An engrossing but lengthy religious tale about a warrior’s mission.
In this debut novel, a traveler arrives in Wales in the years following Jesus’ Crucifixion, calling on a battle-hardened warlord to aid in spreading Christianity.
Caradog ap Bran is a Welsh warrior from Caerlech—modern-day Cardiff—waging a guerrilla war against the invading Roman soldiers who murdered his family. Through the violence appears “the Messenger,” a man called Joseph of Arimathea, who has journeyed from Judea to tell of the recent Crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection, and further spread his new gospel. But Joseph’s Messiah has given him another task as well, to not just convert those who glorify lesser gods, but to specifically find Caradog, who has been prophesized to one day stand before the Romans on their own ground and preach directly to his enemies. At first unconvinced, Caradog encounters yet another man, a Roman centurion he has captured, who was present at the Crucifixion, and has been sent by Jesus to assist the warrior after Joseph has departed. But enemies to their holy purpose abound, not just the Romans, who still wish to take over Wales and have begun to realize what they stirred up in Judea, but also the aged wizard Merlon and the alluring enchantress Rhewbina, mystically powered agents of the Welsh’s serpentine god Ocelus. Sweeting’s absorbing tale deftly pulls information from historical and biblical records, presuming Joseph of Arimathea was the first to bring early Christianity to Wales. The novel is meticulously detailed, bringing to life the rustic British countryside, the opulence of Roman fortifications and armor, and the furs and functionality of the Welsh villages, while recounting the battle tactics and politics of both sides. The book suffers from its length (nearly 400 pages), regularly repeating information unnecessarily, a problem that could be easily solved by sharper editing. The story is told in a modern style, which is occasionally distracting when using phrases like “alarm bells sounded” and words like “curveball,” among others, despite the period. The first entry in a series, the book ends with numerous cliffhangers, from threats on Joseph’s life to Caradog’s uncertainty on his path, effectively setting the stage for an epic.
An engrossing but lengthy religious tale about a warrior’s mission.Pub Date: June 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5127-8665-1
Page Count: 430
Publisher: Westbow Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 19, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
These letters from some important executive Down Below, to one of the junior devils here on earth, whose job is to corrupt mortals, are witty and written in a breezy style seldom found in religious literature. The author quotes Luther, who said: "The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn." This the author does most successfully, for by presenting some of our modern and not-so-modern beliefs as emanating from the devil's headquarters, he succeeds in making his reader feel like an ass for ever having believed in such ideas. This kind of presentation gives the author a tremendous advantage over the reader, however, for the more timid reader may feel a sense of guilt after putting down this book. It is a clever book, and for the clever reader, rather than the too-earnest soul.
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1942
ISBN: 0060652934
Page Count: 53
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 17, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1943
This first novel, ostensibly about the friendship between two boys, Reuven and Danny, from the time when they are fourteen on opposing yeshiva ball clubs, is actually a gently didactic differentiation between two aspects of the Jewish faith, the Hasidic and the Orthodox. Primarily the Hasidic, the little known mystics with their beards, earlocks and stringently reclusive way of life. According to Reuven's father who is a Zionist, an activist, they are fanatics; according to Danny's, other Jews are apostates and Zionists "goyim." The schisms here are reflected through discussions, between fathers and sons, and through the separation imposed on the two boys for two years which still does not affect their lasting friendship or enduring hopes: Danny goes on to become a psychiatrist refusing his inherited position of "tzaddik"; Reuven a rabbi.... The explanation, in fact exegesis, of Jewish culture and learning, of the special dedication of the Hasidic with its emphasis on mind and soul, is done in sufficiently facile form to engage one's interest and sentiment. The publishers however see a much wider audience for The Chosen. If they "rub their tzitzis for good luck,"—perhaps—although we doubt it.
Pub Date: April 28, 1967
ISBN: 0449911543
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 6, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1967
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