Destiny, Lightbringer and Dark Web by Declan Finn

 I just read three books in five days. I haven't done that in... 

Uhh...

Well, probably since before I got my driver's license, back in the early Nineties. I may have done it once since then, but I can't recall when it would have been. At any rate, this certainly isn't something that happens often. I don't really have that kind of time and I just can't, but this time I did. Don't ask me how it's possible. Also, don't ask me what's for dinner. I haven't got a clue. I haven't had time to cook. 

Of course, you'll want to know the names of the books. They are Destiny, Lightbringer and Dark Web, Books 9, 10 and 11 of the Saint Tommy, NYPD Series by Declan Finn. I'm pretty sure I've reviewed every one of the novels since Hell Spawn which, if you missed it, was Book 1. I've enjoyed them all, but these things just keep getting better. Tommy's network of allies and enemies keeps broadening. His characterization gets deeper. It almost feels like I could walk into the Nolan house and sit down for dinner with the family. Ya know, maybe Alex would be over and we'd have some spaghetti...

Yeah, these characters are that well drawn... err... written. Whatever. They're believable. 

So, I thought that since I was reviewing three books together, I'd give each a bit of space on it's own. They deserve it and so do my readers. So does the author for that matter. Even if he is a buttface. More on that in a bit.

Destiny

While I am one hundred percent certain that Tommy Nolan does not, under any circumstances, cave in to wrath, it seems that Declan Finn most certainly does. In this case, Finn got frustrated after the Italian government force him and his wife to pay an exorbitant fine while simulataneously having their travel plans cancelled because of an honest mistake. The Nolan family goes through basically the same thing and then...

It gets ugly.

Listen, I'm a history nerd with the degree to prove it. I've even got a couple of graduate credits in American History. I've always loved the history of both Ancient Rome and the Christian Church as well, but I never pursued those as a degree because I don't have the language skills. Seriously.

And what Finn does to some of the coolest historical architecture in Rome was kinda...

Well...

Were you a wrestling fan in the Nineties? Did you see the Undertaker/Mick Foley Hell in a Cell match? The one where Taker choke slammed Foley through the top of the cell into the thumbtacks? Do you remember running your fingers through your own hair, your eyes huge and your feet kicking? Do you remember the simultaneous feeling of "OH MY GOD THAT WAS SO COOL!!!!" mixed with "OH MY GOD THIS SUCKS!!!" with just a wee bit of "DID THAT REALLY JUST HAPPEN?!" Do you remember that feeling?

Yeah, I experienced that a few times with Destiny. Seriously, Hollywood needs to stop rebooting crap and make this into a movie. 

Err...

Just as long as I don't have to be the one to pay for the special effects.

So it's only fair to say that the action scenes were amazing. Saint Tommy with all of his charisms and quite a few allies up against the best that Hell has to send after him. It's amazing and believable. Tommy takes a beating a few times. When he's up against what he gets thrown at him, that makes sense. He even has to be reminded to take care of himself at times.

And that's one of the things I like about Tommy Nolan. He's strong physically, strong at heart, and strong spiritually but we're reminded that his very strength is also a great weakness. He tries to take too much on himself and not accept help. I wish this didn't make as much sense to me as it does, but at the end of the day it's horrifyingly realistic. 

Also, the physical effects of aging are pretty accurately portrayed as well. It seems that our St. Tommy isn't as young as he used to be. I get that. I'm forty-five and sometimes my recovery takes a while longer. Since St. Tommy is forty-five in Destiny as well, it makes sense that he would suffer some of the same probl...

Hey wait!

Finn just said I was getting too old for something! You're busted, buddy. That's a one-ten millionth of a point deduction for...

uhh...

Sumfin' 

Pretty sure it was sumfin'.

The rest of the family is on vacation with Tommy. This doesn't start out as a business trip. It's weird because I never thought I'd say this about a St. Tommy NYPD book, but there is a certain Scooby Doo element here. Not the stupid humor thing, because that would never work in a St. Tommy novel. But it does have kind of an air of "Look guys, we're on vacation! This is gonna be SOO fun!" that then turns into "Uh, oh."Seriously, this thing needs two "Zoiks" and a "Jinkies"before the action really gets going. Well either that, or maybe I'm just a nerd.

