The Face of God - Bill Myers

This author seemed familiar to me, but I don't think that I have read him before.  This particular book drew me in with the topic and I was glad to give it a try.

Daniel is the pastor of a megachurch who has lost his passion.  After receiving a strange stone in the marketplace, things start to go badly.  When his wife is murdered, Daniel begins to question just about everything.  His faith, his relationships with people, especially his relationship with his son.  Before she died, his wife told him of a dream she had.  Once he gets home, his house is ransacked and it all comes back to the stone.

The stone itself appears to be one of 12 stones that make up the ancient priest's breastplate that, along with the Urim and Thummim, allow the wearer to hear the voice of God.  It is something that Daniel, along with other people, wants desperately to hear.

Ibrahim is a terrorist thinking that he is doing the will of Allah.  His plan is to set off bombs in various locations and release the smallpox virus on millions.  He seeks the stones to make sure that he is doing the will of Allah.  The people he is working with are not patient men and urge him to proceed without that information.

The pastor's team consists of his son, a Jewish archaeologist and the niece of the terrorist.  Aside from the son, each woman has their own agenda that they keep secret from Daniel and his son.  Time is running out and it seems that tragedy follows the stones.

The author mentions in the beginning that it is a violent book and urges readers under 17 to put off reading it until later.  To me, it wasn't that bad, and I'm a sensitive soul.  The author tended to get a little wordy at times and I found myself skimming a little bit, especially when Daniel is diving.  The formatting in the dialogue portions of the book is horrendous.  You have to make sure to watch for the beginning and end quotes to keep track of the speaker.

Aside from those minor issues, this was a great book.  The only issue I had with the story was the romantic tension between the archaeologist and the newly widowed pastor.  I think it would have been an easy thing to leave out and it wouldn't have really changed the story in my opinion.  There is a setup at the end for a sequel about the Tree of Life, but I couldn't find any record of a book about it.  Since this particular book was released originally in 2002, I don't think that it's out there.  Pity.  As for The Face of God, the author did a great job with a unique story and I recommend reading it.  Good Book!