The Silver Cord by Erik Stevens. © 2005 Tate Publishing. ISBN 1933290129. Paperback. Christian Science Fiction. 202 pages. $16.95 US. [ Purchase ] Source: review copy from publisher

While the premise of a story about the fight of Good versus Evil on an angelic plane sounds, if not promising, at least interesting, unfortunately The Silver Cord falls short. True, Stevens does deliver on the action promised, and as the author’s blurb states, his military background must have provided considerable background knowledge. However, beyond the intriguing premise, I struggled to connect with the book and maintain focus.

While the characters tried to remain consistent, they felt somewhat overdone, perhaps in the style of a screenplay where attributes have to be played up in order for the audience to pick up on them. Characters are the backbone of a story, and without a believable protagonist, the reader has the impossible job of crafting her own story grip to maintain interest. Certain aspects of the characters were overdeveloped by excessive adjectives, metaphors, and similes, but other facets were thrown suddenly into the reader’s face. Although Kent McVay and his wife were supposed to be Christians, there was nothing in their interactions or characters that would lead me to this conclusion until it was bluntly stated. Read the rest of this entry »