Christian book review: Gemworld by Jeremy Bullard
This is the first book of The Facets of Reality series, and I loved it! It is an exceptionally inventive piece of speculative fiction—probably in the fantasy genre. But, it’s so much more.
The characters are compelling. The action is exciting. The story is what we all look for in a thriller. This SEAL transferred to a parallel/mediaeval world is a compelling hero. As a romance, it is a bit lacking, but that is certainly not uncommon in a book like this—though for a Christian novel it could have been so much more.
This is an exceptional Christian novel
Reality [of God, Jesus, and the Spirit] is largely subliminal, but it’s definitely there. This is not a Full Gospel book and barely Evangelical. However, it is far above the “clean read” non-spiritual books commonly offered as Christian books. If you like speculative fiction, fantasy scifi, you’ll love this book as I did.
It’s actually (probably, or at least close to) cutting edge, paradigm-shifting speculative fiction. The environment it lives in is medieval with radical magic abilities woven into it. Jeremy has created a wonderfully compelling world which is different enough to allow him to say things which might not be heard in a more “normal” book. I’m praying he’ll take it to the next level of reality also. But only he knows the vision the Lord has for the book. I’m eagerly awaiting the rest of the series.
It’s also an exceptional cover—though the right half of the photo seems a skosh high. I believe it’s Mary Findley’s work, and she is getting very good.
