I'm not posting the lyrics to "Auld Lang Syne"...

Watch this space. At the beginning of 2008, I'll post some information on upcoming books and movies of the year. Celebrate New Year's as happily (or drowzily) as you like.

"The Circle Trilogy" review

Yadda yadda. You know the shpeel. Ted Dekker's done it again! Kept me riveted from the first page to the last! What a great writer! Yeah, same old, same old. Anyway, Merry Christmas. Here's my cumulative review of Black, Red, and White, the three volumes of the Circle Trilogy and the beginning of the Books of History Chronicles, which, at the time of my writing, spans no less than six books.

Black: The story begins as Thomas Hunter exits a coffee shop in Denver to discover he is being shot at. He is wounded and soon falls asleep... only to awaken in another world. This is Earth's future, where a plague has ravaged and eliminated most of the planet's population. The survivors live in a colored forest alongside white fuzzy bats known as the Roush. It is peaceful, and the humans are all under the great Elyon's protection. But across the river is the Black Forest, where the Deciever, Teeleh, lives. None from the Colored Forest can eat Teeleh's fruit or drink his water, or else they will die and the Colored Forest will be destroyed. One day, though, a man from the Colored Forest crosses over, and evil begins to creep back into the world...

Meanwhile, on present-day Earth, a man named Valborg Svensson plots to kill millions, if not billions, with the Raison Strain, a mutation of what was thought to be a helpful vaccine. It leaves its victims dead in three weeks...

Thomas Hunter discovers that anytime he is asleep, he travels from one world to the other. It seems only he has the ability to save both worlds...

Red: Fifteen years have passed in the Other Earth, though only a night has passed in the here and now. Thomas Hunter is the leader of the Forest Guard, who protect what is left of their home, from the attacks of the Horde. The Horde are those whom Teeleh decieved, who did not drink of Elyon's cleansing water, and they have sworn to destroy the Forest Guard. And there is a traitor in Thomas's midst...

On the Earth of today, the Raison Strain has been released. The clock is ticking...

White: It has all led to this. Thomas Hunter and his newly born sect, the Circle, have vowed to show the Other Earth Elyon's love, even if it means their deaths. And it very well may. Qurong, the leader of the Horde, has a plan to overthrow the Circle, and Teeleh is pulling the strings. It is this moment the Circle has been waiting for. It is this moment in which the fate of the world may be decided...

On present-day Earth, a possible cure to the Raison Strain has been found. But it might require the ultimate sacrifice...

I'll admit, I was skeptical. I mean, this sort of thing doesn't normally work. But Dekker's writing had me hook, line, and sinker from the beginning, and he kept raising the stakes until it became almost unbearable... the mark of a truly good writer. There is not enough praise I can give for this series. So I'll just say two words:

Dive Deep.

"THR3E" and "House" reviews

Ted Dekker is known to be the master of Christian suspense. His books, some of which have been made into movies, are bestsellers, and they combine Christian themes with nail-biting adrenaline rushes. This is one of his books.

What would you do if you got a phone call from a man while you were driving down the road? What if that man told you to confess a sin you didn't know you'd committed? What if he told you the car you were in would explode in a few minutes? Of course, you'd be curious. You'd probably pull over to the side of the road and step out of your car for a while, just to be sure.

What if the car really did explode?

Such is the starting point for THR3E, a thriller that will keep you guessing until the last page. Filled with an unusual perspective on goor and evil, a twisting plot, and solid characters, this book is a must-read that will keep you up at night.

House's plot is as simple as the title. Four people get stranded in a house with no way out, no way to alert the authorities. A man named Barsidious White tosses in a can with the house rules. #1-- God came to this house and I killed him. #2-- I will kill anyone who comes into my house like I killed God. #3-- Give me one dead body and I might let Rule #2 slide. You have until dawn.

This book is a collaboration between Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker, which is sort of a big deal. And I'd say it's worth the hype. The story takes place all during one night, which gives the feeling that time is running out with the pages. The characters all have radically different personalities, and it's always interesting to see them bounce off each other in a situation of full panic. Finally, in the end, decisions are made that show each character's true worth.

Enjoy.

First Sentence?

"The man was wearing glasses, so he could see his death clearly."

So, is it an interesting way to start a book?

