"forbidden" by ted dekker and tosca lee

By the 26th century, humanity has lived in peace for nearly 500 years, thanks to a virus that erased all human emotion save fear. Rom Sebastian, a young man living in the world’s capital city Byzantium, lives a low-key existence as an artisan—until an old man accosts him on the street, giving him a coded vellum and a vial of blood. When the man is brutally murdered, Rom realizes he possesses something that will put him, as well as those he cares about, in danger. As he seeks answers, Rom discovers that the blood restores life—emotions—and the entire population is living as though dead. While Rom searches for the truth, others are equally desperate to keep that truth under wraps.

Ted Dekker’s Circle series took the Christian fiction world by storm, and The Books of Mortals should do the same. Dekker and co-author Tosca Lee have crafted a fascinating story that is guaranteed to make you think, gasp, and yearn for more. Dekker’s work has long explored the importance of blood, and Forbidden carries on that theme. I'm intrigued to see where Dekker and Lee will go next.

Those familiar with Dekker’s other works know already, but it bears repeating: blood and gore, while not gratuitous, do feature prominently in Dekker’s writing. Forbidden is not for the squeamish, though it’s no more graphic than a PG-13 action movie or an episode of Bones.

If you enjoyed Immanuel’s Veins or the Circle series, Forbidden is the book you've been waiting for. And when you finish reading it (not long after you started, since it's one of those "can't put down" books), you'll most likely join me in counting down the months until book two, Mortal, releases!

Click here to watch the book trailer or preview the book below.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Hachette Book Group through NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”