Accustomed Dreaming

Thomas is becoming more and more accustomed to his odd way of life. He now lives two lives in two worlds with two similar sets of laws that guide both worlds. The first, his world that he is used to living in, you breath air, drink water, eat meat and love is more of an embarassing thing at the start for most people. While, in this more enhanced, almost more alert world he wakes up to he is able to sometimes breath water, and the fruit of the land is the only thing he needs to eat, also love is more envigorating and easier to engage in. A woman simply chose him and off he went on The Great Romance.

Thomas is still confused about why this is suddenly happening to him and what he should do under these circumstances. He has no clue how to proceed, so he is just trying to get information about this new world and find out why he was put there. Now Thomas is becoming a deeper, richer character. You are finding out what makes him nervous, what he finds adventurous and what he just doesn't ever think he can or wants to do.

THR3E - The Trailer

This is a movie based off of another novel written by Ted Dekker. It seems that my earlier conclusion about the underlying correlation between Christianity and this book is true. Dekker seems to be a secular author who practices the Christian faith and incorperates it in small ways into his novels. So, you can be sure that although this is a horror film it is a clean one. I may go see it. Enjoy,

A Necessary Ally

Thomas is staying at his sister's house when all this happens to be going on. He came home after being shot at and a bullet grazing his head slightly, and slept into this new "Dream-World". When his sister eventually came home from her job as a Nurse at Major Hospital in Denver, she noticed his large laceration on his head and immediately delivered first aid to her brother. Thomas then got around to letting her know about his money problems and his unpaid $100,000 loan from a loan-shark. Now they are in the midst of figuring out what is going on inside Thomas' head. He seems to be the only person who can figure out how to stop this epidemic from spreading, or maybe he can even stop it from even being produced. What I'm thinking now though, is that perhaps since he doesn't understand what he is doing really he will do something worse that what his intentions are. I'll have to read on to figure out this plotline, hopefully i can do it before i get to the end.

An Unknowing Hero

Thomas is confused, very confused. He has no clue whats going on really, and this fantasy world he lives in with man-eating black bats and wise, kind white bats just doesn't make sense to him. For a second it felt like the book might be a tad bit too far over the weird line for me but i pushed forward and have found it isn't as odd as it first sounds like. He lives on an "alternate earth". With a distinct distinguished divide between Good and Evil. Elyon represents the God in this story, and is pure Good. He wants everyone to be happy, and just as a human is hurt when he is betrayed, Elyon is hurt whenever someone betrays him. There is also an evil represented in this book, and it is very odd in the way that this story line corresponds with that which you see in the Bible. One of God's Angels defects and is sent to rule over Hell, in the same way, one of Elyon's "Roush" (these are basically mystical creatures there to guide and protect the humans) betrays him and leads the Black (evil) Bats in the Black Forest. I still think it is fascinating how subtle this is but how obvious it can be to find when you actually think about it. Just like C.S. Lewis has so many things that relate with the Bible or Christianity, it seems that perhaps Dekker might do some similar things. But I will have to find out later in the story line to confirm this.

Exodus

The story begins with the preface, though, this particular preface is actually quite important in my opinion. It is entitled simply Switzerland and it lays out the relationship between the two main antagonists in the novel. This preface is basically giving you more information than you can understand. It is telling you what you will find out half way through the book, but because you don't understand what these facts mean, you forget them until later.

Chapter 1 then begins with Thomas Hunter, I like the way that Dekker starts off the trilogy with action. Immediately upon entering this plot-line you find Thomas wrapped up in an intense fight which he did not expect. Walking down a dark alleyway of all places he is shot at, and throughout the course of this chase and after a hand-to-hand combat scene, you learn of Thomas' new "ability". To me, this ability is the strangest part and most unique part of this book because it hasn't been done, or at least not done well before. He lives now in two alternate realities, and must presume both are as real as the other. When I read how Thomas finds himself in a densely wooded forest of black trees with a man named Bill, I make a mental note that the fact that bill drank out of this water which Thomas decided was not good to drink out of, and the fact that he just went bolting in to the woods, meant that I would, or rather Thomas would, encounter him later on during the story.

It's all these tie-ins that make you feel good about remembering all the intricate details he lays out for you, you don't necessarily need to remember them to enjoy the book, but if you really pay attention it is more rewarding.

So far, I'm enjoying this book very much. I was told not to simply give a synopsis of the contents of each chapter for every post I make so I'll just be giving you scattered details which hopefully won't entirely ruin your experience when you read this book, but will enrich your thoughts about it after you do.

- Alex

Introduction

Ted Dekker was born and raised in Indonesia, and now lives in the Mountains of Colorado. His first novel, THR3E was an Award-Winning Best-Seller; Dekker's subtlety and masterful weaving of his story continues to keep readers glued to the page in his new novel, Black.Black is a complicated book, it is fantasy but it is believable. It goes from the main protaganist, Thomas Hunter, to multiple antagonists, ranging from a scientist bent on world domination to his trained assassin. These characters all interact indirectly at first, until eventually they meet together in somewhat of a "Grand Battle" of sorts. As if going between these two sections of plotline wasn't enough, there is another plotline added to this story which really makes it unique, not just a "Thomas will beat the scientist and save the world" just like every other hero book. When Thomas falls asleep he wakes up in a different world, an alternate reality, a seperate universe. His life in each world is serperate but still connected, learning a new skill such as hand-to-hand combat in this fantasy world will carry over to the world he is used to. Thomas must find himself and learn how to stop this dangerous scientist before he unleashes a worldwide epidemic which would wipeout the entire population without 2-3 weeks.