Review: First Rate!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 3, 2014
I received a free copy of **the Prediction** by *Darren Sugrue* from **StoryCartel.com** in exchange for an honest review. I couldn't be happier with my choice in this case. Many books available on StoryCartel are written by authors with whom I am unfamiliar, but I have come across some very good books at that site, and will continue to look there for books that might interest me. **The Premonition** turned out to be an outstanding book worthy of 5 Stars, and I will be watching for anything else this author publishes.**The Premonition** is about several different things, but for me it was mostly about a person's devotion to what he believes in so strongly he will put aside everything else to believe in himself when no one else will.When the book begins, Daniel Geller has been working as a crane operator for the past 10 years. He is married and has a son, and while being a crane operator is not what he envisioned himself doing for a living for the rest of his vocational life, he accepts his life for what it is. His bills get paid, his family is a happy one, there really isn't anything he wants or needs that he doesn't have.  Ten years ago, the situation was different. Daniel submitted his doctoral thesis to the mathematical faculty at Trinity. The thesis was based upon Daniel's ability to predict someone's date of death using involved mathematical equations and data he collected from various places that would have a bearing on a person's life span. The faculty at Trinity decided not to support Daniel's thesis nor did his mentor at that time. Daniel was crushed by their decision. He gave up all his work, left the woman he loved with no explanation, and moved on to what most would consider a humdrum life of merely getting by but not participating in anything other than living one day at a time with little to no enthusiasm. For Daniel, life was something to do until something better came along, although nothing better ever did.Until the day John Redmond showed up at Daniel's construction site to tell him that a prediction he made 10 years ago came true. A man named Brian Nolan had died exactly on the date Daniel said he would. That prompted Redmond to get in touch with Geller to ask him to work on his thesis again, only this time Redmond would not abandon him. What Daniel didn't know at that first meeting was that Redmond had more than one reason for wanting Daniel to take on his thesis again. That's where things really start to pick up.I thought the premise for this book was interesting: is it possible to predict someone's date of death factoring in all the variables any individual has.  Would it even be possible to get every factor that counts towards life or death? At the same time as Sugrue is writing with that in mind, he's also included some other factors to the story so that there is never a stretch of time that seems slow or boring. The story is told from the viewpoint of 4 different people who all make a big contribution to where the story leads. And where it leads was an emotional upheaval I never expected. There are not many books that have made me cry. This one did.I have given this book 5 Stars because that's the highest number I can give it. I recommend it to everyone who enjoys very well told stories with relatable people, and high  credibility. Thanks to StoryCartel and Darren Sugrue for this super reading treat!