Okay, not really. What it really needed was for my dispatcher to shut up and stop sending me off to make money while I was trying to read. Seriously, don't become a cab driver. But if you ever do, don't start a good book on the first. Just don't do it. That's the busiest time of month and it can be hard to do your job when your body is in Michigan but your mind is in another country fighting demons. I would definitely recommend reading Destiny, but I would also try to find an open spot in my schedule if I were you. It's going to take up quite a bit of your time after all, because you're not going to want to put it down.

Bottom Line: 4.9999999 out of 5 Missed Fares

Destiny

Declan Finn

Tuscany Bay Books, 2022

Lightbringer

Okay, so this time we're back on our side of the Atlantic and there are no more priceless historical artifacts around to mercilessly slaughter. That's a good thing. I like my violence with a side of not destroying the ruins of an ancient society.  I mean, it's not like Ancient Rome wasn't a cesspit, but modern New York is not only a cesspit, it's one whose loony ideas I have to deal with on a regular basis. 

And once again, as much as Finn says he hates his hometown you can tell how much he loves his hometown by how well he writes it and Lightbringer is no different. Anne Rice may have had a bigger love affair with New Orleans than Finn has with New York, but it's a close run race. The city itself oozes off the pages. All of New York's features and all of its foibles can be found here. It really feels like Finn hates the local politics but loves the city for what it is when he's not dealing with politicians. I have an urban fantasy work in progress and a lot of the reason I put it in the Detroit area is so that I could do Detroit as well as Finn does New York. 

I really like Lightbringer because Tommy Nolan finally faces something he can't take head on. I mean that sincerely. I love the fact that Saint Tommy is, well, a saint, but really if you pulled the prayer and the emphasis on piety and good works as a spiritual concept out of the books, what you'd have left is a superhero. Don't misunderstand me. I love superheroes. I just think that Thomas Nolan has a little more to him than Captain America or Superman. I mean, spiritually powered lightsabers are awesome, but...

I mean...

You can't solve every problem by stabbing it, or blowing it up, sprinkling it with holy salt or..

You get the picture.

And, as a man of faith who has been through some things, I can tell you truly that while God does answer prayer, it's not always with the answer you want.

This time around the man who can bilocate, levitate, call on angels for backup and outshoot pretty much anything he faces goes up against something that none of that will work on. In a sense, a very real one, you could say that he's facing his worst fear. And it makes him seem much more human than he had before. 

Sometimes with heroes, and it doesn't matter whether we're talking Bruce Wayne or Chris Kyle, Hal Jordan or Saint Peter, it's easy to forget that these are human beings. You get so used to thinking about what they've done that you forget who they are. There are times during Lightbringer when we're reminded that one Thomas Nolan is a man, just like the rest of us. I've always found Finn's characterizations to be realistic but after reading this one, I feel closer to St. Tommy.

And it makes sense, because two of Nolan's kids are adults now, and they are hardcore. It does the heart good to see the babies all grown up following in their fathers footsteps, still seeing the old man on a regular basis, hanging out and doing some of the heavy lifting. The way they show their support for their daddy the best way they know how. And the youngest, not yet grown, is showing signs (I think) of being something special herself someday.

But don't let me get too sentimental on you. I guess I'm just getting soft in my old age. There is plenty of over the top action to keep you entertained. Things go boom. Things go pow. Things go bop, bang, zing.  There's a collision or two. Some special friends show up when needed. A hole appears that wasn't there before. And, well...

Listen, this isn't a spoiler. It's in the title. But the book lives up to its title. Either you get that or you don't. If you do you already knew what was going to happen. If you don't you have no clue what I'm talking about. I just know that I was prepared to get really upset if I didn't see something occur and it did. If you don't know what, go read the book. If you still don't get it, leave a comment and I'll try to explain it to you. Then again, if you don't get it, maybe Lightbringer isn't the only book you need to read.

Bottom Line: 5.0 out of 5 Soul Rings

Lightbringer

Declan Finn

Tuscany Bay Books, 2022

Dark Web

Holy Dichotomy, Batman! (Pun totally intended.) Dark Web is an awesome book but it shows one Lieutenant Nolan being torn in two directions. One is doing what he was born to do. Tommy fights evil like the champion that he is. But here again, he finds himself confronted with something he can't fight, and it's getting worse. I feel for the guy.

