Customer Reviews

The Trouble With Being God: A Philosophical Thriller

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The Trouble With Being God: A Philosophical Thriller

I won this book directly from the author and was instantly intrigued by the way he described this book. I had my doubts as I have been reading Koontz, King and Patterson for years as well as many more. I didn't think this book would even come close to the gore those guys can produce. Surprisingly I was very wrong. There is a very grisly nature to this book but don't let that fool you. Any book where the main character showers with a pound of defrosting ground beef at his feet is worth a read IMO.

The casual nature between the two main male characters was free and easy going and right on the money. Heck even the interactions with the female character were pretty darned accurate. I kept having to stop and ask myself "Is this really his first book?"

All and all from the cover art to the where the hell did that come from ending William Aicher really pulled it off in his first book and I very much look forward to reading this next one I suggest everybody who reads this to email him directly reminding him to sit down and write, He he,

Thank you Mr Aicher for sharing your wonderful work of art with us and I hope one day your wife will be able to get all the way through it.

Oh and the music selections to listen to along with reading is a new concept to me and here I thought there was nothing new under the sun. Go figure.

Great job I highly recommend this book to those that love thrillers that make you think and aren't afraid of getting a little dirty in the process.

~Amie~

A popular blog I read recommended this title and I picked it up. The sub text of the title "A Philosophical Thriller" is over-ambitious for anyone who enjoys philosophy. In fact, I may be so bold as to say that pretty much anyone who has spent any time reading, or even thinking about philosophy probably would find that to be an overstatement. I found that the "philosophical" part of this story to be unquantified Christianity bashing (which the religion may or may not deserve. My complaint is it being unquantified, not that it happens) and a vague, whiney stab at people who enjoy their own fame. The story really does come off as someone who watched the movie "Se7en" and said to themselves, "I've never written anything before, but this has inspired me to do so now,"

The main characters of the story have little depth, and little distinction in character from each other. The main character (not to ruin too much of the story for those of you who ignore my warning) eventually goes crazy, but the switch from "sanity" to "super crazy" feels like it's done over the course of a few pages, which I found confusing. A more progressed transition would have been much better instead of the sudden snap with no clearly defined reason as to why his psychosis manifested. I actually went back to before it seemed to appear to look and see if I missed something.

And, I'll draw your attention to it being "Volume 1", which means the story doesn't find resolution at the end of the book.

"The Trouble with Being God", by William F. Aicher, is a mixed media philosophical thriller. This book is divided into 5 parts, with each part being a day in the life of Steven Carvelle, journalist and alcoholic, Karen his girlfriend, and best friend and police detective, Miles. The book leads us into Steven's mind and deep thoughts while a serial killer preying on the small town of Courtsdale. Each of the killings has a religious motif, and Steven, as an crime reporter, is as close to an expert as the small town has.

William Aicher's life and professional career has revolved around music, so he has added suggested songs at various points in the book. For example, Day Two - Control has `Personal Jesus' by Depeche Mode, and at chapter 15, it is `Eyes Without a Face' by Billy Idol. But you don't need to go find these songs because the playlist and a song player are on the About the Music web page. I don't listen to music much so this was a treat getting introduced to new groups and their music.

Although the book says it's a philosophical thriller is a psychological thriller as well. Steven and Miles' conversations allow a philosophical debate, but the dreams, ramblings of the characters, and the killings bring the out the psychological horror aspect. We look into a mind slowing going insane, becoming devolved.

"The Trouble with Being God" starts out with a killing and ends with a killing. In my opinion, it starts out slow and builds up tension and speed. The ending is different. It is a lot like real life, where there is closure for some but not others. The music sets the tone for the different parts and brings added dimensions to what you read into the story. It was an interesting and different read.

Reviewed by Steve (hubby)

I really enjoyed reading this book. William keeps you engaged in the characters activites and does a great job of keeping you guessing as to what is coming next. You want to continue reading the book, eventhough you know good things are not going to happen, because he does such a great job of getting you attached to the characters right from the get-go. The ending is not what you expect, but he does make his point with it (which is what he intended!)

