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shelfreflectionofficial's Reviews (844)
This was Girl with the Dragon Tattoo meets the Matrix but in a boring way. It’s been awhile since I read the first two books in this series. But these were probably my least favorite Dekker books. I wouldn’t really call them thrillers like most of his other (amazing) books are. These are a little more abstract. For example, in this book Nyah inadvertently uncovers alarming ‘political’ data at a security firm, but instead of a high-paced thriller wrapped around this information the story centers around an abstract ‘hacking the brain’ experience which to me is way less exciting. I understand what Dekker’s purpose was in this series, but this type of story doesn’t really resonate with me. It’s not theologically complete. His book Slumber of Christianity was excellent. I think I prefer non-fiction books when trying to ‘reboot’ people’s complacency in their faith or reminding them about identity and purpose. When done in a book like this, to me, it comes off a little too out there and incomplete.
I would sum up this book with this quote from it: “We’re far more than just physical beings having a spiritual experience. We’re spiritual beings having a temporary physical experience.” If this intrigues you, this might be a great read for you. If detailed descriptions about flashes of light and darkness and feelings aren’t your cup of tea, try one of his other books.
Oh and one last remark: Using ‘I love you to the moon and back’ is almost an automatic star reduction. Can we not come up with something more original?? It does not endear me, it annoys me. You can spend a couple pages detailing passing from dark to light but to describe a deep love you copy and paste the most cliche example ever used? Not a great choice.
I would sum up this book with this quote from it: “We’re far more than just physical beings having a spiritual experience. We’re spiritual beings having a temporary physical experience.” If this intrigues you, this might be a great read for you. If detailed descriptions about flashes of light and darkness and feelings aren’t your cup of tea, try one of his other books.
Oh and one last remark: Using ‘I love you to the moon and back’ is almost an automatic star reduction. Can we not come up with something more original?? It does not endear me, it annoys me. You can spend a couple pages detailing passing from dark to light but to describe a deep love you copy and paste the most cliche example ever used? Not a great choice.
This was a long one, but I read it surprisingly fast even with all the legal proceedings. I didn't understand all the legal jargon but it doesn't detract from the plot and your ability to know what's happening. I enjoy a good legal thriller and this one had a very compelling story, especially with our current political climate. It gave me a lot to think about in regard to what circumstances are appropriate for litigation against our President with sensitivity to matters of national security. I wouldn't necessarily say there was a lot of character development, but that's not really what I was looking for in this book. I love how each of Singer's books tackles some sort of controversy or ethical conundrum. You're forced to think of the implications of each ruling. Another great Randy Singer novel- keep them coming!
I read this book because I received it as an Amazon Prime first-reads book. And it is not my kind of book. I typically don't mind the YA genre, but this book was just over the top. Literally almost every sentence was meant to be some sort of metaphor, symbolism, or profound dual meaning. I appreciate a good metaphor and a profound realization, but they just got tiresome and cliché and pretty unrealistic for the cast of characters. No offense high schoolers, I was one of you too, but I know that this portrayal for this age group is off- high schoolers don't think or talk that way, especially every time they open their mouths.
This story made me more curious about Rebekah Crane than her characters- I wonder what personal experiences she had with Christianity to cause her to write it into her book the way that she did. I don't know what encounters she had, but if what she wrote in the book is indicative of what she thinks being a Christian is, then I would love for her to see the truth. It was frustrating to me to read all of Esther's "complex math problems" and to experience Esther's clear confusion on truth and worth and purpose and to know that she would find all her answers in Scripture and in the truth of God's love. In Crane's defense, there are terrible things done and said under the guise of Christianity- because, well, people are sinful but those things are not what is taught in the Bible. The journey to 'her truth' that Crane decided to put Esther and her friends on is sad because it will not really lead them to truth or fulfillment but instead will keep them on an unending cycle of being let down by themselves or other people. I hope for more than that for people. I couldn't help but read the book juxtaposed with what I assume Crane's heart to be, and it was like watching what I imagine my 2 year old daughter trying to put together a 1000 piece puzzle would be. I just kept thinking "That's not gonna work... Nope... try again... terrible idea...that's not how it works... that sounds nice but you can't create a picture you don't have the pieces for."
Regardless of my differing opinion than the author on Christianity and truth, I still wouldn't have liked the book on the basis of the 'trying too hard' poetic writing style and the unrealistic portrayal, personalities, and 'maturity' of the high schoolers that made me want to roll my eyes. They're all so brilliant and profound but they still make really immature decisions. All in the name of love and happiness. Without any regard for the consequences or how it affects others. The latter is spot on, but the former is just a nice sentiment that makes for pretty words in an effort to make the reader believe fantasies are real. Not a book I relished reading.
This story made me more curious about Rebekah Crane than her characters- I wonder what personal experiences she had with Christianity to cause her to write it into her book the way that she did. I don't know what encounters she had, but if what she wrote in the book is indicative of what she thinks being a Christian is, then I would love for her to see the truth. It was frustrating to me to read all of Esther's "complex math problems" and to experience Esther's clear confusion on truth and worth and purpose and to know that she would find all her answers in Scripture and in the truth of God's love. In Crane's defense, there are terrible things done and said under the guise of Christianity- because, well, people are sinful but those things are not what is taught in the Bible. The journey to 'her truth' that Crane decided to put Esther and her friends on is sad because it will not really lead them to truth or fulfillment but instead will keep them on an unending cycle of being let down by themselves or other people. I hope for more than that for people. I couldn't help but read the book juxtaposed with what I assume Crane's heart to be, and it was like watching what I imagine my 2 year old daughter trying to put together a 1000 piece puzzle would be. I just kept thinking "That's not gonna work... Nope... try again... terrible idea...that's not how it works... that sounds nice but you can't create a picture you don't have the pieces for."
Regardless of my differing opinion than the author on Christianity and truth, I still wouldn't have liked the book on the basis of the 'trying too hard' poetic writing style and the unrealistic portrayal, personalities, and 'maturity' of the high schoolers that made me want to roll my eyes. They're all so brilliant and profound but they still make really immature decisions. All in the name of love and happiness. Without any regard for the consequences or how it affects others. The latter is spot on, but the former is just a nice sentiment that makes for pretty words in an effort to make the reader believe fantasies are real. Not a book I relished reading.
I wasn't sure if I would like this book or not. I don't relate to people obsessed with coffee and who call their friends 'Girlfriend', or who use the word 'women' when they mean 'woman' but I forged on and read the whole book. I would classify it as a 'fluffy' type of book, but it still held a lot of truth. It discussed fears I think we all have regularly: fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of the future, fear for our children, fear of not being enough, etc. Her goal in the book is to help you become aware of when you're allowing these fears to affect your life in unhealthy ways and offering ways to combat them. It was nothing earth-shattering or new for me, but they were still great reminders of being aware of how our fears are affecting our view of God, our interactions with our loved ones, or our view of self. We need to speak the truths she shares in her book to ourselves everyday and pray over them. We need to maintain an accurate view of who God is because trusting him is wrapped up in who we know him to be. I would say overall, there are probably deeper and more biblically rich books on fear out there, but this is a fast, easy to apply, accessible book on fears women face and might be just what you're looking for. And to the author's credit- I might not fully be able to relate to her, but she is at least funny and loves Reese's peanut butter cups, so maybe we can be friends...
This was an Amazon first-reads book. It was better than I expected. Sure, there was some predictability and it was a bit excessive on the 'Crikey!' usage, but the overall plot was interesting and there was one part of the ending that I didn't have figured out so that was a nice surprise. Not a lot of depth or complexity but it was one of those 'nice, easy read' type of books.
I was a little over halfway through this book and I thought I would be giving it a 2 star rating when I finally finished. The plot revolves around the main character, Cass, struggling with her short-term memory and forgetting things, experiencing paranoia due to the local murder discovered. It got to feel quite repetitive and I just kept thinking 'Where are they going with this...?' It seemed boring just reading Cass's day after day of all the things she forgot or worried about. But I pressed on and I'm glad I did. Without giving anything away, rest assured- the monotonous account of her forgetfulness has a purpose! The author wraps it fairly quickly at the end so it takes most of the book to get to the climax of the story. It was a good book and I liked the ending too.
