Rating: 
Summary: Reviewers either love it or hate it.
Review: I read a review of this book in a local newspaper and was intrigued by the premise - cloning Jesus from the Shroud of Turin. From the reviews on Amazon it appears that readers gave it either a 5 star or a 1. I settled on a 4.This book is very interesting and a nice quick read. Probably some of the reviewers wanted to put a lot more into the story. Heck, its a novel, it's fantasy. Read in that light, I enjoyed it and found it well done. I did, however, feel that the first half of the book was better written than the last half and as it relates to Sam's character, I felt I was left hanging.
I also felt that the end kind of got bogged down and conjectured that I would have ended the story a little differently, all in all its a great summer read. Pay no attention to those critics. I can't understand why this book is not on the best sellor list. It's a heck of a lot better than some of the books that are selling like crazy.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting idea that is poorly executed
Review: Ms. Lankford believes in the reality of the shroud of Turin, and her account of the cloning of "Christ" -- the figure supposedly revealed on the shroud of Turin -- is an attempt to weave science with faith and create a compelling story. Several things conspire to make an interesting idea a boring read. First, the publisher of the work either cannot afford copy editors, or else has no one on staff that is familiar with basic English grammar. The book is filled with run-on sentences, sentences that can refer back to any one of a number of subjects, and unintentionally hilarious mistakes caused by sloppy writing. My personal favorite was the one where Ms.Lankford spends time describing the apartment in which the main character lives, and writes a sentence that requires reading several times in order to figure out that the floor tiles aren't doing the talking, a real character is. A compelling story can occasionally overcome inept writing and poor editing, but this isn't the case with The Jesus Thief. The characters could more accurately be called caricatures: one-dimensional slides that walk and talk in order to advance the plot. You'll forget them 5 minutes after you finish the book. I ended up doing quick page flips by the predictable end of the book. It was sort of like a train wreck - horrible, but one finds it difficult to look away. Heavy-handed writing, flat characters, a thinly-disguised attempt to argue the authenticity of a religious relic (that more discplined writers have done with far more respect for the truth), a dash of science. If you're stuck in an airport and don't have another thing to read, this might while away an hour. Don't spend more time than that, though.
Rating: 
Summary: Can you really clone Jesus?
Review: Imagine an obsessed doctor getting close enough to the Shroud of Turin to actually snip off a few threads without anyone knowing he's done it. Then imagine that man working with the DNA found on the bloody threads. Can the doctor find a woman who will be willing to lend him her body so he can reproduce Jesus Christ? Dr. Felix Rossi with his Harvard MD and PhD in microbiology manages to accomplish the impossible. His long time girlfriend is appalled when he approaches her as the carrier of the Second Coming of Christ but his African American maid, Maggie Johnson isn't. She guesses what he's up to and volunteers her body. She is proud to be the mother of the re-birth of the savior. The secrecy that Felix needs to pull off the re-birth of Christ is jeopardized when a London reporter hounds him. A mysterious but powerful man who occupies the penthouse in Felix's building also becomes involved in ferreting out the secret. The doorman, Sam Duffy, of Felix's upscale Fifth Avenue building, who is in love with Maggie but doesn't know it yet, is charged with preventing the world from discovering the secret before it is time. Realizing the dangers involved, he begs Maggie not to go through with this madness but Maggie, who is just as obsessed as Dr. Rossi, ignores his pleas and lets herself become the vessel. This book, filled with suspense, horror, the ethics of reproducing the dead and commentary on race as it applies to Jews, Blacks and what Jesus' ancestry was, is startling, astounding and informative. Because of the subject matter, it is frequently frightening also. I would recommend it for the strong of heart but if your faith is flaky, beware! Reviewed by Alice Holman
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers
Rating:
Summary: The world is power-hungry!
Review: When I read the first book of that girl I knew she was up to something. But this second book sure is SOME-thing. I am not impressed by the cloning of Jesus. Easy and technically possible. I am not even impressed by the belief the blood on the Shroud of Turin is Jesus's. Anyone can believe it. It does not matter anyway whether it is or not, at least in this book. Anyone, everyone is going to belive it. But I am impressed at the consequences of this act. And there J.R. Lankford is great. Great as for the describing of the feelings and pangs of faith the surrogate mother experiences. Great as for the feelings and pangs of scientific ethics the Doctor who performs the operation experiences. Great too are the three secondary characters : the doctor's paramour ; the doctor's sister and the surrogate mother's paramour. Great too the fact that the doctor and his sister, though raised as Catholics, are Jewish by their parents who escaped the holocaust and changed their religion afterwards. Good idea to make a catholically-educated Jew repair the accusation Jews have been the object of for twenty centuries. But she goes beyond all this and reaches the highest level of greatness by imagining the reactions of the prudent Catholic church, of the enthusiastic christian believers, and of the powerful and power-addicted politicians and machiavelian string-pullers in the wings. Those who have power today would react to the news of a new Jesus coming into the world in the most panicked and frightened way. This proves that those who killed the first Jesus were necessarily those who had power and those who have power today would not hesitate one second to kill any new Jesus. She thus reveals a dimension of human society that is generally overlooked : human society is in the hands of a few people who have total power over it and manipulate it to their sole and only interests. And any menace to that power causes the strongest and most violent reaction possible out of fear, the fear of losing their power. They are power-hungry for sure but for them power is an addictive drug and they cannot imagine themeselves cutting on their habit. In spite of the fact that the book is maybe too slow in its first half, when this power perspective is revealed the book becomes breathtaking. A new Jesus has to be hidden away from them, has to be declared dead, has to disappear into non-existence. That is a realistic conclusion. Beyond this we enter science-fiction. What will happen when this Jesus is of age and starts his trip into society to change it ? And, anyway, will he do it because his personality is only fifty percent genetic and is also fifty percent education ? The book stops on and with this question and we do not enter science-fiction. Let us imagine, according to our beliefs, what may happen twenty or twenty-five years later, and also, eventually what may happen during these twenty or twenty-five years. Will Jesus be a good student at school ? He was not exactly a good one in the Temple. Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Perpignan
Rating:
Summary: Catholics Will Be Disappointed in this Book
Review: On top of really bad science, this book is full of really bad Catholicism. The first tip off is the casual, off-the-wall mention of the Jesus Seminar, as if they were the new authority in the Church. I did not find Maggie at all believable. I didn't find anything in this book believable. Save your money!
