When I was younger I read fiction all the time, but as I got older I stuck more to non-fiction. I didn’t out grow fiction. It was hard to find something that held my attention. I literally have over 20 books which I have started years ago that still have bookmarks in them. Every once in a while I’ll pick one of them and read a few more pages. Then I’ll sit it back on the shelf.
I once read a novel by Stephen King when I was a child. It kept my attention all the way through. That was the one and only book I ever read by him. The book scared me more than his movies ever could hope to. Yet, I loved the way he wrote. As an adult I hoped to find a Christian writer who could write as well as King did. I did find several books that held my interest such as This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti, Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Soul Tracker by Bill Myers. These books were far and few in between.
Since then finding a good Christian novel to keep my attention has been hard to come by. Then it happened. That wonderful day when I found a novel that captured me and wrapped me up in its pages until I couldn’t stay awake any longer. What book was it? None other than “The Circle Trilogy” by Ted Dekker.
This is three books in one, “Black,” “Red,” and “White.” Each book is available by itself. However, not only is it cheaper to buy the trilogy, but it will frustrate you madly when you get to the end of the first book and can’t continue the story. Now you have to go out and buy the other two books. Trust me. Just buy the trilogy and alleviate your frustration from the beginning.
The Circle Trilogy Overview
It is a fast pace book that keeps you turning page after page. When you think the story might be at a good place to stop something happens and curiosity drives you forward. By the end of the book you are either too tired to read anymore or too tired to care that you’re tired because you want to know what happens next. I haven’t seen writing like this in a long time – incredibly refreshing.
Black’s Review
When I started this first book, Black, I was in Border’s bookstore. I had no intention of buying it. That is until I realized I had been sitting in the chair for the last 15 minutes reading the same book. The main character is Thomas Hunter, who gets shot and passes out. When he awakes he’s in another world.
This new world is very different from his. Good and evil are tangible. The way Dekker describes everything makes you feel like you’re there with Thomas. You get to experience a world that could have possibly existed before the fall of mankind.
Every time Thomas falls asleep in one world he awakes in the other world. It’s like reading two stories in one, but each story intertwine in the other. What Thomas does in one world impacts the other world. While in the other world Thomas learns of a virus causing devastating effects on Earth, his original world. It becomes his mission to stop the virus before it’s too late.
In the other world time moves a lot slower. Thomas enters into a horrible place, but is soon rescued and taken to paradise. He learns about the “Great Romance” – the love of Elyon. Soon everything is threatened and this world needs to be saved also.
My Favorite Scene in Black
The night Thomas met Elyon. Dekker’s description of the event made you feel like you were the one meeting Elyon, the creator of everything. It was absolutely beautiful.
Red’s Review
Red picks up where Black left off. Yet, the story keeps getting better and better. There’s more suspense and plot twists. The lines between each world begin to blur. Thomas is racing against time trying to stop the deadly virus in the Earth world while staying alive from sadistic terrorists who are trying to kill him. Everyone’s on edge and the intensity of the book forces you to continue to read.
In the other world, Thomas is the leader of an army. His enemy is the Horde, who carries a horrible skin disease. The Horde believes this is the normal way of life and those whose skin is without blemish is actually the diseased ones and must be put to death.
He is trying to stay alive in this world also. He knows that if he dies in either world it will affect the other world, in which case he will be dead there too. He’s trying to hold it all together, which is a big task. After all, he not only has the weight of one world on his shoulders, but he actually has the weight of two worlds on his shoulders.
My Favorite Scene in Red
The day after Justin is killed and his blood runs into the lake everyone gets the skin disease. Some believe it is punishment for killing him. Thomas takes his family to the lake to wash but when they get there it is blood red. The lake no longer has any power to heal them like it did in the past. Rachelle, Thomas’ wife, reminds him what Justin told them – to follow him in his death. They decide to go deep into the lake where a process of change begins. The way Dekker describes this process is powerful. When they come out they are forever changed with no more risk of contamination of the skin disease. I loved it.
White’s Review
In this final book, White, Thomas’ days are numbered. There’s only a few days left to save both worlds. In one world, finding an antidote for the virus is top priority. Saving the rest of mankind is the goal before there is no one left to save. There is an antidote, but the terrorist wants control of the world’s nuclear power in exchange for it. Dilemma, dilemma.
In the other world, Thomas’ love for the daughter of his enemy is threatening to tear apart what’s left of his army. He risks everything for her, a diseased outcast, which in the end may not be worth it.
My Favorite Scene in White
I really didn’t have one. This book moved fast and I was anxious to know the outcome of both worlds. These three books has it all – fight scenes, car chases, love, loyalty, betrayal, death, life, and anything else you need for a great story.
Also, Dekker has written a fourth book called “Green” to round out this series. I haven’t read it yet, but I know it is good. I recommend these books to any and everyone, especially if you enjoy a good story where every word counts. Every book I have read by Ted Dekker has been good. Give him a try.
About the Author
Ted Dekker is known for novels that combine adrenaline-laced stories with unexpected plot twists, unforgettable characters, and incredible confrontations between good and evil.