AudioMysteries.Net

Title: Book Of Names
Author: Jill Gregory
Audiobook: 2007
Reader: Christopher Graybill
Unabridged
Length: 9 hours

Ears: 2

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After the phenomenal success of The Da Vinci Code it is no surprise that others would attempt a blending of the religious with a thriller. While Jill Gregory’s The Book of Names has similarities to the longtime best seller the author focuses on the supernatural rather than the religious and political overtones that made the Dan Brown novel so popular and at the same time controversial.

This time the Jewish faith of Cabalism is the force behind saving the world. (Apparently this isn’t the Cabalism practiced by Madonna.) David Shepherd one of these great guy heroes, only found in this sort of book, needs to save his step daughter, one of the “names”, Lamed-Vovniks, the 36 pure souls whose existence protects all of humanity from sure disaster. Shepard has a back story that goes back to a key incident in his childhood when he and two companions fell from a snow-covered roof. Since that time he has been beset with voices that seem to yell out names of people he doesn’t know; which he a studiously written them down in a journal.

There is a lot of action that keeps the listener engaged; including near escapes from assassination attempts, the unfortunate deaths of those trying to help and a clever diversion in an airport security line, all as they try to stop the Dark Angels from killing the last of 36.

One thing you quickly learn from a book like this is why Dan Brown was successful. While Brown is not much for dialog, he certainly knew how to build a plot based on historical speculation. Gregory and her co-author, Karen Tintori, resort to clichés rather than research and invention. Too much of the action seems over-the-top with the Dark Angels popping up all over the place including Flagstaff, Arizona.

Yet, I found this book a great diversion on a long drive from Hereford, Arizona to Palm Springs, California and then on to San Diego. Christopher Graybill reads with authority getting the various accents, Italian, Israeli, Yiddish just about right. This is the sort of audio book you that is great company on a long drive or flight.

Reviewed on 11/27/07 by Robert W. Karp