Thr3e

Title: Thr3e by Ted Dekker
Media Source: Paperback
Rating 5 out of 5 stars

"And does man simply choose evil, or does he create it?"

Thr3e is a chilling tale about Kevin Parson who is plague by a mysterious person threatening his life.  This whirlwind tale takes you to places you wouldn't expect with twists and turns along the way.  It definitely earns the title: thriller.

Kevin Parson is in his car alone, when he receives a phone call from an unknown person.  This person tells him to confess his sin to the world in 3 minutes or his car will explode.  Kevin struggles to determine what sin is the person talking about.  He rushes into a parking lot and runs from the car, seconds before it explodes.  Thus marking the beginning of a thrilling game of cat and mouse.  He comes across a childhood friend who helps him try to figure things out.  But the longer they take to figure out what sin the caller wants, the more dangerous he gets.

Wow...just wow.  Ted Dekker has always been one of my favorite authors and will continue to be one.  His stories are so captivating I stay up all night just to finish it.  I couldn't pry myself away from the story.  Right off the bat he hits the wow factor with the car explosion and keeps his readers hooked throughout the story.  There are so many twists and turns that you cannot even attempt to predict what will happen next or who is the mysterious caller.  His characters develop exceptionally well throughout the novel, readers witness the shift in Kevin's behavior almost immediately.  We see him turn from a put together seminary student to someone completely paranoid and on the verge of breaking.  He does with his use of language in descriptions and dialogue.  Nothing is done generically, Dekker truly has his own style.

There is suspense around every corner.  While the novel is considered Christian thriller, the Christian elements are not shoved in the reader's face.  They are paramount to the story, but the story doesn't revolve around them.  That is one thing that makes Dekker an excellent author, while he adds various elements into his writing nothing is over the top.  He does a great job at pulling his audience in and creates an atmosphere that is both chilling and fascinating.  There were so many times I let out an audible gasp as I was reading through this novel.  You just never know what to expect.  Dekker touches his readers on a psychological level, not only in Thr3e, but in his other novels.

Recommendation:  I would recommend Thr3e to everyone.  It has a little something for everyone: suspense, action, mystery, even a little romance  If you get the chance after reading the novel, check out the movie.