I have said it a number of times, Ted DeKker is one of my favorite novelists of all time. His writing style is unique, his storylines are gripping and his agenda is usually subtle. I can honestly say I have never read a book from Mr. DeKker that I did not enjoy… until now. His latest novel and third book in his Paradise series called Sinner is the one book I reluctantly admit is not a very good book. In all honesty I hate having to write a negative review for one of my all time favorite authors, but I feel in order to maintain the integrity of this web page, I need to do so.
Sinner picks up 13 years after the events of Showdown. It is a story about Billy, Darcy and Johnny as they try to put their demon (known as Marsuvees Black) away once and for all. The events of 13 years earlier have scarred both Billy and Darcy and have made them callous against any form of religion. Both are down and out in their lives… Billy is a once successful lawyer turned gambling addict and Darcy works a noneventful job for a car manufacturer. Both realize soon that they have special powers and these powers will eventually lead them to have power to ban religion once and for all. However Johnny is going to do whatever it takes to help Billy and Darcy come face to face with evil and give them a glimpse of the blackness that enthralls their lives. He will stand side by side as they have one final confrontation with the evil known as Marsuvees Black.
This is the first and only DeKker book I kept looking to the back of the book to see how many pages I had to go read in order to finish it. It just didn’t grab me from the get go. Actually, I take that back the story did grip me for the first five or ten pages and then it went downhill from there. In the opening chapter of the book the reader thinks they are going to be taken on another roller coaster ride with Marsuvees Black and his twisted and psychotic plots to take down the children of the Monastery once and for all and then… blip… he’s gone for nearly 350 pages only to return in a very weak and predictable way. I guess the words weak and predictable would best describe Sinner. I have always felt that DeKker is a master storyteller who makes the reader think and has never been too “preachy” in his writing. This is the one thing that set DeKker apart from the rest of the Christian authors; he is subtle, enthralling and imaginative. This unfortunately is not the case with Sinner. I felt the story was no different than a lot of Christian fiction being put out today. The future persecution of the Church, banning religion, end times scenarios etc… been there done that. I understand DeKker’s passion for these concerns he brings up in this novel, however I would have rather read it in a non-fiction title or a separate stand alone novel not included in the Paradise series.
I suppose I could go on and on about my dislikes of Sinner. I’m sure there are many people who will disagree with me wholeheartedly and some who will agree. Like I said at the beginning I hate giving a negative review of Ted DeKker but I feel he has the potential for much, much more than this. I am anxiously awaiting his next novel and have high expectations for it. If it means anything, Ted DeKker is still a great author in my book; he just didn’t produce on this one. Better luck next time.
Reviewed by Jeff Holton
