Customer Reviews

The Heir

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(17)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

Whew! I'm exhausted as I close The Heir. The Boyer family's trials and tribulations went from exhilaration and joy to despair and sadness--and finally hope that the right thing would be done.

Murder and money, power and politics, and family and the obligations that bring, all tie up this story in a neat bundle.

Not only is first-time author Paul Robertson a darn good storyteller, filing pages with intrigue and twists, he also does a good job of telling it. A dozen of his sentences were so powerful, so visual, so telling, I had to write them in my own journal to read again later.

The Boyer boys' mother died when they were 5 and 3, so Eric has no memory of her, and Jason's are sketchy. When their father soon remarried, the boys were off to boarding school and hardly knew their father.

Jason, 28, and brother Eric, 25, have been living off their fathers' monthly gifts. Jason has been married three years and wife Katie loves to spend money. Eric spends all he gets, and more, and is floating through life with no goals but a new car or bike.

Jason Boyer becomes a billionaire at the suspicious death of his father, power broker in both business and politics. However, Jason knows one thing: He does NOT want anything to do with his father's businesses--and is in shock to realize his responsibilities. After some deep thought, he decides to "do the right thing" and make some of his father's underhanded dealings public, regardless of who gets hurt. He has many advisors, but he doesn't know whom to trust--and neither do we as the clues send us astray. We are as ignorant as Jason is.

Murders are plentiful and all clues point to Jason as the murderer. Although this is considered a mystery, this is really a "study of people," and how they are changed, both bad and good, by money, greed, power and position.

Throughout the book, Jason keeps asking "Why am I here?" and at the end, he knows why--that God has enlisted him to do something his father couldn't.

Armchair Interviews says: The Heir is a powerful first novel of hope and redemption that follows murder and mayhem.

I managed to make it through to the end of this book...and I regret the effort. The main character was insipid, totally unsympathetic and bounced back and forth from being ridiculously vainglorious to almost complete personal meltdown with tiring repetition. His personal tribulations and self-analysis felt completely narcissistic and generated absolutely zero empathy for his character. I spent most of the book hoping he would just kill himself and put me out of his misery. The villain was recognizable from nearly the first moment he was introduced...and, yet, the main character spends nearly the entire book worshipping this obviously self-serving and manipulative person, whom he barely knows, while paranoidly suspecting every other character in the book (including his wife and brother) of murder and mayhem! The plot line was uninspired, predictable, plodding and boring. Each time I picked up this book, determined to struggle through a few more pages, I found myself in complete agreement with the phrase the main character repeats (ad nauseum) throughout this book: "Why am I here?"

As usual, the only thing that "christian fiction" seems to mean is "absolutely dreadful writing, with a brief mention of God once or twice." Throw in a half baked moral dilemma, and you have The Heir.

I couldn't tell you what was worse: The unbelievable characters -- seriously, not *ONE* character was even remotely likeable, especially not the protagonist -- or the dreadful, stilted writing style.

Thankfully, I picked it up as a free Kindle book, because if I had actually PAID for that monstrosity, I'd be pissed.

This book was not masterfully written but the concept was interesting and I found myself enjoying the book until the end. It really seemed to have a strong story to start but after the first three fourths of the book it went down hill. It felt as though the author was rushing the conclusion. Now granted a book can not go on for ever but I didn't get the feeling that the same effort was put into the end as the beginning.

I did like how the author tried to work in a little religion but I think it could have been suggested a little earlier in the book and not just in the last few pages.

so I had to give it a read. Actually quite a fun book - some unexpected things - not completely predictable. A little obvious in it's moralizing, but not in an overbearing way. Worth the time when you want to be entertained. Some good turns-of-phrase and characters you can care about, and the story clips along at a good pace.

What an impressive first novel! I was carried away by the well-paced story line and moral dilemma faced by the protagonist. The first-person story-telling with the spoken (and unspoken) sarcastic humor was a real treat, especially during the first half. I can't wait for Mr. Robertson's second book. (On a personal note, I enjoyed the fact that Mr. Robertson lives in Hokie territory -- Blacksburg, VA -- near where I grew up.)

The Heir by Paul Robertson is a new corporate/business suspense thriller from Bethany House. The story is told from the first-person point of view of Jason Boyer, the son of the extremely wealthy, powerful and corrupt Melvin Boyer. Jason was never close to his dad, and his mom was dead. Jason spent his life looking out for his care-free younger brother and growing an aversion to money, power and everything his dad stood for.

When father Melvin Boyer dies, Jason surprisingly inherits his dad's entire empire. Jason and wife Katie had been content to live out the rest of their lives on the stipend they received from his dad's trust. Now, Jason is thrust into the middle of everything he despised. At first, Jason wants to decline and give everything he way. However, with the family lawyer guiding him, Jason soon begins making decisions to keep the empire moving along. It isn't long before Jason is thrust into the evil inner-workings of his dad's businesses and Jason realizes how deep the corruption is. Jason then must decide how to extricate himself from the mess (if he even wants to) while keeping his family entact and escaping the clutches of a murderer on the loose.

The story moves along quickly as Jason must make decision after decision about the future of his dad's companies. Jason is a witty guy, and this humor sometimes distract from the fact that novel is treading into some dark places. The money and power that Jason has can truly change a man. Towards the end of this fast-paced thriller, you can only hope that Jason can escape from the depths that the money has taken him.

This is a great novel from author Paul Robertson that is set in the business world, but should appeal to all suspense lovers. Authors that don't usually give Christian fiction a try should definitely check this book out. You'll find the all the suspense and intrigue of mainstream fiction as well as a good message at the end. The religious message is subtle though, and shouldn't be a turn-off to anyone. This is a novel that goes into some dark places, yet does it realistically. The characters are strong, except for Jason's wife Katie. She seems money hungry only, and I think Jason knows that about her but hopes it isn't true. Another character we don't get to know is Melvin, Jason's dad. Melvin's shadow hangs over the entire novel, yet we hardly get to know his character, we just get to witness the evil empire he created.

In conclusion, The Heir is a powerful new novel in Christian fiction with a fresh, new voice. I recommend it to anyone.

"The Heir" is a suspense novel involving politics, business ethics, and a murder mystery. Jason's sarcastic humor lightened the angst of the novel as he tried to find a purpose for living and to do the right thing--even though he wasn't always sure what made a thing right.

All of the characters were likable or fascinating, though our view of them (through Jason's eyes) was rather shallow because he had shallow relationships with everyone. Jason was a cynical, sarcastic, searching character who gradually added some maturity to his complexity as he was forced to grow up.

The novel was very fast-paced, and I had a hard time putting it down. Since Jason usually acted in a way that made any situation worse (due to his temper), it was like watching a train wreck in slow motion while hoping that everyone survived the wreck. The ending was a bit sad though Jason did find answers to his questions.

There were a few, brief, generalized references to God (though none to Jesus), and there wasn't any preaching at the reader. There was no sex and no bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this novel as well-written, clean reading.

Reviewed by Debbie from Genre Reviews
(genrereviews. blogspot. com)

This book was written in a funny quirky kind of way. It was definitely written with a sense of humor. For the reviewers that found it repetitious in the "Why am I here?" Question, well,I kinda think that was the point...Duh. You can not take the quirkness too serious. It will take you on a journey of a man who has lived a lonely, although well off life, to an end where he truely finds his purpose in life. The story takes you into the world of money, power and politics. It weaves a web of deception at every turn. It was interesting, funny, and sad all at the same time. Money truely does have alot of power and how you choose to use it is the true question here. Will your life be a blessing to others or a curse. I would reccommend reading this book. FYI It is clean and doesn't have any curse words in it.

After losing his loathsome father in a car crash, Jason Boyer inherits the billion dollar empire his father leaves behind. At first, Jason wants no part of the inheritance. He knows what kind of man his father was, and he wants nothing to do with the shady business deals and politics his father was involved in. However, as Jason gets a small taste of the power that he now has, he is quickly drawn into a life he never wanted. As Jason is drawn in by the fame and riches, he begins a moral battle that is seemingly insurmountable. Can he use the power and influence at his disposal to right the wrongs his father committed, or he is destined to be a slave to money, power, and greed?

Paul Robertson's powerful debut is a modern cautionary tale that is both gripping and challenging. The story is told from Jason Boyer's point of view, and this gives the reader a small taste of the temptations and struggles that Jason battles. Robertson's writing is dark and somber, and Jason Boyer's character exudes cynicism. Indeed, this story is full of heartache, despair, and vengeance. However, these elements are used effectively to paint a clear picture of the darkness Jason finds himself in.

This may be the most spiritually challenging novel I've ever read, and there's no mention of Christianity in the novel. Rather, Robertson takes the powerful elements of riches and power and dangles them out there for us to bite. Then Robertson yanks the rug out from under us as he reminds us that all the money and power in the world can never satisfy, and in fact can destroy us. In the end, we are encouraged to look beyond ourselves and realize true contentment lies not in this world. (From Christian Library Journal)