A Reader’s Critique of ‘Lion of Babylon’

Dottie writes:

I just finished Lion of Babylon, and while I appreciated the Christian theme throughout, I was a bit dismayed by some errors, which should have been caught by your editorial staff. Page 12: ”…had tried repeatedly to effect a truce between…” The correct word is affect (verb tense), not effect, which is a noun.

And not to be picky, but 30 degrees C is 86 degrees F….and yes, you did say the temperature was approaching 90 degrees F….no points lost on that one, I suppose.

The plot was complex, but I was never able to get into a comfortable rhythm of reading. It seemed stilted and a bit disjointed, perhaps due to your use (over use, IMO) of word fragments rather than sentences. That, along with some odd punctuation here and there, seemed more to confound than to engage this reader.

I am starting Rare Earth tonight, and I hope to be won over to the legions of readers who enjoy your novels.

Dear Dottie,

Thank you so much for your thoughtful response. Though I must say I wish the first book of mine might have elicited a more wholehearted enthusiasm. Your points, however, are well taken. In case you’re interested, Library Journal did name Lion one of their Top Ten Titles—fiction and nonfiction combined—for 2011.

I do hope Rare Earth is more to your taste. It won the 2013 Christy Award for excellence in suspense fiction.