Guest Reviewer: Jay Graham
Title: The Testament
Author: Eric Van Lustbader
Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, (The Forge)
ISBN: 978-0-765-31463-5
Release Date: September 2006
Genre/Sub-genre: Suspense/Thriller
Year/Setting: 1442 AD / Present Day
Overall Rating: 4.0
Sexual Content Rating: Sensual– few scenes graphic
Language (Profanity/Slang) Rating: Moderate
Violent Content Rating: Intense
Eric's Website: www.ericvanlustbader.com
It would be easy to dismiss Eric Van Lustbader’s 2006 thriller, The Testament, as a DaVinci Code "wanna-be." Like the earlier work, this tale takes the reader through plot twists and turns as sudden and ruthless as a rollercoaster. Also like the work by Dan Brown, Van Lustbader casts a web of secrets and secret societies. And of course the work also involves some rather heretical theories about the resurrection of Jesus.
The big differences, and a real plus for this book, are in character development, a simple but ruthlessly efficient plot line and in the seamless flow between vantage points at different periods in time. The book explodes in the first couple pages in a life and death struggle in 1442 over the same elements the central character in the story, Braverman Shaw (‘Bravo’) is fighting to protect in the last chapters. In between, a rich and finely crafted picture of centuries of struggle, deception, heroism and betrayal are both played out, and used to illustrate Bravo’s current condition.
The author does such a fine job with the characters, with the raw emotions of anger, betrayal, lust and courage they feel, the reader is compelled to keep reading. The author does what all good writers aspire to do; he makes you care about the people he has created. Even two days after finishing the book, I continue to play out scenes and exchanges from the book in my mind.
The sensuality in the work is very well done and perfectly suited to the story. Profanity is evident but well in context. The violent imagery however is intense, at times almost overwhelming the story. Be prepared that when characters in this work die, the word "grisly" is at times insufficient. I frequently found myself grateful for the scene change of a new chapter.
Don’t expect this book to be historically accurate in its claims about Jesus or a lost Testament; those issues are not resolved here. What the reader will enjoy is the rich attention to detail, the outstanding descriptive imagery, the thrill of the chase and literally cheering for the hero. This is not a bedtime read; it is more a "finish it in a single day" thriller.
Jay
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