Firstborn by Conlan Brown

Today I am introducing a new fiction author, Conlan Brown, and reviewing his book, Firstborn.

Book description:
The Firstborn, those gifted with Foresight, Hindsight, and Insight at the time of Christ's death are divided between themselves. And when an Islamic holy man is murdered outside of his mosque it becomes apparent that one of the Firstborn was to blame. Now, with the threat of a terrorist attack on an unspeakable target the Firstborn are spiraling out of control. Leaders are dying, members are being kidnapped, and unity is being forced. Three heroes, differently gifted and divided must work together to thwart those who would go too far.

Their breakneck race against time plunges them into a world of danger and through a gauntlet across the United States. From the Riverwalk of San Antonio, where Devin Bathurst, John Temple, and Hannah Rice must protect one another from assassination, to the gritty streets of Washington DC, a paramilitary compound in Pennsylvania, and ultimately back to our nation's capital, the Firstborn must unite to prevent an impending atrocity from becoming reality.

This book is one of the best Christian fiction novels I have read this year - and I read over 100 books this past year. The plot is a bit unusual - the author takes the idea that the people who rose from the dead when Jesus was crucified were given special supernatural abilities: Some can see the past, some the present - things going on apart from where they are - and the future. These 3 groups do not get along, and some of them have lost sight of their purpose - to protect people.

This novel is described as a "thriller" on the cover, and it is. There is a lot of action and suspense, yet it is definitely Christian in content and its message.

One can read too much into a fiction novel, but if I am correct, the message the author was trying to get across, is as Christians, we can lose our focus. Get so set on defeating evil and those who do not see eye to eye with us, that we lose our focus. And that we need each other, and unless we unite as Christians, we will be useless and will face defeat.

I highly recommend this book, and the sequel which I haven't read. This is definitely an author to watch.

This book is from Realms Publishing, an imprint of Strang Communications, and they are fairly new to the Christian fiction market, but I have really enjoyed and been impressed by anything I have read from their authors so far.

About the author:

Born in 1984, Conlan Brown was functionally illiterate until the fifth grade, when he learned how to read and write, as well as a love of story, from his grandmother. Conlan went on to start college at the age of sixteen, and now holds a Master's degree in Communication, which taught him the academic principles needed to write Firstborn.

Conlan lives on Colorado's Front Range where he is working on his next book. He enjoys video editing, film scores, and developing high octane, thought provoking fiction that turns pages and excites the senses.

Firstborn is available from Realms Publishing.

Thanks to Leann from Strang Communications for the review copy.