Every horrific thing you write earns you more and more attention. Now imagine, as Stephen King, you undergo a life altering experience. The sick, scary stories are no longer inside of you. You think, for lack of a better description, that you are suffering from writer's block. The page stays blank. You fear you've lost the ability to write. Could something like that ever happen?



It happens to Ian Merchant in David Ryan Long's Christy Award winning novel, Ezekiel's Shadow. Merchant is a best selling horror novelist who finds salvation through Christianity. It is not that he suffers from writer's block, as much as he no longer believes the desolate and deranged notions he once believed, and so he can no longer write about them. Not with passion.



If not for his amazing wife, Rebecca, this new chapter in the fictional author's life would leave the main character alone to struggle trying to figure out what he's supposed to do with this newly changed life. But the heat is on. His long time friend and editor is anxious to read the next Merchant manuscript, especially since sales have been down and a new book would re-spark reader interest and generate some revenue. To make matters worse, someone is stalking the famous author, forcing him to suffer for past sins ...



But this novel is about far more than the horrors of being stalked by an unknown assailant (and hounded by an eager, anxious editor). David Ryan Long writes the terrifying tale of how lost people can be without knowing they are lost at all. He scares his readers with a story that is riddled with His truth, and ways. Good vs. Evil. Man vs. Himself. Man vs. Man. Man vs. Nature. Betrayal. It's all in here.



The characters are so well defined that you don't want the story to end. You care about Ian and Rebecca and their dog, Cain. You care about what happens in their lives, and in the lives of the other characters involved in the tale. Long writes about friendships and love. He writes about restoring faith in a humanity many have given up on. And he does so, not by preaching, but by using powerful, eloquent and gripping prose. Ezekiel's Shadow is the kind of engrossing novel that a reader savors page by page. Next? I look forward to absorbed in David Ryan Long's, Quinlin's Run.

--Phillip Tomasso III, author of Johnny Blade & Third Ring

Ian Merchant's built a successful career writing horror novels. But after a spiritual transformation, he's haunted by two questions:

"How will I ever write another horror novel? Who am I if I can't write anymore?"

Throughout his journey of self-discovery, Ian begins to see everything and everyone in his life differently. And sometimes he doesn't like what he sees.

But as much as he tries, he can't escape his past. Especially since a stalker has emerged, seemingly from the pages of his own books.

Mysterious notes appear as Ian continues his daily struggle with his inner self. Only as the danger increases does he realize the severity of the situation.

His family's threatened, his career's in question and betrayal's beating a perilous path to his front door. The stalker's antics escalate and Ian finds his safety and the ones around him are in extreme jeopardy.

David Ryan Long's written a novel both writers and readers will enjoy. His character's challenges with creativity are easy to identify with, while his suspenseful plot will keep you guessing. "Ezekiel's Shadow" is Long's debut novel.

David Ryan Long is a much-deserved winner of the 2002 New Author Christy Award for his excellent first work, Ezekiel's Shadow. I picked it up at my favorite local bookstore and couldn't put it down. A thought provoking, intense thriller that displays the skill and poise of a seasoned novelist beyond Ryan's years.

Looking forward to his next work with impatient anticipation!

I've been looking for good suspenseful Christian fiction to devour recently, having completed Joel Rosenburg's thrillers, and many Whitlow and Peretti books. I usually jump into a book, and before long, am unable to put it down - most last 2-5 days before I complete them. When I picked up this book, it looked quite interesting, so I decided to read it. While on vacation, I read 100 pages (over a couple of weeks), and never had any difficulty putting it down, except finding a logical stopping point. I had more difficulty getting myself to pick it up and read it. There was nothing to "hook" me. Finally, I decided to cut my losses at 100 pages and find another book.

When I found out that this book won the Christy Award, I couldn't wait to read it. What a disappointment! There was so much symbolism that it was a hard book to read. It started off sloooow and didn't pick up pace as the book went on. For days on end I didn't pick up the book, and I didn't miss it.