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The Bell Messenger: A Novel
| Our Price |
$ 16.99
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| Retail Value |
$ 19.99 |
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| You Save |
$ 3.00 (15%) |
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| Item Number |
83085 |
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Item Description...
Overview
Coming into possession of a rare historical Bible, recent graduate John Brandon traces the Bible's origins as a spiritual relic that was bequeathed by a dying Confederate priest to the Union soldier who shot him, a story with ties to a mysterious Old Testament treasure. Original. 50,000 first printing.
Publishers Description
A suspenseful yet touching story of a Civil war Bible that pops up again and again over a century and shapes the very history of the nation. This rich and involving historical and archeological thriller begins as a Union soldier, Tate, shoots a Confederate preacher known as the Bell Messenger and is bequeathed a worn Bible by the dying man. Tate's historical narrative parallels the contemporary story of John Brandon, who has just graduated college in 2000 and received the very same Bible, unearthed in a Saudi Arabian cave, as a gift. The potent history of this book is revealed as Brandon searches for its previous owners, along the way uncovering the existence of a mysterious cache of gold hidden during Old Testament times -- which brings shadowy figures hot on Brandon's heels, hungry for the gold and desperate to learn the new clues he possesses. As the past and present intertwine, the reader learns that this Bible has passed through many hands over the years. From the Civil War to the building of the Central Pacific Railroad, to the gang wars and the holding of Chinese slaves in nineteenth-century California, to the trenches of World War I, Brandon learns of the lives this Bible has saved, the deaths it has caused, and the history it has changed forever. |
Item Specifications...
Pages 285
Dimensions: Length: 0.75" Width: 5.5" Height: 8.5"
Weight: 0.62 lbs.
Binding Softcover
Release Date Sep 1, 2008
Publisher Howard Publishing
ISBN 1416549811
EAN 9781416549819
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Availability 100 units.
Availability accurate as of May 27, 2012 04:47.
Usually ships within one to two business days from La Vergne, TN.
Orders shipping to an address other than a confirmed Credit Card / Paypal Billing address may incur and additional processing delay.
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Reviews - What do our customers think?
 | Mostly loved it... May 11, 2010 |
| Great writing, loved the historical aspect and the characters...one could almost believe they were real. I do not have any patience for books that are not well written,as in skill level, so this read definitely made the cut. There were a couple of "fall in place" items that I loved where the author did not spell them out directly which I quite liked. The only thing is I felt the authors could have developed the ending a bit more as I would have liked a bit tidier ending. Maybe there is a second book coming? If there is, I would definitely purchase. | | | | Exciting Read Aug 24, 2009 |
| The Bell Messenger is a very exciting book. It traces the journey of a Bible given to a soldier during the Civil War, and the lives of people throughout the years that found it. This unique Bible creates and solves a mystery in the lives of everyone with whom it comes in contact. It's a very good discussion book for a book club. Bree Thomas | | | | Awesome book! Jan 18, 2009 |
| This was one of the best books I've read in a long time. I could not put it down. Well researched, well written, and will stick with me for a long time. | | |  | 3 1/2 Stars...Overall, a Valuable Tale Dec 29, 2008 |
For years, I've been an Alton Gansky fan. He mixes great imagination with biblically-based stories that rarely feel preachy. As a newcomer to the work of Robert Cornuke, I opened this novel with some reticence, fearing Gansky's name might be the selling tool for an otherwise inferior work.
To my surprise, the story drew me in immediately. Gansky's tight writing and fast-paced style mix well with Cornuke's background in history and biblical archaeology, creating a fascinating tale. Using a Civil War Bible as the thread that ties numerous lives and decades together, the story moves from American battlefields to Egyptian pyramids to the Western Front of the First World War. Although some of the threads don't leave us much time to become emotionally invested in the characters, each section is nicely wrought and delivered with detailed authenticity. The sections in San Francisco receive the most time and, therefore, touched me the most deeply.
As the story and its multiple mysteries come to a close, all the threads are tied off tidily--almost to a fault. The coincidences between the overlapping lives begin to stretch credulity, yet I was willing to keep with it due to the authors' obvious research. In the end, it is a satisfying tale, particularly for those who like their Christian fiction to wrap up with a moral lesson.
One of Gansky's more recent novels ("Angel") seemed to become an extended sermon at the end, and "The Bell Messenger" also follows that formula for success in the Christian market. For me, the pedantic approach robs a very good story of some of its power, hitting me over the head with its truths rather than letting them simmer in my heart and mind. Nevertheless, it's a well-told tale and a valuable lesson. | | | | Cornuke is the real Indiana Jones, and a master storyteller, too. Oct 2, 2008 |
Cornuke's new book is an exciting page-turner that is a travelogue to exotic places and times. But this is more than a great historic novel with clashing cultures and adventure. The central foil of this story is not a person, but an old Bible which is the vehicle Cornuke uses to explore the lives of people who come in contact with it, starting in the Civil War and ending in our modern day. The story jumps back and forth in time, but is never confusing. Cornuke's casual writing style belies his extensive research and personal on-site experience with the locales and people featured in this riveting new book. His characters come alive as real people with likable personalities who face the kind of moral dilemmas and incremental decisions that transform people into heroes or villains; the small steps which we later recognize as leading to strengthened character or turning points preceding personal decline.
A master storyteller, Cornuke is able to add amazing depth to his fictional characters who come across as authentic, probably because they are, in reality, compilations of real people encountered by the author during his years as a police Crime Scene Investigator and SWAT team member in the L.A. area, or more recently as an adventurer in Africa and the Middle East. After leaving police work, Cornuke became the real-life Indiana Jones around the same time that Harrison Ford made the role popular. Cornuke's real archeological adventures rival anything Hollywood imagined for their fictional hero, which makes it possible for Cornuke to develop characters that are plausible, and a storyline that is rife with excitement.
I give "The Bell Messenger" a strong two-thumbs-up recommendation. I can't wait for Cornuke's next novel which I understand will be even better than this one - a feat that is hard to imagine since his first effort in this genre is already in the I-couldn't-put-it-down category.
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