The Books of Mortals: Forbidden



Forbidden by Ted Dekker & Tosca Lee



Grade: B+ 

Profanity: None

Graphic content (sex, murder,etc.): Some sexual references and violence, but nothing graphic

Wow, I'm so behind on these! But I figured it'd be easier to start with the most recent and work my way back then to start from the beginning... So here we go:

This book was my Book Club's pick for the month of June. We had read another of Dekker's books (Thr3e) previously, and I enjoyed that one okay, so I figured this one would be okay too. Dekker is considered a Christian writer, but his work is mostly (if not all) fiction... So basically he tells fictitious stories that have an underlying Christian theme or message. And with Forbidden I found quite a bit of symbolism as well. I haven't read any other Tosca Lee books, but I liked Forbidden more than Thr3e, so I approve of the collaboration. : )

I really enjoyed reading Forbidden. So I was quite perturbed when I reached the end to find that it was actually part of a trilogy that HASN'T BEEN FINISHED!!! Bleh! I don't enjoy waiting for books to be published. : (  I hated it with the Harry Potter series, but luckily I didn't pick up the Twilight Series or the Hunger Games series until all the books were out. But I guess patience is a virtue...

The 2nd book of The Book of Mortals series, Mortal, was released a couple weeks ago, but the final book won't be released until next year sometime... So I'm not sure if I want to go ahead and read the 2nd book and wait another year or just wait until the 3rd book is released so that I can read them back to back. We'll see.

Anyway, I was quite pleased with Forbidden. I really enjoyed the storyline and the characters. It kept my interest the whole way through, and although it's a semi-long book at 376 pages, I can't recall it ever seeming to "slow down." Here's the summary on the back of my copy:

Many years have passed since civilization's brush with apocalypse. The world's greatest threats have all been silenced. There is no anger, no hatred, no war. There is only perfect peace... and fear. But a terrible secret has been closely guarded for centuries: Every single soul walking the earth, though in appearance totally normal, is actually dead, long ago genetically stripped of true humanity.

Fleeing pursuit, with only moments to live, a young man named Rom stumbles into possession of a vial of blood and a piece of cryptic writing. When consumed, the blood will bring him back to life. When decoded, the message will lead him on a perilous journey that will require him to abandon everything he has ever known and awaken humanity to the transforming power of true life and love.

But the blood will also resurrect hatred, ambition, and greed.

Set in a terrifying, medieval future, where grim pageantry masks death, this tale of dark desires and staggering stakes peels back the layers of the heart for all who dare to take the ride.

So basically the world is void of any emotion except fear. This came about as an attempt to rid the world of violence and war, and for the most part it is effective. But it leads to the question... Is a life without love worth living?

I enjoyed how parts of Forbidden made me stop and reflect on that question. Sure emotions can seem so frustrating at times, but would I want to live without them? Do the good outweigh the bad? My answer is yes. I am a romantic, after all. ; )

Have any of you read Forbidden or any other Ted Dekker or Tosca Lee books? What did you think?