My criticism would just be some annoyance at how Cass handled the situation. She endures a 'silent caller' she is sure is the murderer. I don't understand why she wouldn't have the calls traced or ask the police for her phone records- if it was that distressing to you, seems like you could have tried harder to get to the bottom of it, especially if you were convinced it was a murderer. I also felt like a lot of her reactions and thought processes were irrational, over the top, and sometimes straight up stupid. But I guess if you are truly experiencing dementia or paranoia, or think you are, that might be how you actually react. I just wanted her to make better choices and to take action differently- but I suppose we wouldn't have a novel then!
My criticism would just be some annoyance at how Cass handled the situation. She endures a 'silent caller' she is sure is the murderer. I don't understand why she wouldn't have the calls traced or ask the police for her phone records- if it was that distressing to you, seems like you could have tried harder to get to the bottom of it, especially if you were convinced it was a murderer. I also felt like a lot of her reactions and thought processes were irrational, over the top, and sometimes straight up stupid. But I guess if you are truly experiencing dementia or paranoia, or think you are, that might be how you actually react. I just wanted her to make better choices and to take action differently- but I suppose we wouldn't have a novel then!
Each chapter talked about a different aspect of humility and the author would relate it to a specific plant or gardening themed story. I'm not much for gardening so some of the connections weren't as meaningful as maybe they would be with those who garden. And some of the chapters I struggled with how the story related to the point she was trying to make. So overall, I give it 3 stars for a somewhat lack of cohesiveness in the writing, and lack of interest in her illustrations. That being said, I did glean a lot of insights on humility and agreed with the majority of her thoughts. Humility really does all boil down to having a proper view of who God is and who we are in relation to him. Regardless of your opinions on gardening, I would still give this book a try. Here are a few excerpts to give you an idea of what to expect.
One chapter I particularly liked was about humility in regard to our desires (fulfilled and unfulfilled):
"We can plan. We can build a trellis. We can plant beans. We can do all the right things. But we are not guaranteed a harvest simply because we worked hard and planned well. (James 4:13-16) Pride tells us that all we have to do is organize well enough, plan effectively enough, and work hard enough and we can achieve our dreams. Humility teaches us that it was never up to us in the first place."
"When we are denied the very things our hearts long for, we learn to long for the one thing that will never be denied us, God himself."
Another chapter I liked talked about humility in regard to our privilege, or the gifts and resources God has given to us:
"But in His wisdom, He’s crafted the world in such a way that you can’t [cultivate your gifts] apart from him. You will regularly have to take risks, you will regularly feel pressed past your abilities, you will regularly feel like the husk of your life is being broken open and your seeds scattered to the wind. But this is exactly how he means to teach you humility. This is exactly how he means to relieve you of your burden of guilt and self-reliance."
"…humility teaches us to ask, ‘What has God given, and what responsibility do I have because of it?’… Suddenly our sense of entitlement or guilt no longer drives our choices. Suddenly everything is a gift and everything has purpose."
One chapter I particularly liked was about humility in regard to our desires (fulfilled and unfulfilled):
"We can plan. We can build a trellis. We can plant beans. We can do all the right things. But we are not guaranteed a harvest simply because we worked hard and planned well. (James 4:13-16) Pride tells us that all we have to do is organize well enough, plan effectively enough, and work hard enough and we can achieve our dreams. Humility teaches us that it was never up to us in the first place."
"When we are denied the very things our hearts long for, we learn to long for the one thing that will never be denied us, God himself."
Another chapter I liked talked about humility in regard to our privilege, or the gifts and resources God has given to us:
"But in His wisdom, He’s crafted the world in such a way that you can’t [cultivate your gifts] apart from him. You will regularly have to take risks, you will regularly feel pressed past your abilities, you will regularly feel like the husk of your life is being broken open and your seeds scattered to the wind. But this is exactly how he means to teach you humility. This is exactly how he means to relieve you of your burden of guilt and self-reliance."
"…humility teaches us to ask, ‘What has God given, and what responsibility do I have because of it?’… Suddenly our sense of entitlement or guilt no longer drives our choices. Suddenly everything is a gift and everything has purpose."
Enjoyable read. I have to admit, I was a little worried about where the author was going to be taking Roman and Grace's relationship. It was starting to feel like Rivers' was making it seem like physical attraction trumps friendship and is the only necessary component to a successful marriage, that the rest can 'be figured out.' I mean, yes, you should be physically attracted to your future spouse, but if there is no friendship foundation, you don't have much. I get tired of books and movies where there is a clear 'better choice' for a mate and they always choose the 'bad guy/girl' that they just can't stop thinking about because they are so utterly hot. Like... can we be smart human beings and use our brains for change? So, anyway. Without giving too much away, I appreciated how Rivers' ended up handling that relationship and think she did a good job with it. The book is long- no page-turner- but a good drama/romance story that I still enjoyed and looked forward to picking up and reading everyday.
Oh. Beware of some Christian cheesiness. I like reading good, clean books but not particularly fond of some Christian literature because it just feels a little cheesy or unnatural. For example, no one says 'I have a thing for Jesus.' And don't (unless maybe you're over 60) have pictures of Jesus all over their house (Spoiler alert: no one knows what he looks like!) I am all about prayer, but there's just something about reading people praying to God in books that just feels unnatural. The angel and demon parts are a bit out there. Also, after helping with a youth group for 5 years, I can tell you that the event Grace attends with the youth pastor and the things that transpire and conversations had are a bit idealistic. So just a heads up. Don't let any of this keep you from reading the book, because it has a lot to offer, but just wanted to acknowledge that the 'Christian depiction' is a bit lacking.
Sidenote: Someone needs to update Francine on current parenting practices, ha! We don't warm up bottles in the microwave or let infants sleep in bed with us. Just sayin'. Be safe out there.
Oh. Beware of some Christian cheesiness. I like reading good, clean books but not particularly fond of some Christian literature because it just feels a little cheesy or unnatural. For example, no one says 'I have a thing for Jesus.' And don't (unless maybe you're over 60) have pictures of Jesus all over their house (Spoiler alert: no one knows what he looks like!) I am all about prayer, but there's just something about reading people praying to God in books that just feels unnatural. The angel and demon parts are a bit out there. Also, after helping with a youth group for 5 years, I can tell you that the event Grace attends with the youth pastor and the things that transpire and conversations had are a bit idealistic. So just a heads up. Don't let any of this keep you from reading the book, because it has a lot to offer, but just wanted to acknowledge that the 'Christian depiction' is a bit lacking.
Sidenote: Someone needs to update Francine on current parenting practices, ha! We don't warm up bottles in the microwave or let infants sleep in bed with us. Just sayin'. Be safe out there.
I am one of Ted Dekker’s biggest fans. I loved that this book connected to the world of the Circle Trilogy. It had a lot of the same flavor of those books tied with some of the style of the water walker books. It had some more abstract concepts and verbiage than the Circle series which I haven’t decided if I like that as much. I think it’s awesome how this story is explaining the Circle symbol through the 5 seals. It’s not what I expected it to be. I thought it would be more like the salvation bead bracelets that used to be popular. I’m looking forward to seeing what the last two seals are.
The main biblical concepts found in the book include: perfect love casts out fear, having a right view of who God is, seeing events and people the way God sees them and not through our sinful earthly filter, & knowing suffering and our earthly bodies are temporary and we are made for more than this- we are to die to our sin and live in the spirit and hope that God calls us to. This list is not exhaustive. Which is one thing I love about his books- it puts a tangible picture to explore things we think we ‘know’ already and challenges us to really own our faith and no what we believe and why it’s important.
Disclaimer: I wouldn’t read this book as a theology book, I’m not sure I quite agree with the exact words of everything he said and verses he used but at the very least I could appreciate the idea behind it and could see the point he was getting at so it wasn’t a big issue.