And it's weird because they always tell you not to meet your idols. The inference is that they won't live up to what you want them to be. Mr. Nolan finally comes up against a threat he has no defense against and it makes me like him more. There's nothing more humbling than watching someone go through something you can't help them with while wishing that you could. Tommy takes a metaphorical (and I think an actual) punch to the gut and it hurts.

I want to talk about this for a bit because it hit me pretty hard. Some authors do things better than others, right? Lots of people can write a book about friends and friendship but very few can do it like J.K. Rowling. Lots of authors write about battles in space but if anyone can do it better than David Weber I don't know who it is. Tom Kratman is the only human being on the planet who can write a training manual and make it entertaining. Declan Finn has always been the best writer I've read when it comes to combining spiritual matters with fun and action. I mean, who else can write a gun battle with a main character that prays the whole time and make it make sense? Finn is the only one I've seen.

What I never expected from a guy like Finn was for him to make me cry my own tears. I'm not that guy. Maybe as a kid I was, but I've been through some things since then. I got through a divorce without crying about losing my ex-wife. But Finn had me crying. I'm not going to tell you what happens, but once you figure it out for yourself, hold on. The part that really had me crying isn't quite here yet.

This is a big thing for me, because writing is art and art is all about evoking an emotional response. Sure, that might be excitement and aggression and with the Saint Tommy, NYPD Series it usually is. Tommy fights some really tough opponents and it's fun to watch him take them down a peg. That's why I like these books.

But I don't usually like things that make me cry. Crying comes from sadness and sadness sucks. I haven't shed tears of joy since...

Uhh...

I got a little choked up at my wedding I guess, but even then I didn't actually cry. There were no tears at either of my daughters' births...

It's just not me.

It is, therefore, a rare author that can make me cry and have me still enjoy their book. Finn managed to pull it off. Not to be that guy about it, but I didn't think he had it in him. His books are usually rollicking good fun, not the type of thing that would make me get all mushy. So kudos to one of my favorite authors for pulling off something I didn't believe possible.

And the thing is, this is NOT a tear-jerker. There is enough action in Dark Web to make a Rambo movie blush. It's almost non-stop. Finn brings out every monster he can think of. He leaves his hero weakened to face them in places. He pretty much (but not quite) drops a nuke from orbit. He brings back both old friends and old foes. Dark Web is the book where all of the things happen and nothing ever stops. Even when Tommy thinks things are boring, the rest of the crew would disagree.

Dark Web is the best St. Tommy, NYPD book yet and it's almost the last one as well. There's so much in here that I don't think I did it justice. Suffice it to say that I plan on re-reading this one soon. I went through Dark Web in one fell swoop on my day off because I couldn't stop reading it. I was so hooked into this one that I didn't want to do anything but rip through it as fast as I could. As a matter of fact, this one was so good, I think I give Finn a bonus one ten-millionth of a point to make up for the one I took away earlier.

Bottom Line: 5.0000001 out of 5 Shed Tears

Dark Web

Declan Finn

Tuscany Bay Books, 2022

And that's all three if you're keeping score at home. I'm a bit apprehensive about the next one. Blue Saint is the final book in the series and, if you know anything about the Catholic religion, you know there's no such thing as a living saint. We'll see how true that is on October Eleventh. I doubt Finn will make me cry two books straight though.

All three books are available at the links below. If you click a link and buy literally anything from Amazon, I get a small percentage at no additional cost to you.

Jon Del Arroz's Justified: Saga of the Nano Templar Book One

I recently had an interesting experience that made my face turn purple and made my head want to pop off: Someone (and I don't remember who) had posted something about fantasy authors in particular being unChristian. What really set me off was when I found out that one of the excoriated authors was C.S. Lewis. Why? Because EVERYTHING THE MAN WROTE WAS CHRISTIAN ALLEGORY!!! It kind of gets my goat, especially as a Christian who loves those books. That reminds me. I need to get copies for my eight year old.

Sorry.

I bring this up to underline this fact: Science Fiction and Fantasy have a long history of religious themes and that it works IF IT'S DONE WELL. Fortunately for Mr. Jon Del Arroz and those of us who consider themselves his fans, he's done a damn good job with Justified: Saga of the Nano Templar Book One. Seriously, I love this book.

Justified is the story of Drin, a Templar warrior serving the Elorian people. It has a lot of combat to be sure. That's good. It's Space Opera with a touch of Space Fantasy. If you like Star Wars and not Justified I don't know what to tell you. It's got that kind of epic scope and maybe even some similar weaponry.

