Randy Alcorn Reviews

Page One

Added May 12, 2007

Dominion

Author: Randy Alcorn
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Available At: Bookstores Everywhere
Publishing Date: May 2006
Genre: Fiction: Christian/Suspense/Thriller
Format: Trade Paperback
Price: $14.99
ISBN-10: 1-57673-661-X
ISBN-13: 1590525930
Reviewer: Phillip Tomasso III

As soon as I finished reading Randy Alcorn's, Deadline, I immediately dove into Dominion. These epic sized mysteries, though not sequels, revolve around central characters that overlap from one story into the next. If you've ever read any of Alcorn's non-fiction, then you are familiar with his succinct and powerful prose. If you've never read any of his fiction, and you enjoy a solid mystery...what could you possibly be waiting for?

Clarence Abernathy is an African American newspaper columnist who has a little slice of Heaven here on earth. He lives with his wife in the suburbs, enjoys his job, and loves his extended family...his sister and her kids.

As a single parent with twin five-year-old girls and a teenage son, Dani, Clarence's sister is enjoys her big brother's weekly visits. Unfortunately, she lives in heart of a rough neighborhood. Fearing she may be losing her son to the growing influence of street gangs, she begs her brother to step in as a male role model. What she dreams of is his moving out of the suburbs and back into the city, where he can serve a positive role not just for her son but for stray teens all over the city. Not alone in working on a plan to clean out the gangs, the drugs and the increase in violence, Councilman Norcoast...though he's white...has Dani's support in backing his yet-to-be-unveiled “new plan" that is going to ultimately achieve inner-city peace.

In the blink of an eye, Clarence's life is flipped upside down. An unforeseen tragedy strikes at the heart of the Abernathy family, leaving Clarance, his father Obadiah, Dani's son, and one daughter fighting to make sense of it all. Everything that was grounded is now falling apart, and their sanity is slipping away.

Working with police detective, Ollie Chandler, Clarence sets out for find those responsible for wreaking havoc on his family. Bringing the criminals to justice may not be good enough for Clarence. Revenge is on his heart. The inner struggle he wrestles with is as powerful as the war being waged on the city streets. Working against enemies surrounding him, Clarence has an nearly impossible task of vengeance at hand.

Like Deadline, Randy Alcorn's Dominion is a complete novel in the fullest sense of the word complete. Glimpses of Heaven, and angles and realistic views of life here on earth, stereotypes and prejudices fill the pages. His words provide vivid descriptions, draw realistic characters, and map out a mystery that is as thrilling as it is compelling. Next, I plan to sit back and read the third mystery in this line of mysteries. It's called, Deception. (Look for my upcoming review).

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Added May 12, 2007

Deadline

Author: Randy Alcorn
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Available At: Bookstores Everywhere
Publishing Date: May 2006
Genre: Fiction: Christian/Suspense
Format: Trade Paperback
Price: $14.99
ISBN-10: 1590525922
ISBN-13: 9781590525920
Reviewer: Phillip Tomasso III

Randy Alcorn is the bestselling author of numerous fiction and non-fiction titles. Though a huge fan of his non-fiction work, I was not sure what to expect from him as a fiction writer. After reading Deadline, I am stumped. I am not sure if I love his non-fiction, or fiction writing better. This is not a bad place to be as a reader, I've just doubled the amount of books I can look forward to reading!

Deadline starts with a coin toss, while introducing three best friends: Jake Woods, a popular journalist bent on writing columns that do not evenly portray truth as much as they work to infuriate what has been labeled "right-wing conservatives"; Gregory "Doc" Lowell, a hugely successful; and Finny Keels, the group's very own Bible-thumper.

On a ride to pick up pizza and beer during half time of a Sunday afternoon football game, the three are caught up in a severe car accident, so serious that it changes their lives forever.

Once back at work, Jake receives a simple letter that warns what had happened was not an accident. Afraid that he, or one of his friends was specifically targeted, he contacts a friend, Ollie, on the police force. Determining that a crime had been committed, they work different angles in an attempt to find answers to the mile-high list of questions.

The problem is, are those responsible done, or will more attempts at murder be made? Afraid for not only his own safety, but for the safety and well being of his ex-wife and daughter, Jake races to assemble pieces of the mysterious puzzle before him. And in the course of his investigation, he begins to realize truths about his friends that he never considered before. These truths scare him, because once faced with new realities it is harder to ignore what he now knows, compared to living blindly from that which he refused to know.

Deadline is an authentic eye-opener, a fast-paced and compelling tale about change, friendship and truth. Alcorn is clearly a master at developing characters that matter. He uses a perfect combination of setting, description, and dialogue to keep the reader glued to the pages. I have more Alcorn's fiction titles in my to-be-read pile, Dominion and Deception, and cannot wait to embark on another literary adventure!

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