Rating:
Summary: Do not put off reading this novel!
Review: I was contacted by J.R. Lankford after writing a scathing review of "Roses are Red" by Patterson. She suggested reading her first self-published novel "The Crowning Circle" which I loved. When her next novel "The Jesus Thief" came out, I ordered it immediately. For months I put off reading it because I was really not interested in the subject matter. When I heard there was a possible movie deal, I decided I had better get it read. To my surprise "The Jesus Thief" was right up there with my all time favorite suspense/mystery novels. I found myself reading faster and faster and long into the night. I loved this book! J.R. Lankford is now on my favorite author list and I anxiously await her next novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Novel with Promising Potential for a Sequel
Review: I'm not sure I how I should rate this book. But, I'm reviewing this by my reaction to what I've read in this book. I'm not sure to place this as a Christian-type fiction, or an adult-type fiction. But I do WARN you that there are adult type themes throughout this book. And the idea alone for cloning being a controversial subject. As a whole may have some Christians staying clear of this book. Or, it's how you may approach this. Simply it's just a fictious story. So use your own discretion. What got me to read it was my curiousity and my fascination of the Shroud of Turin.
J. R. Lankford's story 'The Jesus Thief' is a high tech undertaking of the attempt to clone Christ. It centers around Dr. Felix Rossi a wealthy microbiologist who has a burning questions that leads to the investigation of the Shroud of Turin. Does the burial shroud contain the blood of Jesus? If so, is the DNA still intact? He must secretly conceal his work inside his Upper East New York home. Away from everyone at all costs. Even with the appearances of a reporter gets him to move fast. He must find a modern day Mary without further hesitation. He finds Maggie. The adventure takes you from New York, Italy, Georgia to Irish pubs and Harlem Churches in a journalistic style as if you're reading from Dr. Frankenstein's diary. It has the suspense of a mystery novel and the cliff-hanging drama of a thriller. Amidst all the confusion is a touching love story of searching for redemption and purpose.
The author has done a brilliant job in writing this. As the author acknowledges her research with shroud.com and Barrie M. Schwortz in the end credits. Plus other medical and scientific contributions. The readers may find this a promising, well-done novel. I find it a good read that may be sequel material.
Rating:
Summary: What a great surprise!
Review: Wow! I learned about this book from an e-mail a few months ago which piqued my interest. However, I was admittedly a tad skeptical. I was concerned that someone could really mess up this concept making it too religious, too one-dimensional, too a lot of things.
Although I ordered the book a few months ago, I finally picked it off my shelf a couple of days ago . . . and couldn't put it down! Ms. Lankford has written a tight, fast-paced thriller which deals respectfully with multiple religions. While one must necessarily suspend some belief, her efforts to accurately discuss and interweave medical and religious issues was wonderful. The characters are well-defined and work together. I consider myself more spiritual than religious, but I can understand why some might see this concept as sacriligeous. But this is really a "non-denominational" book that explores an intriguing concept, assuming the Shroud of Turin is what it claims to be. I will look for more books by Ms. Lankford in the future.
Rating:
Summary: I Gave U 4 Stars 2 Motivate U 4 Another Great One
Review: I have always been of the mind that anything to do with Jesus Christ has been over-sold ----then came JR Lankford with the concept of cloning Jesus Christ. I couldn't see myself standing on the sidelines; I had to jump in the fray as this is the stuff I live for. And disappointed I was not.
The Jesus Thief is a great piece of fiction-craft from a gifted storyteller that boasts of a believable storyline, meticulous medical procedures, true science and great research. I would only be telling half-the story if I did not say that the prose is sweet too.
I am a huge fan of Dean Koontz. In Lankford, I see dialogue and characterizations that mirror Koontz's. That's no mean feat.
Keep writing, I'll keep reading.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't read it fast enough
Review: I found this novel to be so engrossing and extremely well researched. It's a very well written story. When it was finished I wanted a sequel! As am an author myself, I rarely find a novel that I think is this well done. Believable, realistic, entertaining, with twists & drama --belongs on the top of the best-seller list. Make it a must read--you'll enjoy every page.
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