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Face Value
Face Value
A Christian Techno-Thriller by Russell N. Jarvis
“Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are all the issues of life.” – Proverbs 4:23
Aidan Powell never asked to be different. He only wanted to protect the people around him. Born with a natural ability to see emotions in color—every lie, every hidden feeling, every flicker of doubt—is visible to Aidan. He suddenly finds himself at the center of a struggle he cannot escape.
As powerful forces target Aidan’s abilities for profit and control, Aidan’s own gift is used against him to advance the utopian program of Shangri-La. The powerful want it. And the people he loves the most may be the first to fall in the battle to obtain it. Will Aidan realize too late that his ability to see emotions is not the same as seeing the truth?
In a world where desires are manipulated and faith is tested, Aidan must decide what it means to trust in a God who cannot be fathomed. The cost of truth is high, and some will kill to keep it buried.
Face Value is a gripping Christian techno-thriller that blends suspense, faith, and the peril of unchecked innovation. For readers who enjoy the moral weight of biblical truth and a struggle for survival in a world of power, intrigue, and manipulation – Face Value is for you.
A Christian Techno-Thriller by Russell N. Jarvis
“Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are all the issues of life.” – Proverbs 4:23
Aidan Powell never asked to be different. He only wanted to protect the people around him. Born with a natural ability to see emotions in color—every lie, every hidden feeling, every flicker of doubt—is visible to Aidan. He suddenly finds himself at the center of a struggle he cannot escape.
As powerful forces target Aidan’s abilities for profit and control, Aidan’s own gift is used against him to advance the utopian program of Shangri-La. The powerful want it. And the people he loves the most may be the first to fall in the battle to obtain it. Will Aidan realize too late that his ability to see emotions is not the same as seeing the truth?
In a world where desires are manipulated and faith is tested, Aidan must decide what it means to trust in a God who cannot be fathomed. The cost of truth is high, and some will kill to keep it buried.
Face Value is a gripping Christian techno-thriller that blends suspense, faith, and the peril of unchecked innovation. For readers who enjoy the moral weight of biblical truth and a struggle for survival in a world of power, intrigue, and manipulation – Face Value is for you.
417 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 22, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 28, 2025
Man’s evil nature is at the root of the depressing
human condition.
God offers salvation from it. But can we humans solve it by ourselves, making God irrelevant? Never, says this novel!
We once thought poverty was the root cause of evil and that if people’s material needs were met, evil would end! Developed nations fulfilled the criteria, but sadly, it didn't cure evil. Science pursued immortality by cloning, but found that cloning copies genes, but not one’s mind. So, your clone would be a different person, not your immortal self. And so on, from time to time, brilliant minds assisted by mind-blowing technology advances try to break humanity free from its “stuck” condition but fail again and again.
In this story, a psychologist promises to usher in an era of world peace by curing humans of evil. His hi-tech project combines nanotechnology, biotechnology, and information technology. The project produces specialized nanobots, which, when injected into a subject, travel to the brain and alter the intensity of hate and destructive tendencies to harmless or negligible levels, effectively making them "harmless," or even "good!"
But this solution is superficial and flawed! God destroys the harmful project in the end and prevents it from spreading.
Enjoy this gripping techno-thriller that happens at the intersection of the 2003-2011 US-Iraq war, the hi-tech project (above), and the Christian God, Jesus Christ.
We once thought poverty was the root cause of evil and that if people’s material needs were met, evil would end! Developed nations fulfilled the criteria, but sadly, it didn't cure evil. Science pursued immortality by cloning, but found that cloning copies genes, but not one’s mind. So, your clone would be a different person, not your immortal self. And so on, from time to time, brilliant minds assisted by mind-blowing technology advances try to break humanity free from its “stuck” condition but fail again and again.
In this story, a psychologist promises to usher in an era of world peace by curing humans of evil. His hi-tech project combines nanotechnology, biotechnology, and information technology. The project produces specialized nanobots, which, when injected into a subject, travel to the brain and alter the intensity of hate and destructive tendencies to harmless or negligible levels, effectively making them "harmless," or even "good!"
But this solution is superficial and flawed! God destroys the harmful project in the end and prevents it from spreading.
Enjoy this gripping techno-thriller that happens at the intersection of the 2003-2011 US-Iraq war, the hi-tech project (above), and the Christian God, Jesus Christ.
January 13, 2026
I really enjoyed Face Value it’s a gripping, intelligent techno thriller that blends high stakes technology with faith in a thoughtful and compelling way. Aidan’s ability to see emotions in color is a fascinating concept, and the moral questions around truth, control, and free will were especially powerful. Once the story hit its stride, I couldn’t put it down. Thank you for writing such an original and thought-provoking Christian thriller.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews