Dale Allan

"You had me at hello" Oops ... that's from a popular movie.

But this book definitely had me at the first paragraph! I could not put the book down.

The story is about twin brothers who were raised by a Jewish father and Catholic mother. Aaron chose to follow the Jewish faith, while Luke became a priest in the Catholic faith. This is just the beginning of well developed, deeply thoughtful characters of this story.

In the first 3 pages, Aaron is killed at a political event in a bombing. After not speaking to each other for a year, Luke is devastated by the news that his twin brother is dead, and determines to find the killer. He feels the authorities are not doing enough to find the person or people responsible for the bombing.

Characters are from all walks of life: political, Muslim (far East), homeless, and even extremely wealthy. Each character has a unique role in the story and helps Luke dig deep into his heart to discover if a priest - one who claims to love God - can seek vengeance and still be a Christian.

As the story comes to it's finish, this question is answered in a very unique and even miraculous way. And the answer proves that God will provide a way of escape when confronted with our biggest temptations.

The story ends in a way that made me feel sad the story was done - but leaves hope another fantastic story by Allan will follow! (?)

Dale Allan hit the ball out of the park with his debut novel. I greatly anticipate further writings by him and have no doubt his books will be a hit with readers of all kinds.

I received this book from bookfun for my honest opinion. Thank you!… (mere)

A Prayer for the Devil
By Dale Allan
Hardback Copy

This is not a title I would have picked up just looking at it, but I am really glad that I had a chance to read it.
The family of Luke and Aaron Miller are all thrown into a tailspin when a bomb is set off during a political speech. Aaron was the campaign manager, and on the fast track to running for President himself. There were also other important people, who were killed in the blast, but to Luke, the twin brother left behind, the death of his brother Aaron was all consuming.
Luke and Aaron were the children of a Jewish father and a Catholic mother. The children were raised Jewish, but Luke changed to become Catholic during his high school years and eventually went into the Priesthood. Luke has, at times, the tendency to feel things he shouldn’t be feeling. But, what he did, seeking out the truth behind the bombing lead him on an exciting and suspense-filled story.
The author, Dale Allan, wrote an exceptional mystery, suspense and faith-filled story. The characters are exactly what you would think they would be if you had to describe them. The push and the pull of the story keep you reading from front to back. I read the book in two days, didn’t like to put it down at all. You have got to read this book to see what happens in the end, but are sure and enjoy the journey along the way.
I think this book is a perfect example of Christian Fiction with suspense, mystery, faith, love, life, and a little fear thrown in. I can heartily recommend this book.
I received this book from bookfun.org in exchange for an honest review.… (mere)

Prayer for the Devil....i am not sure that another title might not have been more appropriate, and also might have more picking up this book or ebook, as the case might be, which is really too bad as this is a fantastic novel that I would highly recommend. I do realize that the publicity group of the publishers does the marketing The main character is a catholic priest, having be raised as a Jew (his father was a Jew) which of course adds the affiliation of religions into the mix of intrigue and suspense. I am not a catholic, and this does not add or detract from the story except as noted above. In the midst of all the action and drama, I was able to pause and reflect on the motives and the responses of the characters. This is a fast paced novel, and the ending comes too soon, and although there is nothing to indicate that a sequel is soon to be released or even in the works, I am thinking there will be, because the answers to the questions just lead to more, and I will be anxiously waiting to hear more from Dale Allen and Luke Miller.
Thank you to Fred and Nora at bookclub.org for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I was given a free book in exchange for an honest review.… (mere)

This review first appeared on my blog: http://www.knittingandsundries.com/2012/12/a-prayer-for-devil-by-dale-allan-book...

Luke Miller is a Catholic priest who was raised Jewish and disowned by his father when he gave up a UMASS scholarship for the seminary. His identical twin brother Aaron is high on the political scene, working as a campaign manager for Brad Thompson, a serious presidential candidate.

Luke's world is knocked off its foundation when Aaron is killed in an explosion that also takes the life of Brad Thompson and his wife. The two brothers, who had stopped speaking to each other the year before over a development deal, will now never have the chance to reconcile.

With the investigation focused on the now-dead candidate, Luke finds himself drawn into the mystery of the explosion. Was it the mob? Was it a terrorist attack? With an unlikely allies such as a homeless couple and a Muslim woman, Luke sets out on a journey that takes him as far as Riyadh to find the truth.

This is a well-turned mystery - one that does keep the reader guessing, as there are some twists and unlikely turns. I did enjoy it, despite some quibbles that I had with it. One quibble - the portrayal of Muslims and the not-so-subliminal messages that Islam is basically evil. Another quibble (along the same lines) - the mislabeling of Sharia law as derived from two primary sources of Islamic law - Sharia law is actually a man-made deliberate misinterpretation of the Quran, twisted to fit the purposes of those who took it upon themselves to interpret it thus. I feel that we shouldn't be so quick to point fingers at other religions. As a Christian, I'm well aware of the bloody history of most major religions, including my own. ANY religion or religious text can be twisted out of context to justify many injustices; that doesn't make the base of the religion murderous or evil. MAN is responsible for those injustices - not the Bible or the Quran.

So ... off my soapbox there :)

There were also some points during the reading where the writing felt a bit awkward and stiff, but only here and there. As the mystery began to wrap up, I was drawn in enough to have a very uneasy feeling about it all and there was a scene or two that made me extremely sad.

All in all, if you like a good, clean mystery that still has enough bite to keep its edge, this would make a good choice.

QUOTE (from a galley; may be different in the final copy):

He nodded as she reached up and removed the white linen Roman collar from his shirt while pulling him down to place a black kippah on his head. "Luke, just for today, don't be a Catholic, be a Jew."

Writing: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Plot: 4 out of 5 stars
Characters: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Reading Immersion: 3.5 out 5 stars

BOOK RATING: 3.6 out of 5 stars… (mere)