Del Arroz himself has referred to Justified as Deus Vult in space (And no, Deus Vult is not a Nazi saying.) and it fits. This is definitely a Crusader style book set in a different segment of space where there are no humans. All of the characters are aliens, and he had to adapt the Gospel story to another setting but it works.

What works better, to my mind at least, is that Drin himself has a major crisis of faith. Sort of. Maybe it's less a crisis of his faith than it is a doubt that he's spreading it in the correct manner. When one spreads their faith through war and combat and the head of the religion (called Yezuah in the book) is a man of peace, it makes sense to take pause at the forcible seizure of real estate in the effort to convert the populace. I get it.

I also get the other characters in Justified and that's what makes the book work so well. A man of faith is a believable construct since they do exist in real life (on my better days I like to think I'm a good one) but not everyone is of God. That's not just a fact, it's a reality that must be dealt with on a regular basis. And not everyone in the book is a man of God. Most don't try to be. A few happen to be members of a competing religion. It's fairly obvious which one, too.

That's good though. Every epic saga needs a definable enemy and Del Arroz has picked an ancient foe of his religion.  The battle for souls is not a new one and it translates well over interstellar distances. Del Arroz has packed just enough history into his fanciful setting to make it work while still realizing that he's not writing history and he doesn't have to get all the details of the Siege of Wherever correct, because that's not what he's writing about.

The point I was trying to make before I so effectively derailed myself though is this: Drin loves to proselytize his religion. It's his calling. Not everyone he witnesses to believes at first. That's normal. It doesn't work that way in real life. In the end though, many do. That's also realistic. Christianity is the world's largest religion. It didn't get that way because people refused to convert.

The battles in Justified sometimes feel a little more Fantasy than they do Science Fiction. I think it has to do with Drin's use of a light sword and the enemy's use of battlemages. I really enjoyed that aspect of the story. Battlemages are potent opponents and present a massive threat. It's fun to watch Drin sweat when he knows there's one around. Suspense is a good thing.

Most of the combat takes place on the ground. I'm good with that. In any real world military campaign the most important actions always take place between armies. Fleets are good and aircraft can certainly turn the tide of a land battle, but at the end of the day if one wants to take a city, they'd better put some boots on the ground. Justified is no exception. On the other hand, Drin spends a bit of time on a massive starship and I wouldn't mind seeing a deep space slugfest at some point.  I mean, this IS Space Opera.

Del Arroz does a fine job of mixing the cultures in his book. Not only do we get a good look at the culture of the culture of the hated Sekarans, but also the Skree and a bit about a race known as the Deklyn. I love the fact that space isn't covered with a monoculture. There are actually serious differences between the groups and it's fairly easy to tell which species someone is a member of based on how they're acting. That makes sense. Culture is a thing.

The world building here is both good and somewhat limited. Drin is separated from his fellow Elorians in the first few chapters and we don't see much of them after that. We get a good look at Drin's personal dislike of the enemy and how he manages to gather some allies but what we don't see a lot of is him interacting in his native culture. This is the first book in the series, so it's not like we won't see more in the future and it's also not like there was a whole lot of opportunity for it but it still strikes me as a bit weird that the only culture we don't see a lot of is the one the main character is part of. Oh well. I guess I'll just have to buy the sequel.


Bottom Line: 4.75 out of 5 Nannites

Justified
Jon Del Arroz
Superversive Press, 2019

Justified is available for purchase at the following link:

Non SF/F Review: Rifqa Bary's Hiding in the Light: Why I Risked Everything to Leave Islam and Follow Jesus

(I wanted to leave a couple of quick warnings: 1.) This is a non-SF/F book. 2.) This will most likely be a post that is heavy on religion. You have been warned.)

Imagine a young girl who is accidentally blinded in one eye by her brother who threw her an airplane. Imagine a girl who was "sexually violated" by her uncle. Imagine an entire family forced to flee from Sri Lanka to New York because of the dishonor of these two acts. Imagine that same girl and the mental and physical abuse that came from within her own family. Imagine her suicidal feelings as she is told that she must put up with it. Imagine an intelligent young woman and her reaction when she realizes that she is expected to be a housewife against her wishes. Imagine her reaction when she is told that this is what Allah wants from her. This is the story of Rifqa Bary and her conversion from Islam to Christianity. It's the story of a girl who fled for her life to escape her vengeful father once he learned of her conversion. It is the story of someone I would love for my daughters to grow up and emulate. The story is Rifqa Bary's Hiding in the Light: Why I Risked Everything to Leave Islam and Follow Jesus and it is one of the best books I've ever read.

