As I might have mentioned previously, I love a good book. And so I was delighted to discover Ted Dekker’s books recently. I first read his “Skin” book which totally freaked me out and made me think that I couldn’t handle any more of his books. But I took a chance on Saint next and absolutely loved it. Looking for more, I found Showdown, which turns out to be the previous book in Dekker’s excellent Paradise series. The third book, Sinner, comes out soon and I’m totally looking forward to it.

So, excellent author: yes! But what really impressed me about Showdown was the intensity of the story that Dekker weaved and the underlying parallels that he was subtly building. It is a very different type of story, and I was tempted to put it down at first because it was a little graphic, bloody, and freaky. And I was so engrossed in the story that not only could I not put it down for hours at a time (and I LOVE books like that!), but I was completely unaware of the deeper story that he was telling until it hit me like a ton of bricks about 4 chapters from the end. I can’t recall the last time an author has been so good at his craft as to have that effect on me. Maybe not even since Arthur Conan Doyle’s tomes!

WOW!

I can’t really explain much more than that or I’ll give away the story, but if you’re looking for a good book and a good author, I can wholeheartedly recommend both in Ted Dekker’s Showdown.