The Fourth Reich [Mass Market Paperback]

Robert Van Kampen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 11, 2000

Combining international intrigue and romance with close adherence to biblical prophecy, The Fourth Reich gives an intense, fast-paced, and dramatic portrayal of the end-times.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Dell (January 11, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 044023607X
• ISBN-13: 978-0440236078
• Product Dimensions: 4.3 x 1.2 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #341,143 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fourth Reich?, January 31, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fourth Reich (Mass Market Paperback)

I saw this title in an airport newsstand, and picked it up thinking it would be along the lines of a Tom Clancy or Dean Koontz novel. Unfortunately, the action and plot were not as well developed as I thought they could have been. The novel is more a summary of the authors belief/interpretation of biblical events, and comes across as far fetch.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Plain and Simple (Nonsense), January 8, 2000

By 

Gene Doty "Gino Peregrini" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fourth Reich (Mass Market Paperback)

Robert Van Kampen's novel, The Fourth Reich, fictionalizes his interpretation of biblical prophecy, especially the Revelation to John. Both in the novel and the afterword, he shows no awareness that there are other legitimate interpretations.

The best part of the novel is the characters. I came to care about Anatoly and Sony, and Yuri Kagan, too. In fact, Yuri, the apostate Jewish reporter for CNN, is maybe the most appealing character in the book.

The plot is most interesting in the first half or so, then it's all scripted from Van Kampen's woodenly literal interpretation of the Bible. The last 75-100 pages are mechanical, boring, and written in a lame poetic prose.

Otherwise, the style of the novel is appropriate, except for the author's tendency to explain too much. An example is his tendency to use tags like "ironically" or "warmly" to tell us how characters speak. But if what the characters say isn't ironic or warm, his telling us so won't convince us.

Guess What? Adolf Hitler (nee Schicklegruber) is the antichrist, thanks to cloning and the parole of his soul from Hell. Hitler makes a lousy villain.

Another weakness is the slick, easy conversion of the main characters "Yeshua."

Tell you what: You want a convincing presentation of supernatural good and evil, within a Christian context, read C. S. Lewis's That Hideous Strength. Lewis can write. Lewis presents the conversions of Mark and Jane Studdock very convincingly. He makes both good and evil awesome. Van Kampen makes good and evil trite.

After all this negativity, I must say I did read the whole book. I did find much of interest in it. But read Lewis first, please.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Are YOU prepared?, April 10, 2000

By 

Lisa Ebeling "laa-laa" (smalltown, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fourth Reich (Mass Market Paperback)

Van Kampen has woven a compelling, believable story which clearly lays out the Biblical prophecies regarding the end of the world. Even a reader with a limited familiarity with or understanding of the Bible will find "The Fourth Reich" an interesting and credible novel. The characters are people the reader can care about, most situations are plausible. A few loose threads are left hanging (Will Sonya and her brother Yacov reunite?, Is there no chance for Bulgakov's followers who doubt him--Anna, for example--to renounce him and be saved?, etc.) and some things are just a bit pat towards the end of the novel, but, in all, this is a book that you'll stay with until you've reached the end. As busy as I am, I read it in two days! Regardless of your personal religious convictions, it's worth your while to compare Van Kampen's predictions with your own understanding of Biblical prophecy. So much of the Book of Revelation is difficult to understand for the average person; Van Kampen spells things out quite clearly. "The Fourth Reich" helps sort things out. You'll want to read and learn more!