Review: Engaging Suspenseful Great Read!!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 27, 2014
Journey into the Deepby Guy Stanton IIIStanton's notariety for delving into a genre seldom visited in Christian fiction has offered us a new series, Water Wars.  The first book in the series, Journey into the Deep, offers suspense, intrigue, romance, mystery, supernatural occurences, parallel worlds, and a candid look at the depravity of mankind.  We are introduced to Eli and his crew as they embark on a dangerous journey unlike any they have taken before.  Eli is a treaure hunter and is good at what he does. He is doing so just to survive as he lives in bitterness and self-loathing after the deaths of his wife and two young daughters. He stumbles onto something much larger than ever imagined, an artifact with ties to Atlantis or civil-war era ships laden with wealth, plantation families and slaves.  Soon he finds a calling to more than treasure hunting.Journey into the Deep took me a few chapters to get into but once I did I was hooked.  Stanton mixes a lot of real history in with his fiction and at times I find myself trying to recall which is which.  I also remind myself the biblical references are also part of his story and unless a direct quote from the Bible to keep my fiction mindset separate from scripture interpretation.  I do enjoy the truths of the walk with Christ his characters reflect. One thing I do not understand is why Stanton doesn't in story come right out and say marriage.  In this time period marriage would have been the recognized way of securing a life mate. So why avoid it completely?The battle of good and evil and alertness of spiritual warfare are an intense part of our story with vivid descriptions of the creatures and the places of these battles.  Also threaded throughout is personal brokeness and the healing process. Eli, our captain is a broken, bitter man when we meet him.  He thinks his life is over and seeks nothing that requires giving of himself.  He would as soon die as live.  Katurah, who we meet later has suffered horrible autrocities leaving her disfunctional in some areas.  We see through the need for, and the availabilty for healing and restoration. Stanton brilliantly weaves these real-life things in an adventure story filled with sea monsters, giants and such.Stanton's writing style is heavy on description which is often necessary.  The storyline flows well with no transition problems. His development of characers is good. He gives us a deep look into Eli's heart making us want to know him and look forward to his next adventure.  We see Matt and other crew members as they relate to each other and then ultimately how they battle in the end. We also are given a look at Keturah who is fascinating.  Stanton's characters are so unique one can only imagine how he comes up with them.I highly recommend this book!