Absolutely terrible This is one of the worst books I've ever read. There really wasn't a cohesive plot, the characters were all cartoonish and the mythology was completely jumbled together. If I could have given this negative stars I would have.
Great book, can't wait for 3rd part of the trilogy!!! I just finished reading Resurrection, and I thought it was great. I am a huge fan of Steve Alten. This is another great book in his collection.Mayra Calvani -- TCM REVIEWS Resurrection compasses many years--from 2012 to 2033, and ultimately deals with the eternal conflict of good versus evil.
The premise begins with a 500-year old prophesy: Hero Twins will be born to fight The Underworld and save humanity from destruction. On December 21, 2012--the end of the Mayan calendar--Jacob and Immanuel are born, both genetically-gifted and azure-eyed. But on the same day another being is born--Lilith. She's just as genetically gifted and azure-eyed as the twins, but, unlike the twins, she's the embodiment of evil. In order to save humanity, the twins must resurrect their father from the underworld, but first they must battle Lilith, whose immense power comes from the Dark Lord himself. Will the twins succeed in fighting off evil and save their father and the world?
Though a fan of Steven Alten's novels, I found this book disappointing. Though the theme is ambitious and the author obviously did a huge amount of research, the myth and legends and how they were interwoven with the plot is sometimes abstract and confusing. I found myself skipping over long "information" paragraphs to follow the story. Unlike MEG and The Loch, where the author revolves the action around a main character the reader can identify with, Resurrection has many characters of equal importance, none particularly sympathetic, making it impossible to identify with just one hero or heroine. That said, this is a novel that might interest those readers passionate about SF mixed with Mayan culture and myth.
A big improvement over Domain When I first bought Steve Alten's Resurrection - based primarily on the back-of-the-book plot summary - I hadn't realized it was a sequel to another book called Domain. In an effort for completeness, I decided to buy and read Domain first...and was really disappointed. Domain was a subpar book and when it came time to read Resurrection, it was with no real enthusiasm; I'd forked over the money, however, so I felt I should give it a shot. I was happy and surprised to find that Resurrection is a far better book than its predecessor.
The story starts off where the first book left off (so if you haven't read that one, there are spoilers ahead). Dominique Vasquez finds herself pregnant with twins. After the world-threatening events of the prior novel, these future children are being regarded as potential messiahs, and even in infancy, it is apparent that there is something special about them. Both are highly gifted, but only Jacob is willing to embrace his abilities. For twin brother Immanuel, his destiny is more of a curse; all he wants is a normal life.
Meanwhile, another child is born at the same time with a background that is a twisted mirror image of the twins. For this girl - with the dangerous name of Lilith - there is the potential for great evil. Twisted by schizophrenia and a childhood filled with a vicious, perverted stepfather, she embraces the dark side easily enough. She is a threat to the twins, who eventually take desperate measures to stay away from her.
As the twins reach adulthood, Jacob prepares for an epic duel that is supposed to resurrect his father Michael (who either died or went to another reality at the end of the last book). It will only work if Immanuel participates, and he is both unwilling and unbelieving.
The story plays with the idea of destiny and time. Are these characters locked into their fates? Are they merely reincarnations about to replay the same story again? The answers to these questions lead to the twists and turns at the end of the story (and into the final book in the trilogy, the upcoming Phobos).
This book is not without its problems. New facts about the characters (especially Michael) seem vaguely inconsistent with the first story. In addition, the final confrontations in the book are somewhat muddled, as the battles are mixed with the warped logic of time travel and false realities. And, as with the first novel, Alten often relies on pseudoscience that has long since been debunked (such as the Bible Code).
But there are good things in this story, too. Overall, the story is well-plotted and the writing much more interesting than the first book. This is a fun tale of good vs. evil. It may be imperfect, but somehow, it works this time, and is a good reward for persevering through Domain.
Great Book, Bad Politics I really enjoyed this book. There is multiple parts of it I disagree with. I do not agree with Alten's perspective on American politics or society, but once you move past his opionion and into the details of the book, you have an amazing story!