Bloody, sinister, and psychotic... The Trouble With Being God has a sense of tension and anticipation that grips you with each page. Nothing like a creepy psychopath that grosses you out when he licks blood and sweat off his victim's throat.... If you like graphic crime with a philisophical edge, this is definitely the book for you!

I'd just like to point out that this book is awful. I was laughing so hard I couldn't read. This is from the first paragraphs of the book:

"Steven tossed the magazine across the living room onto the end table at the foot of his worn leather couch, knocking over a few photographs of Karen, his longtime girlfriend, in the process. He could clean it up in the morning- he was much too tired to care at this hour.
Karen had left her copy of Cosmopolitan at his apartment once again. And, once again, Steven found himself reading it. He tossed the magazine when he realized he had upgraded from simple perusing to actually reading. He had much better things to do at this hour, like go to sleep. The old brown couch sounded like a great idea; the bed was all the way in the next room."

Okay- first of all, continuity errors. How could he toss the magazine across the living room if he is on the couch and tossing it (gasps!) to the end of the couch... where the... end... table... is. So wow.
Next- the word peruse means "to read or examine with great detail." So he had upgraded from simple reading with great detail to actually reading? Oh my god! NOOOOOOOOO.
And next- the horrible attempt at (humor? something), which was "he had much better things to do at this hour, like go to bed." That is a line that a sixth grader would write. In fact, this entire book (okay fine, the first five chapters, I would have popped a lung from laughter if I had continued) was written by something with a sixth grade reading and writing level. This is pronounced by the fact that the chapters are about four paragraphs long. It literally is like when a sixth grader sets out to write a book and if very proud and shows it to their parents and their parents are like, "oh honey- that's so wonderful!"
Oh yeah, and the philosophy is laughable as well.
"Still, a name doesn't make a person. Why should he care what someone calls him, he is still the same entity; the same living, breathing life force destined to endure existence until the day his number comes up."
That is awful. Hilarious, in that someone thinks that is somehow deep, but also awful.

Reading this book will make you lose faith in humanity.

I often listen to music while I read and this is the first time a writer took this into consideration. The song choices show Aicher's better-than-usual choice in music. Music helps set the tone on another level of what both the writer and the characters might be going through.

The Trouble With Being God delivers gore and evokes deep thought. This book is meant to ask questions, not to answer them. It is a mystery of the current condition of the media, our relationships with religion, those around us and with ourselves.

With all the seriousness, the book is written with a wit and realness that made me think . o O ( That could never happen. ) Through learning about the characters I began to re-examine my own assumptions about what my limits are and where my inner serial killer lies. ;)

I'm surprised this is his first novel and look forward to the next one.

It is a very interesting book. This book arrived like new as described. I was very pleased with this purchase and would definitely order again.

For me, this book was a completely new experience. I've never read a "psychological thriller" before, so really I have no comparative frame of reference. TTWBG was recommended to me by a friend, so I picked it up. Bottom line was, I enjoyed it. The musical "accompaniment" was really unique, but seemed to fit well with the situations at hand in the story. The characters were realistic and engaging, particularly that of Stephen, your typical hard drinking, small-market journalist. I actually wish the book would've been a little longer - there were some interesting themes and relationships I would've liked to see explored more deeply. Other than that though, an afternoon very well spent reading TTWBG.

"The Trouble With Being God" is exactly what a Philosophical Thriller is supposed to be. It will challenge your beliefs on all things religion with points of view those Hayseed religious folk tend ignore, or can't answer. The morale decisions Steven is faced with is something we all can learn from, everybody lives with a dark side and the way we control it is ultimately how we are defined. The serial killer in this novel is very creative with a very sick and twisted mind that will leave you breathless. Aicher is a rising author that will be mentioned with the best and this book is a must read.