I decided to pick this book up after I saw a live interview with Rifqa Bary at church yesterday morning. The woman impressed me. It wasn't just her story, although that is amazing enough. This woman has a presence about her. She stood in front of that entire congregation and a couple of television cameras and kept her calm, even laughing at some points. She has earned it. She's been through a lot.

Bary's story is gripping. I went through about the first one hundred and forty pages in bed before I fell asleep after a long day. I haven't been captivated by a book like this in a long time. I couldn't put it down. Thank God I don't start my new job until Wednesday. I'd have been wondering about the book all day long at work if I'd had to go there. Instead, I woke up this morning and found my page (I wasn't kidding when I said I read until I fell asleep) and knocked the rest out in about an hour this morning. To say that I was impressed would be an understatement.

Hiding in the Light starts off in Sri Lanka in the bosom of a small family with a girl who feels loved and welcomed. It follows her gradual growth and change into a young woman who is no longer at peace with her life or her family. She finds herself questioning her Islamic faith and her family who no longer cares for her after she violates her honor. It shows her need for something deeper. She doesn't want to pray in a language that she doesn't understand.  She doesn't want to be forced to follow practices that she finds at odds with her life. The life required of her by her faith and her family are not fulfilling to her. She very clearly portrays her need to find something else as well as her confusion about what that could possibly be.

One day, a chance encounter at school changes her life. It leads to the awakening of faith in Christ as well as horror and fear. Rifqa knows that her family would never, could never, forgive her for abandoning the Muslim faith. It would be a stain on their honor that could never be removed. She finds her belief in Christianity deepening and her fear of discovery expanding. She takes to hiding books in her room and lying to her parents about where she goes when she leaves the house. She can't tell them she is going to church.

Bary's prose is clear and strong. Her story pushes ahead at just the right pace. You can feel her confusion and fear at points but she doesn't linger on them. You can feel her triumph at her eventual escape and the terror that goes along with it. I could not tell you how many books I've read by authors with writing careers that have lasted for longer than Bary has been alive. Very, very few of them can emote on a page the way she can. Through it all though, she comes off without sounding like a whiner. She keeps her focus on what happens next instead of the "Woe is me" factor.

No one should have to go through as much in an entire lifetime as Bary did in her first eighteen years of life. No one. Through it all though, she keeps her outlook hopeful and her faith in God. It is good that this is a biography because I'm not sure I could read a work of fiction that portrayed a character going through this much in such a short time.

Listening to her speak and reading her book not only left me amazed, it left me partially embarrassed. When Rifqa ran away from her parents' home and turned up several states away, it made national news. I had followed it at the time and then totally forgotten about it. I can't believe I had forgotten. This is a story that should never be forgotten. Rifqa Bary is an individual but she is far from the only person in a similar situation. We have to remember that and be ready to help these girls.

I meant it when I said that I hope my girls (I have three and no boys) grow up to be like Ms Bary. When they are/were little I make I ask(ed) them the following question: "What kind of person are you?" The answer I want, and I don't stop until I get it, is "Strong, proud smart and tough." My middle daughter added the word "Brave" to it. I can't help but think that Bary exemplifies all three and I plan to give this book to all of them to read once they're old enough. This one is a keeper.

Bottom Line: 5 out of 5 Baptismal Certificates

Hiding in the Light
Rifqa Bary
Waterborne Press, 2015

Hiding in the Light is available for purchase here:

Daniella Bova's Tears of Paradox

I should wait until tomorrow to write this review but I'm going to write it now to try to get some of this out of my system. Daniella Bova has managed, in her book Tears of Paradox to write what amounts to pretty much my worst nightmare. The book is entertaining, gripping and relentless. Bova reminds her audience of the need to protect our rights from our government. Tears of Paradox is the first in the series. I have not read the second one yet. I won't spoil the ending, except to say that it's a cliffhanger. I will say that this tome creeps me out worse than any horror flick I've ever seen and I've seen a metric crap-load of them.