"Phantom of the Opera" review

Every once in a while, a new movie is made that leaves a lasting impact. Every once in a while, there is a really good musical out in theatres. Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera, directed by Joel Schumacher, fulfills both these criteria.

The film is a romance-- a love triangle, a swashbuckling action film, a musical whose songs soar to new heights of the imagination, and a thriller all rolled into one package. And it doesn't disappoint. The sets are lavish, the costumes are lavish, the singing is lavish, and it can't get much better than this.

There are many out there who have seen the stage musical in countries all around the world, and the plot isn't exactly a secret: a Phantom (Gerard Butler) lurks inside a Parisian opera house, where he finds a girl named Christine Daae (Emily Rossum) with great singing talents. He soon falls in love with her, becomes obsessed with her, and takes her down to his layer. He seduces her, sends her back, and pulls some strings at the theatre to ensure she gets the lead. About this time Christine's childhood sweetheart, Raoul (Patrick Wilson), appears and falls in love with Christine again. The Phantom turns murderous, and both he and Raoul begin vying for Ms. Daae's affections.

The acting is pitch perfect. Gerard Butler establishes firmly an inner torment that balances sympathy and fear in our minds. Patrick Wilson is not too good-looking to be real, and his singing is bewitching. But Emily Rossum's performance is truly the one that makes the heart soar, her vocals masterfully beautiful in every scene, and she steals the show, almost, from the Phantom himself.

The songs are as wonderful as ever. "Music of the Night" is lush and floating, "Point of No Return" is tense and gripping, "All I Ask of You" is sweet, lifting, and romantic, and the title tune is sung to an extent seldom matched in a musical.

The movie's on DVD now, and everyone should surrender to its darkly cast spell.

"Isle of Swords" review

Wayne Thomas Batson unleashed his first non-Door Within book upon an unsuspecting populace this September. It's a move away from his original style of fantasy. It's Isle of Swords. It's about those OTHER pirates of the Caribbean, and it's Batson's best yet.

The book opens with Captain Declan Ross, an honest pirate. He doesn't hurt those he steals from, he's got a system of honor, and his crew looks up to him. His daughter wishes to be an official crew member, but he won't have it. Trouble is, they're low on loot, and there's a leak in his ship that will cause it to sink... in a week.

So they go to an island, where they find a boy, brutally injured, with no clue of who he is. Declan Ross and his men take him aboard, where they name him Cat. Eventually, they sail to an island with some monks who know the secret of a treasure. The treasure is located on the Isle of Swords, which is, of course, not on any written maps.

But there's a catch: Bartholomew Thorne, the most ruthless pirate on the sea, is after the treasure too.

This book is perhaps the grittiest and most intense of Batson's work, and in my opinion better than the Disney movies. They're a departure from the traditional Hollywood pirates, and more real and compelling as a result.

Hey, it beats the Disney ride, too.

"The Final Storm" review

It's hard to look back and see who Aidan Thomas was not long ago: a boy distraught about moving, overweight, unhappy. Now, he is one of those few who have been called to save Alleble, and the Realm, from the forces of Paragor. Antoinette Reed was a normal girl who lived a normal life, not quite fitting in. She too, is in the Realm-- now trapped by Robby Pierson's Glimpse-twin, Kearn at the Gate of Despair. Robby himself was a sports star, the ultimate "cool kid". Now, his future is in doubt.

It's time for the final storm.

Paragor has unleashed the legendary Wyrm Lord upon the Realm, whose fires are deadly in the extreme. Other forces are at his command as well, and Alleble and its allied kingdoms are suffering crushing blows. The future is uncertain, to say the least. It seems Paragor even has a prophecy that predicts Alleble's downfall. And yet, the war goes on. When it seems there is no hope left, Paragory and Alleble prepare for the last battle, which will leave an impact on the Realm forever.

This is the greatest and most emotional of the Door Within Trilogy. The characters do what the characters would do. The danger is more intense than ever. There are moments to make the reader cheer, and moments to make them cry, all executed pitch-perfect by Wayne Thomas Batson. You care intensely about what's happening at the moment. There is great fulfilling of foreshadowing, great moments from all the characters. This is the sort of book that makes you want to give the author a round of applause after you've finished.

Well done, Mr. Batson. Well done.