Green is the last of the Circle books (Black, Red, and White are the others). It completes—and begins—Thomas Hunter’s journey in two realities; the first reality is our world, and the other reality is 2,000 years in the future. Thomas is tasked with saving both worlds, though as I think about it now, he doesn't do much to try to save this reality—his efforts are concentrated on the future reality, which is careening toward Armageddon at break-neck speed.
Supposedly, one can read Green either before Black or after White, but I think it would be quite confusing to enter Dekker’s fantasy world with Green. After finishing the book, I can understand how it leads directly into Black, but I still think it would be better to have at least a rudimentary knowledge of the other three books before reading Green. Dekker’s Paradise Novels and Lost Books also tie into the Circle books; I’m glad I read Sinner recently, as Billy, a major player in Green, made more sense than he would have had I not known about him from Sinner. (Reading Green also helped me understand why I despised Billy in Sinner.)
I hope Dekker isn’t finished with the fantasy world he’s created here; reading Green made me want to reread his other books to pick up things I may have missed, and I’d really enjoy reading more about these characters. I highly recommend Green … as well as Dekker’s other novels!
I received a copy of this book for review through Thomas Nelson's book review blogger program.
I just finished Showdown, also by Ted Dekker. This book is perhaps too much fantasy for me. The story alternates between a Monastery, and a nearby town called Paradise, (but the town is far from being a "paradise"). You have to read over half of the book before the connection between the Monastery and this town is revealed. Like I said, it is mostly fantasy, but towards the end of the book the character you mentioned Thomas Hunter appears. I don't know if this book is connected to your series or not, or if this is the same Thomas?
ReplyDeleteIt is the same Thomas. Showdown is part of the same series as Sinner, which is clearly connected to the Circle series. I've had Showdown on my shelf for over a year now, but I just never got around to reading it. I had no idea Thomas was in it--now I'm curious!
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend the Circle books, though they are fantasy. I just started rereading Black because it was clear as I read Green that I'd forgotten much of the story. I'll blog about it when I finish :-)
Let me know what you think of Showdown.
ReplyDeleteI do not usually read Fantasy.
Right now I am reading Deadline by Randy Alcorn. He is one of my current favorites, but I haven't read this book yet.
Another good series I've recently read is The Yada Yada Prayer Group by Neta Jackson.