Bova's work is the story of Jason Wallace and his girlfriend, eventually wife, Michelle. It follows them from when they first started dating and through their marriage. The two have their trials. They go through good times and bad times. They deal with issues with their extended family. They worship God the same way. They're there for each other when they need to be. And oh my Lord do they need to be. Not only do they have problems beyond what most married couples do in a very important part of their marriage (I won't spoil what) but they are dealing with the descent of the United States into a Marxist abyss. Things start out bad and get worse.

Bova does a phenomenal job of presenting every Conservatives fears in story form and making it entertaining. We see the loss of personal liberty, the persecution of Christians, the slide into moral decadence and the loss of freedom. She details the fall of the Second Amendment and the rise of "doctors" who quite frankly don't give a rat's ass about what happens to their patients as long as the paperwork is right. The effects of Marxist polices on everything from health care to the economy are exposed and found wanting. Every Rightist who knows a Leftist that has been asked what we're afraid of needs to buy them this book. Every Leftist who would ask the question needs to read this book. Note that Bova doesn't do much with race. That makes sense. Race is not a primary concern for the Right in this country and she did well to leave it out.

There is a strong Catholic theme to this book. It reminds me that I never finished my RCIA and I need to get off my duff and do it, but it's more than that. Bova does an excellent job of portraying Catholics and, by association, Christians in a totally different light than a typical Leftist would. Her Christians are good people with a belief system that they draw strength from. Unlike a lot of authors in the hear and now, Bova portrays her Christians as  warm, loving, caring people who know they're not perfect and simply strive to be the best they can be. They don't agree with much of what's going on around them but they have their reasons and they don't back down. It's not about hatred. It's about their beliefs and a lack of willingness to violate them simply because someone else disagrees with their stance.

Having said that much, you can consider this your trigger warning. If you find a realistic portrayal of religious people offensive you're better off reading something else. If you tend to be the whiny type, unable to read something you disagree with or to be tolerant of someone who disagrees with your point of view maybe you should try something else. I hear there are good vegan cookbooks out there. That's not offensive to you, right?  Have fun with those.

The author's portrayal of the media as a bunch of Leftist propagandists spouting approved doctrine hits home with me. With a few exceptions, it fits the real-world media to a "T". While outlets like Fox News hold the line to a certain point, even most hometown news that I'm aware (and certainly here in Detroit) has a strong Leftist slant to it.

Bova seems to have a good sense of the history of Socialism and the existence of informers. In any truly Leftist society they will be everywhere. Family members, co-workers, it's all been documented, especially with opening of the East Germany archives. Bova impresses me with her ability to make everything uncomfortable. The characters in this book know that someone out there is willing to inform on them. Whether it's the doctor, a co-worker at the pharmacy or the idiot nephew they know where the threats are.

As much as I'd like to say otherwise, this book is not perfectly crafted. Even for someone who agrees with the politics of the book, it comes across as a bit on the heavy-handed side. Message oozes from this book like lava boiling out of the top of a volcano. I mean, I get the fact that this is a political book and I agree with its moral but I do wonder if perhaps a bit more subtlety would not be in order. The characters in Tears are not politicians by any stretch of the imagination but they do talks politics a lot. They agonize about politics regularly. It affects everything they do. It's not that it's an inaccurate portrayal. It's more the ham-fisted approach to making her point that is the problem.

This is also certainly not a book for the faint of heart regardless of religious and/or political persuasion. There is a lot of loss in this book. There is one scene that is bloody to the point of being slightly nauseating. (It needs to be but that's not the point I'm making here.) This thing has the potential of giving me nightmares. It starts about five minutes from now and that is part of the problem. Even with something like The Hunger Games you can kind of blow it off as being nightmarish but ultimately unrealistic. Tears of Paradox is too realistic to be simply shrugged at. Bova brings us face to face with something that could really happen. Indeed, her scenario is one that could already be in motion. It's enough to make you nervous.

That much being said this is still a good book. Bova ends her work with an afterword about why she wrote the book but I don't think it's really necessary. It exists, it reads well and it makes a definite point. I will read this again and I plan on acquiring the second book in the series, The Notice in the near future. I like to think and Bova has my brain working.

Bottom Line: 4.25 out of 5 Rolls of Toilet Paper (read the book, you'll get it)

Tears of Paradox
Daniella Bova
Self Published, 2014

Tears of Paradox can be purchased here: