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A Shred of Truth Click title to read excerpt or buy from CBD.com By Eric Wilson / Random House, Inc  
Reviewed by Karri ComptonEric Wilson has done everything right in this book.People who know me will know that I’m a huge fan of Ted Dekker. While I would never disassemble the mental shrine I've made to him, I have to say that Eric is giving Ted some major competition. I don't mean to say their novels can be compared to each other in any significant way. They differ on many levels. (And that's a good thing, really.) But Eric Wilson, to me, has established himself as one of the top notch suspense novelists of today with A Shred of Truth. In the first book of the series, The Best of Evil, the reader meets Aramis Black, a coffee shop owner with a checkered past. One that likes to appear out of nowhere and bite him where the sun doesn't shine. His arms sport twin tattoos with the motto: Live by the sword; die by the sword. He has moved to Nashville to live with his brother Johnny Ray as part of putting those years behind him. Grappling with grievous memories of his mother's murder and his father's abuse have proved fruitless and dangerous. Now he has once again been thrown into evil's path. In this, the second novel, the action begins at a party thrown in honor of Aramis' brother and newly signed country singer, Johnny Ray. When Johnny Ray goes missing, Aramis finds him tied to a statue on Music Row. Someone has carved the letters "A X" into Johnny Ray's shoulder. Aramis must unravel a mystery that goes way beyond his immediate family and into the past. It's the quintessential whodunit Wilson style. Who has an axe to grind with Johnny Ray or Aramis? Who else will be hurt as a result of a sicko's games? Could it be the racist redneck guitarist Chigger? Or perhaps Aramis' old flame Felicia is involved. It will take courage for Aramis to safeguard his newfound faith and resist exacting his own revenge. The search for truth can be harrowing. Things are not always as they seem, cannot be taken at face value. Motives are often hidden, deceptions placed on purpose to derail one's pursuit. No one is more aware of that than Aramis. However, the truth can be known. But it takes honesty and a willingness to follow it wherever it may lead. Be prepared for a mystery par excellence, one that begs to be reread. Eric Wilson has done everything right in this book. I honestly can't think of a negative here, and that's saying a lot for me. There's such a richness to this novel-layer upon layer of drama and meaning wrapped up in one heckuva story. |
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About Karri Compton View this review and more at: www.kcreviews.blogspot.com |
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A Shred of Truth Click title to read excerpt or buy from CBD.com By Eric Wilson / Random House, Inc
Reviewed by Susan SleemanEric Wilson has crafted a pair of books that belong on every discerning reader's must read list.In A Shred of Truth, we once again find Aramis Black at home in his Nashville coffee shop with his brother Johnny Ray fast climbing the ladder to country music fame. The mystery takes off from the first chapter when Johnny Ray is abducted and the initials AX are slashed into his back. Aramis wants to protect his brother. Wants to discover the identity of the sicko cutter. Wants to settle into the comfort of his motto, Live by the sword, die by the sword, that brought him through his tumultuous past before he gave his life to God. But now, the motto only serves to complicate matters. Does he revert to the security of his motto and seek vengeance or does he follow the faith that tells him to lay back and let Detective Meade handle the investigation? Aramis struggles admirably with the decision, but when the threats become personal the motto wins out and he is thrust into a hunt that has all the elements of a keep-you-reading-when-you-should-be-sleeping mystery. If Wilson's fast pacing and superb prose don't firmly affix the book in your hands until the last page, his revelation of a mid-book surprise guarantees you'll read until the satisfying ending. When I finished Eric Wilson's last novel, The Best of Evil, I thought it would be difficult for Wilson to top that book. As I said in my review of The Best of Evil, Wilson's prose was outstanding, his characters deep, his pace fast moving but full of life's meaning that connects us with the characters, and his dialogue genuine. The same is true of A Shred of Truth, but Wilson has provided an even more compelling mystery in this one. And, as in his last book, Aramis Black's struggle with his faith, with doing the right thing staring him in the face and failing to do it, rings true to the reader. Through his balance of credible dialogue and internal exposition, Wilson reveals Aramis' strife and helps the reader recognize and better understand the battle with the same force in their own life. Be sure to buy A Shred of Truth, but before you do, I'd like to encourage you to read The Best of Evil. Though A Shred of Truth is written as a stand alone and you don't need to read book one to enjoy and understand book 2, once you read A Shred of Truth you will be compelled to go out and buy The Best of Evil. So why not maximize your experience and read the books in the order they were written? Either way, Eric Wilson has crafted a pair of books that belong on every discerning reader's must read list. Susan Sleeman / The Christian Suspense Zone |
©2006-09
Susan Sleeman
Susan Sleeman
is the author of Nipped in the Bud, available May of 2009 from Heartsong Presents: Mysteries, an imprint of Barbour Publishing.
