Facinating Blend of History, Fantasy & Religion
I was super excited about reading this book after the preview - and was not disappointed!
As a Christian myself, I found it really motivating and inspiring how there were so many themes running throughout the course of this book; about trusting God and how He was always there for them, through everything.
The novel is set in Japan in the 1600s, a part of History that was very new to me. I really like how this book has inspired me to learn more about this time. Obviously, the way the Shogun treats the Christians is very horrific, but I thought that Shaun Curry dealt with this well: the book was a satisfying mixture of history, fantasy and religion without just focusing on the gore.
As the first book in a trilogy, I am really looking forward to reading the next two. However, in those books, I would like to see the characters developed a little more because, especially in the beginning, it was quite hard to tell the mixture of Japanese names apart. Apart from their faith, most of them didn't have very distinct personalities.
Although I can see that some people may find the fantasy element a bit controversial, I didn't really bother me. Quite a few times in the book, the Christians are able to overcome the Shogun with miracles. I can see that some people might think that this is too much plot convenience, but I thought that it did an excellent job of portraying the immense power of God.
In conclusion, I really liked this book and am looking forward to more!
As a Christian myself, I found it really motivating and inspiring how there were so many themes running throughout the course of this book; about trusting God and how He was always there for them, through everything.
The novel is set in Japan in the 1600s, a part of History that was very new to me. I really like how this book has inspired me to learn more about this time. Obviously, the way the Shogun treats the Christians is very horrific, but I thought that Shaun Curry dealt with this well: the book was a satisfying mixture of history, fantasy and religion without just focusing on the gore.
As the first book in a trilogy, I am really looking forward to reading the next two. However, in those books, I would like to see the characters developed a little more because, especially in the beginning, it was quite hard to tell the mixture of Japanese names apart. Apart from their faith, most of them didn't have very distinct personalities.
Although I can see that some people may find the fantasy element a bit controversial, I didn't really bother me. Quite a few times in the book, the Christians are able to overcome the Shogun with miracles. I can see that some people might think that this is too much plot convenience, but I thought that it did an excellent job of portraying the immense power of God.
In conclusion, I really liked this book and am looking forward to more!