This week, I’ve been posting book reviews of my favorite reads from the summer. Monday I told you about Running the Rift: A Novel. Wednesday I shared a book that challenged me greatly: The Insanity of Obedience, and today we’re rounding out the week with some thrilling adventure from Ted Dekker:

Outlaw

Summary:

The story of how I, Julian Carter, and my precious two-year old son, Stephen, left Atlanta Georgia and found ourselves on a white sailboat, tossed about like a cork on a raging sea off of Australia’s northern tip in 1963, is harrowing.

But it pales in comparison to what happened deep in the jungle where I was taken as a slave by a savage tribe unknown to the world. Some places dwell in darkness so deep that even God seems to stay away.

There, my mind was torn in two by the gods of the earth. There, one life ended so another could begin.

Some will say I was a fool for making the choices I made. But they would have done the same. They, too, would have embraced death if they knew what I knew, and saw through my eyes.

My name is Julian and this is my story. But more, it is the story of my son who was born to change the world.

From deep in the impenetrable jungles where New York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker was born and raised, comes OUTLAW, an epic adventure of two worlds that perhaps only he could write. Full of harrowing twists, sweeping violence, and wild love, Outlaw takes us beyond the skin of this world to another unseen.

Why I picked it up:

Duh. Because it’s written by Ted Dekker.

My thoughts:

I love Ted Dekker’s books. Well, I love *most* of his books. I usually tell people who’ve never heard of him that he has a split personality when it comes to writing: half fantasy/adventure books and half crime/thriller novels. Each story is essentially an epic good vs. evil event. I tend to prefer his fantasy/adventure stuff and count his Circle series (and all related novels) as some of my all-time favorites.

Outlaw is a return to the adventure stuff I love from Dekker. It takes place in Indonesia, which Dekker knows a lot about from his parents missionary work there. True to Dekker style, the characters is this book reoccur in several related novels he has recently published, including Water Walkers, Eyes Wide Open, and Hacker (my favorite of those three). You can read them in any order, although I suggest Outlaw first because it sets the stage for the rest. I can’t wait to see how he ties these together with Showdown (one of his earlier novels that plays into the Circle series as well). Confused yet? 😉 No really, it ends up making a ton of sense once you read enough of these books because hey are all connected somehow. And for a reader who loves to be surprised, Dekker rarely disappoints.

Why you should read it:

Who doesn’t love a classic good-vs-evil tale? Dekker’s books are wildly entertaining, but also cause me to consider how his ideas relate to the good-vs-evil story being written in my own life.