The Gathering Darkness (the Connor series) - Dirk B. (Page 13 of 57)

Correction to my previous statement that I can't really mess with the content of the Gospels. I just remembered that my book doesn't follow Revelation to the same ending. Given how my trilogy will end, I can explore other differences between what Connor observes to have happened in the past versus what is documented in the New Testament. Adds to the mystery of the book.

I just read the first cartoon. While that type of humor appeals to me in small doses, I'm trying for a Catholic-friendly story this time. Although the ending I have in mind differs from Revelation, it will be very Christian. I read the Lord of the World, which is a 100-year-old Catholic novel about the End Times recommended by Pope Francis, and it simply omitted the troublesome part where humans are judged and sent to hell for eternity. My book summary will be clear that it's a story about a Catholic orphan who may be Christ returned in the flesh. Fundamentalists would disapprove since they take literally the angel's statement to the apostles that Christ will return in the same form as when he left (i.e., an adult God, roughly thirty years old). The Pope's Council of Cardinal Advisers will debate that issue early in the book since it needs to be addressed.

I don't know yet what to change about New Testament events that Connor observes. I'm thinking of ramping up slowly on those changes, starting with subtle differences that the religious characters in the story find curious (e.g., some of the wording of Jesus's sermons). That could be explained by the fact that Jesus gave those sermons many times all over Galilee and could have changed them to suit His audience. I'm hoping to build up to one striking change that leaves the characters awed, if troubled. It gets resolved cleanly at the end of book one. Nothing as crazy as Christ having a child, although that idea sold a lot of books, just not to good Catholics.

Hmm. My latest physical book purchase, In the Steps of Jesus, is very well done. Lots of details, photos, and Biblical context, as I previously mentioned. Too bad the damn thing is a decade out of date. The author re-released it on Amazon in 2017 without a complete update. The only reason I know that is I already did the research for the three competing baptism sites. One of them didn't exist when he first released this book, and he makes no mention of two of them in the re-release. They're major tourist attractions for Christians in Israel, so I'm a bit surprised. I was kind of hoping the book would help me fast-track my research, but it's just another "mostly" reliable source to sift through. Still makes for an interesting read, though.

When my frog died (high heat / humidity), you knew within hours. By 10 hrs it was intolerable

Or... Fiat (in your story) is making the Lancia Delta again

Woohoo! I finally figured out the key elements of the Antichrist's attacks in Rome and the hunt for him throughout the book by the Italian and Vatican police. Need to add a few more supporting characters. Everyone's a suspect, including members of the Pope's Council. Many thanks to Agatha Christie and Law & Order for inspiration. I need to see if I can find episodes of the original for streaming. For some reason, Special Victims Unit replays endlessly on TV, but not the original.

I read in my Catholicism book that Jesus will return as an adult in His risen/glorified body, which contradicts the story I'm trying to tell. I threw it into my Catholic forum to see if there's a scriptural source for that. There are a few, but they're open to interpretation. Interestingly, two priests responded. One said it's a mystery and we can't be sure, although most expect Him to return exactly as He left. Of course, no one knows exactly what He looked like. That leaves me enough wiggle room to tell the story.

The bigger problem is that there are two endings to the Gospel of Mark in ancient manuscripts, a short version and a long one. The latter is considered canon in Catholicism. In it, Jesus says, "And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” This quote suggests anyone who believes in Jesus can perform the miracles that Connor does, without them being the resurrected Christ. Granted priests are believed to have some of these powers, hence the anointing of the sick and exorcisms by specially trained priests.

I'm going to have to amp up the miracles Connor can perform in act I before the cardinals debate whether or not he is Christ. Fortunately, the Antichrist is after him, so he has that going for him.

Ponder, I must.

Program his VCR

Now I resume cattleprodding you

Read scene 1 but, unfortunately, I have insufficient material in there to leave a review. It looked to me like the true beginning was further in at the anointing scene, but I need to see more material to get a feel for the pace before I can say that with confidence.

I think short posts is fine... I was just commenting that I personally had no comment yet. I often read 20 pages worth or so when starting a review of a new-to-me story on here

Thanks, Amy. Don't worry about nits. If you're up to it, I'm more interested in your overall impression. I've been told it's a bit of a slow start for a thriller, which is true. It would be more correct to classify it as a Christian thriller. I wanted the introduction to Connor to come first in the book, since he's the focus of the series. FYI, I'm posting scenes as separate chapters on this site, to make them easier to write/review. There will generally be two scenes per chapter. Scene two will include the first strike by the Antichrist.

Rachel suggested a preview of a later action scene, which I'm beginning to think is an excellent idea. I'm thinking of using the climax of Connor's trip to the Holy Land as the opening moments of the book, without giving too much away. I have to write it first to see if it works.