The main biblical concepts found in the book include: perfect love casts out fear, having a right view of who God is, seeing events and people the way God sees them and not through our sinful earthly filter, & knowing suffering and our earthly bodies are temporary and we are made for more than this- we are to die to our sin and live in the spirit and hope that God calls us to. This list is not exhaustive. Which is one thing I love about his books- it puts a tangible picture to explore things we think we ‘know’ already and challenges us to really own our faith and no what we believe and why it’s important.
Disclaimer: I wouldn’t read this book as a theology book, I’m not sure I quite agree with the exact words of everything he said and verses he used but at the very least I could appreciate the idea behind it and could see the point he was getting at so it wasn’t a big issue.
My review in one sentence: It was a complex unraveling of a compelling story while still preserving mystery until the very last page.
I read this book through Amazon Prime- so with no prior knowledge of the book or the author. I was very pleasantly surprised. It has somewhat the same premise as P.S. I Love You with the letters after death aspect, but this book had a lot more mystery and movement instead of focusing on the mushy, sentimentality of the letters as P.S. I Love You did. Natalie, Luke's deceased wife, refers to 'her secret' many times in the letters and Luke is left to figure out what it is and if his wife is really who he thought she was. I have to reference the book Truly, Madly, Guilty here because that book does something similar in constantly referring and discussing some unknown secret or event that happened and when I finally found out what it was, l was left quite unsatisfied with the result. I was worried the secret we found out in this book would make me think- 'Really, I read all of this for that?!' But where Truly, Madly, Guilty failed, When I'm Gone more than succeeded! It was a complex unraveling of a compelling story while still preserving mystery until the very last page. I thought it was just going to be a cryfest of a read for me, and I did feel sad while reading it on multiple occasions, but it wasn't the over-arching vibe of the book. It was more about discovering 'the secret' than 'saying goodbye'.
One more thing I need to add: Luke believes that when you’re dead, you’re dead, and that’s it. Nothing more. And his wife and kids want him to believe there is a heaven and that they will see each other again. This was heartbreaking to me. It’s a fictional story but something that plays out in real life all the time. And I want so badly for them (and everyone) to know that Heaven is very real. God is very real. And He wants a relationship with you. He wants you to want to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Where else can anyone find their hope? Dysfunction, disease, destruction, and death as exhibited on this broken earth are overwhelming, but there is very real HOPE! And I wish that would have been part of this story. I think the world needs a little more hope- the eternal kind that cannot be taken away. And that’s my extra two cents on this book.
Very good book, you won't regret reading it!
I read this book through Amazon Prime- so with no prior knowledge of the book or the author. I was very pleasantly surprised. It has somewhat the same premise as P.S. I Love You with the letters after death aspect, but this book had a lot more mystery and movement instead of focusing on the mushy, sentimentality of the letters as P.S. I Love You did. Natalie, Luke's deceased wife, refers to 'her secret' many times in the letters and Luke is left to figure out what it is and if his wife is really who he thought she was. I have to reference the book Truly, Madly, Guilty here because that book does something similar in constantly referring and discussing some unknown secret or event that happened and when I finally found out what it was, l was left quite unsatisfied with the result. I was worried the secret we found out in this book would make me think- 'Really, I read all of this for that?!' But where Truly, Madly, Guilty failed, When I'm Gone more than succeeded! It was a complex unraveling of a compelling story while still preserving mystery until the very last page. I thought it was just going to be a cryfest of a read for me, and I did feel sad while reading it on multiple occasions, but it wasn't the over-arching vibe of the book. It was more about discovering 'the secret' than 'saying goodbye'.
One more thing I need to add: Luke believes that when you’re dead, you’re dead, and that’s it. Nothing more. And his wife and kids want him to believe there is a heaven and that they will see each other again. This was heartbreaking to me. It’s a fictional story but something that plays out in real life all the time. And I want so badly for them (and everyone) to know that Heaven is very real. God is very real. And He wants a relationship with you. He wants you to want to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Where else can anyone find their hope? Dysfunction, disease, destruction, and death as exhibited on this broken earth are overwhelming, but there is very real HOPE! And I wish that would have been part of this story. I think the world needs a little more hope- the eternal kind that cannot be taken away. And that’s my extra two cents on this book.
Very good book, you won't regret reading it!