Overview

Best-selling novelist Michael O'Brien returns to the theme of people of faith striving to find their way through a societal collapse during the rise of new dimensions of totalitarianism. Set in the near future, all of North America is plunged into crisis as basic communications and other services suddenly and inexplicably fail. As the tension mounts, a disparate group of people come together from several directions, apparently by coincidence. Many of them are strangers to each other, and some are very young--whom their parents and guardians call ""our pied piper children."" Moved by grace and dreams, they leave behind all securities and endure numerous alarming trials as they follow the thread of inspiration, seeking refuge in the mountains of British Columbia. Their choice to proceed in blind faith will bring about unforeseen consequences that are fully revealed only in the distant future.

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9781621647874

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Reviews

""Michael O'Brien is a superior spiritual storyteller worthy to join the ranks of Flannery O'Connor, Graham Greene, Evelyn Waugh, and C. S. Lewis."" -- Peter Kreeft, Ph.D., Author, Summa of the Summa; Professor of Philosophy, Boston College ""A harrowing and compelling tale--not unlike the classic 1984 or the Booker Prize Winner Prophet Song--of a future that feels impossibly foreign while within reach. Yet O'Brien's tale differs from the traditional dystopian genre by offering an unbreakable thread of hope--a hope born of sacrifice, community, love, and the resilient beauty of human nature when surrendered to God in faith. An epic and gripping adventure!"" -- Katherine Reay, Author, The Berlin Letters and The London House ""Flight becomes Quest in O'Brien's multi-layered narrative, and terrified escape from the chaos and cruelty of societal collapse provides a meditation on humanity and the fruitfulness of faith."" -- Eleanor Nicholson, Author, A Bloody Habit ""Michael O'Brien has become the greatest storyteller of our times: he urges his numberless readers to confront the expanding Babylon of today."" -- Kevin Wells, Author, The Hermit and Priest and Beggar ""Set in a future in which technology is a thing of the past, O'Brien's novel shows that the first things will indeed be the last things because they are the permanent things. Great storytelling that weaves together prophecy, mystery, time with eternity."" -- Joseph Pearce, Author, Tolkien: Man and Myth ""A haunting vision of societal collapse, yet with rays of hope shining on every page. O'Brien weaves a tale of faith under fire, where noble characters cling to their deepest beliefs despite overwhelming opposition. Readers troubled by the direction of the world--especially the increasing marginalization of faith--will find solace and inspiration in this story of courage, providence, and the letting go of human securities to grasp onto the only security that matters."" -- Fr. Michael Brisson, Author, Death in Black and White ""In this work, O'Brien does much more than simply bring Father Elijah into the 21st century; rather, he shows how and why humanity has continued on the destructive path begun in the Garden of Eden, 'self-deification'. Most importantly, though, O'Brien here imagines what the living God might do to save humanity from its own self-destruction."" -- Dr. Greg Maillet, Author, Living Logos: The Fiction of Michael D. O'Brien

Author Information

Michael D. O'Brien, iconographer, painter, and writer, is the popular author of many best-selling novels including Father Elijah, Strangers and Sojourners, Elijah in Jerusalem, The Father's Tale, Eclipse of the Sun, Sophia House, The Lighthouse, and Island of the World. His novels have been translated into twelve languages and widely reviewed in both secular and religious media in North America and Europe.

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