Book Analysis: THE EZEKIEL OPTION

Author: Joel C. Rosenberg
Publisher: Tyndale (June 2005; 413 pages; Hardcover)
ISBN: 1414303432
Genre: Suspense

Once upon a time it was unthinkable. Now the inevitable occurs. A hijacked airliner heads for Washington, DC on a suicide mission. Terrified passengers plot a desperate revolt. F-16s scramble to intercept, and the president of the United States is given no option. To save thousands of American lives on the ground, the plane must be shot down!

Meanwhile, in Moscow... senior White House advisor Jon Bennett prepares to seal the biggest deal of his life: he proposes marriage to CIA operative Erin McCoy. The couple's joy is ruthlessly numbed by news that shifts the geopolitical axis of the world. America has shot down a civilian Russian airliner loaded with innocent men, women, and children.

Bennett and McCoy's trusted contacts in Russia freeze up. As world opinion consolidates against America, the couple scramble to head off a domino chain of events toppling into line with a catastrophic Biblical prophecy.

The Ezekiel Option is worth reading for the author's insight into international events of the near future. Rosenberg has worked as a communications strategist for world leaders, and it shows in a dazzling familiarity with the fast-track lives of the powerful and influential, convincingly sweeping the reader into the inner circle of international politics. Reading this book is akin to hiring your own multimillion-dollar foreign affairs analyst for the price of a discounted hardback.

If that isn't enough reason to zip through this fascinating novel, then add rock solid point-of-view, a carefully crafted internal character arc, and a few well-placed action sequences that would do James Bond justice. Aside from one challenging scene early in the book (too much exposition crammed into dialogue introducing key characters), Rosenberg succeeds in translating complex geopolitical situations into a fast, well-written read. He juggles multiple globetrotting viewpoints with surety and more skill than I've seen demonstrated by some authors with many more novels to their credit. I felt this book could have sold well on the author's international reputation, but he obviously wasn't satisfied with anything less than a novel that could stand on its own merits.

Because end-time Bible prophecy serves as the backdrop--indeed, the main plot--of this novel, the story could have skidded into predictability. Rosenberg rescued it (and the reader) from this seemingly built-in fate by structuring strong subplots around Jon and Erin's devotion to each other and Jon's internal growth as a character. With larger events hurtling toward a pre-known conclusion, the reader still finds sufficient suspense in these other plotlines to maintain interest. Will Jon win the chance to recapture his fleeting happiness with Erin and make it permanent? Can his mentor resuscitate Jon's grief-battered faith?

One of the many things that impressed me with Rosenberg's story is the way he handles his take on Bible prophecy. He unveils with confident precision his theory of how certain key events will play out, which gives the story power. But at the same time he manifests astonishing control and restraint. He never browbeats the reader with, "This is the way it's going to be, and you'd better believe it!" His attitude comes through just as effectively in the characters as the action: earnest but patient.

Readers familiar with Ezekiel's prophecy or who don't agree with Rosenberg's prognostication of events will still learn something new. They'll certainly find plenty food for thought. They'll undoubtedly experience a very good read.