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Nathan James Norman

Husband. Father. Pastor.
Storyteller. Reader. Comic Fan.
Slave of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Orchard Church

Review: The Maze

4/21/2013

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Summary: Jamie Burroughs, a suburban insurance salesman has been making a series of bad moral decisions. On the verge of cheating on his wife, he is assaulted by an angel-masked man and awakens inside a dark labyrinth. And while he may be the only human inside the maze . . . he’s not alone. Jamie must find a way to escape the maze – built around his vices – to not just save his life, but the lives of his wife and son as well.

Review: I almost want to categorize The Maze as a spiritual allegory. But that would be over-simplifying Jason Brannon’s supernatural suspense novel. The backdrop of the story focuses on Jamie’s spiritual fight against his own sinful desires (the flesh), but there are also strong themes of family drama, interpersonal conflict and spiritual warfare that undergird the narrative.

Brannon has created a very unique world in the Maze that infuses mythological Greek characters into the Christian worldview he presents. And it works well.

I had a few qualms with the book, however. First, the pacing of the book right after Jamie enters the maze began to get really slow. At one point I wondered if the rest of the book was going to consist of Jamie wandering from room to room, repenting of his sins, then moving to the next room. Fortunately, this is not the case, and the pace picks up as soon as he encounters the Minotaur face to face. Additionally, there were a few moments where Brannon deflated the tension of the story a little too quickly. And at times Jamie’s transgressions felt a bit too generic, rather than the harmful sins they actually were.

But The Maze is a great supernatural thriller. Fans of speculative fiction and contemporary supernatural drama (infused with a touch of horror) will really enjoy the book. I would also recommend the novel to individuals who need to get a good picture of the effects of their harmful desires, and the constant battle it takes to overcome them.

On a last note, while the novel has a very satisfying ending and works well as a stand alone book, Brannon leaves open the possibilities for a sequel and I really hope to see one (especially if it focuses on one of the antagonists as the main character)! I’ll be one of the first in line to read it!

Rating: 4/5 Stars (I really liked it)

(Only $1.00 on Kindle!)

The Maze - The Lost Labyrinth (Suspense Thriller)
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