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Out of Due Season: The First Transit
| Title | Out of Due Season: The First Transit |
| Writer | |
| Date | 2024-10-18 04:07:10 |
| Type | |
| Link | Listen Read |
Desciption
A cult leader. A government tightening its grip. Competing global interests. A mysterious power source. What could possibly go wrong?On a June afternoon, a body is discovered floating in a remote lake in northwestern Washington. When a recovery team attempts to retrieve it, they make a shocking discovery: 311 other bodies lie under the water, all members of a previously unknown religious cult. However, what appears to be a tragedy of immense proportions is only the beginning.Soon, a few relatives and friends of the victims discover inconsistencies in the stories, and a small group bands together to learn the truth. As government agencies apply pressure for reasons unknown and civil unrest in the country makes communication and movement difficult, this tiny yet determined team unravels what may be the greatest event in recent—if not all—human history.Something epic is about to happen in that remote lake, and as Father Elijah Jonas tries to convince his followers to abandon the purgatory that is Earth and travel on faith to a new world, competing sides with divergent interests inch ever closer to the truth.What if humanity had a second chance? Would we make the same mistakes? For one cult, the only way to find out is to try.
Review
I received an ARC for this book, but the review and opinions are my own.A summary up front: this is one fast, real, and scary (because of what you know is coming) ride. Highly recommended.This is the first book I've ever read that was set in my backyard, and one that is full of dead bodies.... a bit creeped out personally, but I'll get over it.The writer has built a multi-layered castle of personal loss, respect, philosophy, and the decisions of bad people (Jim Jones and Hitler, etc.). It is a framework that becomes woven into the plot as it unfolds. The premise is that there may be chaos in front of the protagonists, but things are going to get a lot worse.What helps speed the tension along? The dialog is on point, perfect and real.The description of bodies is done carefully to heighten the unreal that becomes real, and the reader spends a good deal of time in the divers' POV, which is unusual. This is not a spoiler, but there is a memorable, but skillfully executed, scene of an exploding body in the water not easily forgotten. Its purpose is to put the reader right in the water with the divers in a surreal close-in situation.As the theme parallels some aspects of Jim Jones' Jonestown, it is not the main point, but it gives clues and in some areas perhaps justification for what happens. The layers are blended into the issue of trust, and of something greater than fear. The plot moves fast, and then at the 75% point, it accelerates even further. The reader will be patient, hopefully, because without the build-up, they won't appreciate the imagery, and the inherent heart in what ultimately happens.Of note, the dream sequences are well executed with perfect balance and descriptions associated to the past, and the heartache of the character Zachary.Favorite scene? What Mathias saw.The ending is like a surreal sunrise.
