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Summary: TCCT is THE BEST!!
Review: I stopped reading the Left Behind series after #4 (Soul Harvest). I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't. I also read (actually started reading) We All Fall Down, but there the foul language was SO EXCESSIVE I couldn't keep going. Finally I read the books of The Christ Clone Trilogy (why do I feel like Goldilocks here?) and they were "just right!" Actually they're GREAT! So if you're tired of Buck and Rayford playing James Bond, and all the females in the Left Behind world cooing, get The Christ Clone Trilogy.
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Summary: Most compelling series I have ever read
Review: This is one of the best series of books I have ever read...regardless of genre. You "live" these books as you read them, never being quite sure what did/will happen versus what *might* happen. It is all too believable. The author's talent of mixing historical fact and footnotes throughout the book require a constant reminder that you are reading a work of fiction. Five stars are just not enough.
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Summary: The next installment of mediocrity.
Review: After finishing the second book and seeing the reaction of some folks to my honest appraisal of the first book, I've decided to forgo any semblence of 'pulling punches', so to speak. Once again, I've come away with the same conclusion: great ideas, some really interesting twists and plot devices, almost no solid character development, and amateurish dialogue. If you read the first, you'll read the second and third. It's an addictive read, and you'll enjoy it, but it would've been written better by many other authors.
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Summary: Wonderful reading
Review: These are by far the best end times set of novels that I have read to date. A scenerio is set forth that relys upon scripture, politics and science. Clearly the author has spent a great deal of time researching scripture, as well as science. The result is a very beliveable story. Moreover, the character development is excellent. Each of the main characters is multi-dimentional, unlike the more popular end times series. Given that people are seldom all good or all bad, this adds greatly to the story. Be forewarned that there will be parts of novel #2 in particular that are difficult to read. Parts will appear to be anti-God, but keep in mind who is speaking as you read. I promise you that if you keep going, all will be put right.
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Summary: Slyness Continues Unabated
Review: I was really curious to see if Mr. BeauSeigneur could sustain his impressive beginning in this second installment of The Christ Clone Trilogy. Well, I'm happy to report that he's outdone himself. One remarkable achievement is the Promethean speech his puts in the mouth of Christopher Goodman, a central character, near the end of the book. Including a famous speech by Morgian in Arthur, the third book of Stephen Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle, and some of Satan's speeches in Paradise Lost, these are perhaps the most harrowing utterances to occur in the history of literature. If ever there were a need for caveat lector (let the reader beware), it is here. Not to worry, though; just another big fat red herring strewn in the unwary reader's path. BeauSeigneur has hit his stride with this book. My only complaint with the first one was that it seemed a little labored in places, perhaps due to the amount of set-up necessary to get his story rolling. Not so here. Things fairly zip along. It's been interesting to write each of these reviews without having finished the entire series. It's almost like sending bulletins from the front. I'm anxious to see how it all ends. And I'll be once again posting my reaction.
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Summary: The series is good but.......
Review: The second book in the Christ Clone Trilogy involves the coming to power of the anti-Christ and the disaters on earth that coincide with his coming. I question wether the information in the second insatllment could not have been included at either the end of book one or at the begining of book three thus saving the reader a few bucks. I find myself having trouble identifying and caring for the characters in this series as I did with the people in the Left Behind series. They seem shallow and hard to like even Decker who this series has centered around. This book was a good read but it never hooked me the way I expected based on other reviews here.
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Summary: I had almost given up
Review: I developed a taste for Christian fiction about six months ago when a friend loaned me his copy of We All Fall Down by Brian Caldwell. It really changed the way I looked at both God and at myself. I figured I had discovered a whole new genre of books to read, and began diving into some of the other Christian fiction out there. To my great disapointment, none of it was any good. Wooden characters, weak plot, poor dialouge, and no real inclination to really explore religous questions had almost killed off my enthusiasm. The Christ Clone Trilogy reignited it. I found these books to be every bit as compelling as We All Fall Down. they are diffirent. Caldwell's book is more emotional and personal whereas BeauSeigneur focuses more on the big picture. In a way, I found they complemented each other very well. Unlike most of the other books out there, BeauSeigneur can write like a pro. He's obviously given an enourmous amount of thought to the subject and it's a delight to read his musings. Each instalment to the trilogy ends on a cliffhanger so tense that I was angry at myself for not ordering all three books at once. It's a real shame that masterpieces like The Christ Clone Trilogy and We All Fall Down aren't more popular when shallow, poorly written books like Left behind sell in the millions.
