I, Saul

"A young seminary professor, Augustine Knox, is drawn into a deadly race to save priceless parchments from antiquities thieves and discovers a two-thousand-year old connection with another who faced death for the sake of the truth.  I, Saul consists of two riveting adventures in one, transporting you between the stories of Augustine Knox and Paul of Tarsus.

Filled with political intrigue, romance, and rich historical detail, I, Saul is a thrilling tale of loyal friendships tested by life-or-death quests, set two millennia apart, told by a master storyteller."  (From the back dustcover of I, Saul, written by Christian author Jerry B. Jenkins with James S. MacDonald.)

I've always been a huge fan of Jerry Jenkins, so I might not be the best to write an impartial review.  However, personally I feel a review that offers what I LIKE about a project can prove just as valuable as a review that only breaks down the problems of a book as well.

As always, Mr. Jenkins puts a good amount of effort into character development in his books.  Making your characters believable is one of the biggest challenges of making your story believable. 

He does have one habit that drives me crazy (but really in a good way).  You will be reading along in one of the two sub-stories, its building to a climax ... something is about to happen ... and POOF!  You switch to the other story! 

Dr. Augustine "Augie" Knox is following in his father's footsteps.  His father is a senior professor at a prestigious (albeit small) theological seminary in Texas.  Augie has long lived in his father's shadow.  While the Senior Dr. Knox can recite chapter and verse of the Word of God, and can expound on apologetics, exegesis and theology, he does not seem to have the one thing important in sharing the message of the Gospel.  He does not have love.  Clearly, he has a passion for knowledge.  But he is loved.  Augie's mother Marie is the stark antithesis of his father Edsel.  She has the knowledge of Jesus love, but she also shows that love as a lamp shines the light of the flame within.  While Augie has some challenges, he is learning to show both sides of his heritage, with his father's intellect and his mother's compassion and passion.

Augie is contacted by a friend.  Roger is in trouble and reaches out to his friend.  He needs Augie to come to Rome, but he also needs Augie to destroy his cell phone which he tells him is now compromised.  What has Roger gotten himself into?

In first century Rome, the Apostle Paul is awaiting execution by the Roman authorities.  He has asked his friend Luke to assist him, to keep him alive until his execution.  He also needs Luke to bring his manuscripts to him.  Paul is writing of his early life, of his upbringing.  As a youth, young Saul wanted more than anything to walk with God as the Patriarchs did.  To his young mind, this meant that he needed to learn everything that they knew, to walk with the Law of Moses precisely, to become the greatest of all Pharisees.  We learn of the lessons Saul gained, sometimes painfully in seeking such a goal.

Near the end of the story, a detail of an unsolved puzzle is spoken of ... and is not resolved.  I wrote to Mr. Jenkins on his Facebook page and asked him if the puzzle would be resolved in his next book, I, Paul, which is due out in 2014?  His reply:  You're kidding, right?