Into The Canyon

Forget the sappy Christian romances or the "in your face" Bible thumping novels, Into the Canyon by Michael Neale is a wonderful mixture of faith, adventure, and life issues.

I didn't realize that it was a sequel until the end; this being book two and the first being The River. I don't think that one has to read the first book to get the gist of the second, which is nice when it comes to a series.

Gabriel Clarke lost his father to The River at age 5. Throughout this book he comes to love The River himself (something that terrified him for years after the accident) and learns to forgive the man who lived who his father died attempting to save. This book touches on love, faith, forgiveness, and most of all...HOPE.

There were a few things I didn't like about this book (though I did start it and finish it within one evening...so it proved to be an interesting read!). The journals within the book (thankfully, there are just tiny experts) are contrived and frankly quite annoying. You aren't sure WHO the journals are for - they read like words of wisdom for someone else and yet also seem so vague while trying to appear wise. I hated the journal entries.

"The River" seems to be an entity of it's own. To the point that it almost seemed to replace God and become "the life-source of all". The way "The River" is described, especially in the journal entries, are  puzzling. For example, on page 227, the last sentence of the journal entry is "Therefore, what The Great River has put together, nothing on earth will tear apart." This is typical of how "The River" is described throughout the book. I waited for it to just turn to a metaphor, something relating to God, but it never happened. This doesn't seem to fit in a Christian book.

Disclaimer: This book was given to me by BookLook Bloggers in exchange for an honest review.