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A review by wjlongiii
The Oath by Frank E. Peretti
2.0
I would love nothing more than to say that The Oath is either terrible or amazing. The truth is much more complicated. I don't usually skim reviews before I read a book, but something told me to do so this time. What I found were several warnings about Peretti being a deeply entrenched Christian writer as if that is inherently a bad thing.
I am not religious myself, but I was raised around it, so I shrugged off everything I read and dove in. At first, I was enthralled. The initial 200-250 pages were like reading an excellent small-town conspiracy horror story. An outsider is killed in a horrific way that cannot be easily explained. The people of Hyde River stonewall every attempt to dig any deeper while alluding to long and closely held secrets. While in the shadows, a mysterious killer stalks our protagonist as he seeks to understand just what happened to his brother.
Great stuff, right? I thought so, too, but it careens off a cliff at about page 300. From there, the rules of the world, previously established, fall apart in favor of the Christian message. Now, if the novel had established this tone and reality earlier on or even highlighted the spiritual troubles of our two main characters before literally having another character speak them into existence more than halfway through, even this could work.
Peretti's views on Christianity are also askew from anything Baptist churches taught me, but that discussion shouldn't count against the book. Only what is written in these pages should matter for
a review. Character assassination becomes the method by which the author brings forward his message. The story's logic takes a massive hit as well, and on top of it all, Jesus becomes the Deus Ex Machina that resolves the story, tying too shiny a bow on the events that take place.
Needless to say, I was thoroughly disappointed in this one. I do not recommend The Oath. 2.5/5
I am not religious myself, but I was raised around it, so I shrugged off everything I read and dove in. At first, I was enthralled. The initial 200-250 pages were like reading an excellent small-town conspiracy horror story. An outsider is killed in a horrific way that cannot be easily explained. The people of Hyde River stonewall every attempt to dig any deeper while alluding to long and closely held secrets. While in the shadows, a mysterious killer stalks our protagonist as he seeks to understand just what happened to his brother.
Great stuff, right? I thought so, too, but it careens off a cliff at about page 300. From there, the rules of the world, previously established, fall apart in favor of the Christian message. Now, if the novel had established this tone and reality earlier on or even highlighted the spiritual troubles of our two main characters before literally having another character speak them into existence more than halfway through, even this could work.
Peretti's views on Christianity are also askew from anything Baptist churches taught me, but that discussion shouldn't count against the book. Only what is written in these pages should matter for
a review. Character assassination becomes the method by which the author brings forward his message. The story's logic takes a massive hit as well, and on top of it all, Jesus becomes the Deus Ex Machina that resolves the story, tying too shiny a bow on the events that take place.
Needless to say, I was thoroughly disappointed in this one. I do not recommend The Oath. 2.5/5