If you like Indiana Jones, then you'll like what Don Hosesel has created in Elisha's Bones. It has all the great elements of suspense and mystery tied up tightly with very well executed story telling. Plus, there is enough humor to release a bit of tension--but, not too much. It's just right.
Is it plausible? In the exact same way that the Temple of Doom is plausible. Don't mistake me, I'm quite sure that God's power far exceeds anything that is claimed by Elisha's bones. And, this story is based upon a most wonderful and overlooked Scripture passage. After Elisha died and he was put in a tomb, some men tossed a dead man into that tomb and the body touched Elisha's bones and came back to life.
Hosesel turns that little known passage into a global trot to find the bones. The protagonist is Jack Hawthorne (picture Harrison Ford in the Last Crusade). We meet a lot of characters that Jack had known when he was an active archeologist. He has put all that behind him after his brother died in Egypt, so now he's a professor. Once he's presented with this fantastical story, his archeological juices start to flow and he can't resist spending his Christmas vacation searching for the bones.
Hosesal does an excellent job in developing the characters. They are all believable and quite charming--well, except for the villians who are also quite believable. The storyline runs smoothly and there aren't any sudden halts or jump starts because the story never bogs down. You are on a very fast ride to the end, which is very satisfying by the way.
The only thing that makes me wonder is why the protag didn't pick up on the fact that he was leaving a path of destruction earlier in the story. But, then I remember we all have a tendency to stay focused on what is ahead rather than reflecting on what's behind when things start blowing up on us and bullets pepper our surroundings (and friends) like highly seasoned chili.
Run go buy this book! It is well worth the money and it is a keeper.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Don Hoesel was born and raised in Buffalo, NY but calls Spring Hill, TN home. He is a Web site designer for a Medicare carrier in Nashville, TN. He has a BA in Mass Communication from Taylor University and has published short fiction in Relief Journal.He lives in Spring Hill with his wife and two children.
Elisha's Bones is his first novel.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Every year, professor of antiquities Jack Hawthorne looks forward to the winter break as a time to hide away from his responsibilities. Even if just for a week or two. But this year, his plans are derailed when he's offered almost a blank check from a man chasing a rumor.Billionaire Gordon Reese thinks he knows where the bones of the prophet Elisha are--bones that in the Old Testament brought the dead back to life. The bones of the prophet once raised the dead to life... but they vanished from history in a whisper.
Bankrolled by a dying man of unlimited means, Hawthorne's hunt spans the globe and leads him into a deadly conspiracy older than the church itself. A born skeptic, Jack doesn't think much of the assignment but he could use the money, so he takes the first step on a chase for the legendary bones that will take him to the very ends of the earth.
But he's not alone. Joined with a fiery colleague, Esperanza Habilla, they soon discover clues to a shadowy organization whose long-held secrets have been protected . . . at all costs. And he soon discovers those sworn to keep the secret of the bones will do anything to protect them. As their lives are threatened again and again, the real race is to uncover the truth before those chasing them hunt them down.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Elisha's Bones, go HERE
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