The Second Coming: A Love Story by Scott Pinsker

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America is split into two when two men claiming to be the saviors returned to Earth. But when everything isn't always as it seems can they distinguish between the truth and lies. Find the official description on Goodreads. 

At first I thought the writing was very high and mighty which was very appropriate for the first scenes but then it slightly settled a bit and the writing settled a bit more into something I enjoyed much more.

It was certainly an interesting plot and debate. Although there did seem to be some theology(or maybe that was just me) but overall The Second Coming: A Love Story grabbed my attention. IT did slow down a bit at points but there would always be something to grab my attention.

And then there was the fun in trying to distinguish between who is the actual second coming and who wasn't. Every time you'd think you had it figured out something would happen to make you doubt yourself. I'm not even sure who was who when I finished the book.

The ending was different and unexpected. The Second Coming:A Love Story was an interesting read, for sure.

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The Seventh Sentinel by Yolanda Ramos

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"He'd always known, deep inside, that there was more waiting for him out there, something to put his, to put their, considerable fighting skills to use."-Yolanda Ramos, The Seventh Sentinel

Christiano, AKA Cormac was raised by a man who knew he was destined to do great things .When his adoptive father is killed, he starts discovering his past and his present quickly becomes more interesting than he might be able to handle. But with the help of Archangels, the best of friends and six other men that are similar to him how can he fail? Cormac is the Seventh Sentinel and he will help save the souls of the world. Find the official description on Goodreads.

The beginning of this book definitely catches the readers attention. And that's a really good thing. I know that I, personally, find it hard to read a book if the first chapter or the prologue doesn't catch my attention. I can still find it interesting and fall in love but until I do it is hard to keep reading. But Yolanda Ramos didn't run into that problem. And we see this scene that we don't fully understand but quickly comes to hold a lot of meaning throughout The Seventh Sentinel.

I loved the similes that were used as well. They were unique and stood out to me. Although for the life of me there was this one that really stood out in my mind but I forgot to highlight it and now can't find it. 

While the reader isn't omnipotent, we do get third person perspectives from a variety of characters. This allows us to get a glimpse into the motives of people but at the same time they still can remain a bit of a mystery. Mostly because we don't get glimpses into all of their motives and just like a human being we're not necessarily going to be able to catch on to what they're doing or why.

Not to mention that all of the historical facts that I read and recognized were correct. I'm not saying I'm perfect or an expert but there didn't seem to be any historical facts that were out of place or wrong. Which is good. It always shows that the author is willing to put in the work for their readers.

A lot of the motives behind the rogues behavior seems to be a desire for more power, and more money. It made them seem lifelike as it always seems that a lot of the criminal behavior in the real world seems to involve at least one of these motives. I just feel like it made things realistic.

It was also interesting to catch a glimpse at history that I've always just seen as an event and never really gotten to read anything more about it. So that was really, really interesting, especially because I knew of it but not more than what it was, when and why. I didn't read any first hand accounts or those of the ancient historians.

There are fun scenes, sad scenes, annoying scenes, action scenes, everything any person could possibly want. And The Seventh Sentinel seems to come full circle in a way, at least location wise. 

The Seventh Sentinel is a good, solid read, and I think that if you have the slightest interest in any kind of ancient history, or the ancient church or even just angels and  things like that than you should give it a read. 

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Idolism by Marcus Herzig

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"So, although Julian always claimed not to be religious himself, I didn't believe a single word of it." -Marcus Herzig, Idolism

Julian and his friends rise to fame is bumpy. Mostly because Julian just can't help but stir up controversy. But when the time comes to choose, will they give up who they are? or will the bonds of friendship hold true? Find the official description on  Goodreads.

Idolism deals with a topic almost guaranteed to stir up controversy; Religion. But Marcus Herzig handles the topic carefully and I didn't really find anything that could annoy people who are religious. It seemed to present the different believes of the characters as their own believes and didn't put down other religions in order to put one religion before the other. He handled the religious aspect carefully and with respect. Throughout the book, he presents character's opinions as just that, opinions, not fact. It kept things from becoming too harsh or frustrating to the readers.

The chapters were short and narrated by different characters. There were four or five who narrated the book and each chapter saw a different character from the previous chapter speaking. Strangely we never get a chapter from Julian. This made him much more mysterious and his actions much more unexplained and difficult to anticipate. It lent an air of surprise to the book and more specifically his actions. However because of the shortness of many of the chapters and the amount of characters I didn't feel as deep a connection with the characters as I usually would. I did enjoy hearing their different voices and things like that but I didn't feel as if I was in the book, more like I was reading it. If you get what I mean. One thing I didn't really like was that the chapters tended to start with a short reiteration of what had happened before but from a different point of view. While it gave readers a different outlook on things, it could also be annoying and redundant.

Julian was extremely intelligent and many times explained what he meant if he made a comment that people might be questioning. However as we get deeper into the book, it seemed as if his explanations were becoming more like lectures. Some of them were interesting but others I found myself wanting to skim over after a while because they seemed to be going too long or weren't keeping my attention.

Idolism seemed to draw connections between religion and fame, some more obvious, while others were less so. But reading the book, I could understand the reasoning behind these connections and in some ways they seem familiar at least when viewed within the context of this book.

Idolism is a solid book meant to make readers think. At times you'll find yourself wishing things were a bit more interesting but then it picks up a bit and you'll be reading on easily.

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A Silent Prayer by Samreen Ahsan

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"...and then she leaves me in the darkness that she has cast on me with her one last look." -Samreen Ahsan, A Silent Prayer

Adam Gibson has it all...or so everyone thinks. But when he runs into the religious Rania, and has several unexplainable incidents he can't help but find himself reconsidering his life and religious choices when she enters her life. But Rania has a brutal past that is determined to haunt her, one that she can't leave behind her. Will Adam be able to gain and keep her trust? Or will everything shatter like glass? Find the official description on Goodreads.

A Silent Prayer is told from a first person perspective. The chapters switch between Rania and Adam. At first, when I found out that the chapters would be separated this way, I thought there might be confusion. But it was quite clear throughout the book whose chapter you were on and who was telling their story. Their thoughts were clear and it was easy to determine which chapter was which. I enjoyed reading each character's chapters and gaining understanding about their pasts and present. As well as the thoughts that went through their heads. It was interesting and made it simple to understand what was going through their heads at any time.

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