When I first heard about this book, “The Sacred Cipher,” it was pitched to me as a Christian version of an Indiana Jones type book that deals with history and the unlocking of secrets potentially back to Biblical times. It is set in three cities and two eras. I must say I loved the Indiana Jones movies of the past. With this book potentially being a Christian version of that was exciting to hear and I wanted to read it.
After beginning to read this book, I was even more interested in it as it told about Charles Haddon Spurgeon being a part of the story. While this is a book of fiction, the usage of the real life historical figures such as Mr. Spurgeon, Sir Edward Elgar, and Dr. Louis Klopsch makes it a more intriguing read than unknowns pursuing this lofty seemingly uncrackable cipher. A cipher called the “Rosetta Stone” was not cracked for many centuries. “The Sacred Cipher” feels so real, believable, and it could happen in our lifetime.
Since finishing this debut work by Terry Brennan, the impression left is a good one. When I read more about Mr. Brennan on the back cover, I was struck with the thought that Terry Brennan could be Tom Bohannon. This novel could really be Mr. Brennan’s adventure and the hopes that he could one day unlock something of biblical proportions like The Sacred Cipher. Mr. Brennan’s writing made me feel that I was one of his tagalong researchers learning and becoming a fan of this group whether as the computer geek or mister know it all Dr. Johnson.
For those that don’t want to see everything and how they went from point A to point B, this can be a turn off. If you removed an e-mail text message from Kallie Nolan in her research from the beginning explaining everything detailing with the Temple Mount’s history in Jerusalem and a Jewish ruler named Abiathar in Jerusalem and a few other little areas, you could shorten this book to be under 300 pages.
My hope for Mr. Brennan, in the future, is more of this same type of writing so a new saga in the realms of Indiana Jones or King Solomon’s Mines is begun and maintained. It will be cool to follow the adventures of Tom Bohannon and his quest to unlock more secrets of this world from a Christian point of view. How about Noah’s Ark and its possible find… or the lost city of Atlantis… or other lost civilizations to bring Christian and Jewish cultures into a more clear HD focus from the Bible dealing with possible end of the world scenarios if you are interested in those stories?
In closing, I think the historically minded and end of world interested people might really like this. Especially those who like Joel Rosenberg’s books, Tim Lahaye and Jerry B. Jenkins’s Left Behind series, and Larry Burkett’s “The Illuminati” book.
Be blessed!
Brad