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Summary: Grisly Revelations
Review: This is the second book in The Christ Clone Trilogy. I strongly urge you to read the first book, In His Image, before reading this review or this book. Mix one part science, add in Scriptures, toss in some fantastic as well as some lousy science fiction, bake in an overheated New Age oven, cool quickly with religious and science fiction speculation, and ice with prophesies. Voila! You have this most unusual book. The first half of this book has some of the most interesting science fiction that I have read in many years. On the other hand, you may find the characters to be underdeveloped, the emphasis on the horrible aspects of Revelations to be upsetting, the story to be blasphemous from the point of view of your religious beliefs, and the plot too disconnected from likely events to be credible. If I were only grading this novel for originality, I would suggest that it was worth more than five stars. Mr. BeauSeigneur has an amazing mind for integrating bits and pieces from disparate sources into original stories. The book opens with the final chapter of In His Image for the purposes of continuity. The story in this book revolves around the conflicts between those trying to birth a new age of human spiritual evolution and those who wish to retain the current state of affairs. The conflict plays itself out in scenes of horror beyond anything you have probably encountered. As in In His Image, the book ends in a cliffhanger that will keep you focused on reading the third part of the trilogy. Frankly, I have no idea what's coming next. After you make it this far, you'll be hooked on wanting to read the third book in the trilogy. The story is exceptionally fast-paced, cutting quickly from one action element in a story line to the next. I found myself sitting up late to finish it, turning pages rapidly in my urgency to find out what will happen next. As you are aware, I'm sure, having lots of action means giving up other things. In this case, having lots of characters and plot complications means that you do not spend much time with any characters but two. Only one of these seems to get decent development. Many are deliberately shrouded in mystery. Since I love character development, that made the plot less interesting for me. If you like action, it will make the plot more interesting for you. In fact, this book would be rated well above five stars by those who adore fast-moving plots. As I mentioned above, this book is the second in a series called "The Christ Clone Trilogy." From that title you can see that the story will probably parallel the life of Jesus in important ways, but there is far less of that than you might imagine. In fact, if the book had hewn closer to a Christian theme, I suspect that I would have enjoyed it more. On the other hand, by not doing so, this book is clearly more accessible and appealing to people of all faiths and beliefs. So it is very democratic in that way. There is a serious side to the book in that it realistically portrays the natural dangers to life on earth. Anyone who reads this book will end up thinking quite a lot about what needs to be done to make the world better able to protect itself from the most severe natural risks. That's a remarkably worthwhile lesson to get from an action novel. What can you do to help with the issues of making this a safer world for every one in it? Live with love and hope in your heart, and share them with all you meet!
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Summary: Another end times story - but is it a good book (Part Two)
Review: After reading the first of the Christ Clone Trilogy, I eagerly awaited the arrival of the second installment in this series,"Birth of an Age." The author carries over the action from the first book, picking up with the "resurrected" anti-Christ. This book repeats the last chapter of the first book. However, this seems unnecessary to me since you almost certainly have to have read Book One to make any sense of it. The first third of the book focuses upon one element of the tribulation, a series of events that causes catastrophic environmental damage. I believe the great level of detail here is uncharacteristic of the rest of the series and tends to drag the story on somewhat. However, the scientific detail does add to the story and makes you understand how the events in Revelation really can occur. By mid-story, the pace is quickened and, as a well crafted story, rivals any other section of an end-times book on today's market. The author spends much time bringing in elements of politics, science and religion into the story to make it not only believable but realistic and very possible. You left understanding how the world can fall into the trap of the anti-Christ. The story, told mostly from the perspective of the non-Christian / Jewish characters (including the anti-Christ and his New Age followers), you are found sympathizing with the evil characters' situations. (Then you remember who is on the side of Holiness.) However, this effect has you intrigued through the entire book with the story, events and characters. A few new characters are introduced, but the plot continues to revolve around the ever-more-complicated lives of those introduced in Book One. Like the first book, this installment contains some small amount of bad language. However, it is not unreasonable and will not offend you unless you are very, very sensitive to this sort of thing. So how does this compare to the Left Behind series? I think it is a better researched story, with characters that are just as good, and the story line moves along at a much better pace. You are also more likely to characterize this as a Christian-Action novel and not a personal novel that goes into way too much detail. (Really, three versus fourteen books. You get the idea.) This book ends rather abruptly, but you will have already ordered the third and final installment before you are done. It is that good of a story.
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Summary: A Smart & Creative Fictional Glimpse Into End Time Prophesy
Review: I have read the first two books of The Christ Clone Trilogy, not to mention the first two books of the way-too-drawn-out-by-their-marketing-department Left Behind Series. While I am not sure whether or not to spend the time finishing the Left Behind series (I suppose I might, though I can't say I would highly recommend it to anyone), I will though, without a doubt, be reading book three of The Christ Clone Trilogy (I already have it on order, in fact). Before I started reading the first book I was prepared to swallow something patronizing, prosaic, pedantic, and phlegmatic. It is, of course, none of these things. In fact, I became pleasantly surprised to find a fantastic cauldron of storytelling intrigue, bubbling over with all the complexities of science fiction and prophesy, wit and wisdom, creativity and intellect. I try to spend much of my spare time reading, which sometimes can feel like a chore, but this series has stirred up some excitement within me that I haven't experienced since Eco's "Foucault's Pendulum" or maybe Rand's "Atlas Shrugged". I've even found myself trying to read a few pages while driving on the way to work (a risky task which I would not recommend doing obviously). I'm surprised that a major publisher hasn't snatched this up yet! I never would have expected something this good from a Republican. (I've already been forgiven for that last remark). Anyway, I highly recommend all three books, which says a lot, since I'm only a hundred pages into the third one. Great stuff.
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