Book Review: Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem by Kathleen Keating

Having read Kathleen Keating's earlier works, it was with great anticipation that I opened my review copy for Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem. For once, this is a sequel that truly does not disappoint. From the opening pages to the breakneck finish, I could not tear myself away. Keating has accomplished what so many authors fail to achieve when it comes to writing a sequel. Readers tend to develop preconceived notions about their favorite characters, and they expect the story to unravel the way they want it to. Sequels invariably never live up to reader's expectations, but in this case, Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem not only stands on its own, it exceeds the first by weaving an even more complicated story.

The first book in this series left us wondering what will happen in a world that has just been nearly devastated, both physically and spiritually. In the first chapter of Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem, we experience this devastation and the hesitancy that accompanies the unknown. What will the world be like, what can people expect? Keating answers these questions gradually, allowing the reader to immerse themselves into the story.

One of my biggest questions after reading Torn Sky: Part One was "What comes next?" Although these books are works of fiction, Keating has an uncanny foresight into world events. Many of the seemingly improbable events that were mentioned in the first book have come to pass. If even a few of the events mentioned in Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem come to pass, I fear what the answer to my question will be. This thought stays in the back of your mind as you follow Keating's characters as they seek their own answer to this question.

In a story that deals with "end time" events, I have found that authors tend to get carried away with their villains and with their protagonists. You end up with a caricature of a villain, a typical "baddie," complete with an expertly twirled moustache. The "good" people are always too good, and leave the reader little to commiserate with. Keating does not fall into this trap, creating characters that despite their failings, their faults, and their personal tics, are always real. The main antagonist in the story, although he is a man of incredible power and is filled with evil intentions, never crosses the line into the unbelievable. We're given insight into his mind, into his plans and although they are sensational, we begin to understand his motives, and perhaps even see a little bit of ourselves in his actions, a disturbing thought.

Each character in this book has to deal not only with the world crumbling down around their ears, but their own lives as well. Reality has been twisted, terrorist attacks become a nearly daily occurrence as mercenaries seek to turn confusion to their own ends, and families fall apart. In the midst of these calamities, each character has to make their own decision on where they will turn, what they will become and how they will write their own stories.

Several surprise twists occur throughout the book, and I won't spoil them here. Suffice it to say that if you have any preconceived notions going into this book, prepare to have them shredded. As a suspense author, Keating is in the top-ten of all time when it comes to weaving a tale and springing surprises on the reader. Chances are, you'll be guessing just like I did, all the way until the end. This book, even despite its size, is a book to be read in one sitting. Each time I put it down, I found myself drawn back to see what was behind the next corner, and the next. I must confess it was a pleasant addiction, and I only hope that the next book in the series will be completed soon.

In a genre filled with lackluster authors, cheap story-lines and mass produced, for lack of a better word, crap, Keating stands like a beacon. This is how a suspense book should be written, and one that I hope will receive the attention it deserves.

Title: Torn Sky: Project Jerusalem
Author: Kathleen Keating
488 pp. Fleur de Lis Media
$25.95
ISBN: 978-0-9708598-0-8