Tyrants and Traitors
Niklas is a teenage Israeli shepherd who runs afoul of the wretched Philistines. Before long he finds a daunting destiny laid at his feet. He must tread carefully lest everyone he loves be killed.
If all this sounds somewhat Biblically familiar, there’s a good reason for that. This book, the first one of The Lion’s Dynasty series, was inspired by the story of David in the Bible. That’s about where the similarity to the Bible ends, however. Although the novel is supposed to take place in ancient Israel, there is little to indicate that setting. The story is told from Niklas’s point of view, in the first person, and his voice is unrelentingly irritating, not to mention quite modern-sounding. An example of both situations is included in this paragraph:
“I reached the man mere seconds before the Philistines, calling out loudly. ‘Grandpa, I hate to interrupt your little pow-wow with the guy upstairs, but we’re about to be overrun by Philistines. A little less prayer and a bit more situational awareness is probably appropriate.”
Any kind of historical setting is ruined by the mention of seconds (unmeasurable until the age of the watch), pow-wows (from Native American societies), and situational awareness (a concept that is modern, to say the least).
I imagine that the book’s selling point is that it takes familiar Bible stories and lends a fresh, new air to them. And, indeed, it does provide an unusual take. Despite the obnoxious nature of the protagonist, there are moments of humor that may resonate with some readers. And a fantasy-like epic based on Bible stories is an intriguing idea. Your mileage may vary, but this reviewer could not identify enough with the trouble-making hero to overlook his personality.
