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Obsession really is a bad thing.  Things can consume our time and become an obsession, they can make us form habits we may not want, and they make us do things we don’t want to do.  We may find that these things are consuming, circling us in the obsession and enveloping us with their weight.  Oftentimes an obsession can really illustrate the immensity of sin or wrong living.  But on occasion the habits formed from ones obsession in life can be a good thing.

Enter author Robert Liparulo and a writing style that puts him in among the elite suspense fiction writers currently published.  This former journalist and multiple award winning writer entered the scene in 2005 with his first novel Comes A Horseman.  He is published under Thomas Nelson books and marketed to both Christians and non-Christians.  Robert is a Christian working to get noticed in an industry comparable to the Christian metal music industry.  Industries in which more and more artists and authors want to be noticed for their talent and not only their faith.  They live their lives according to their faith, but want their work to reach out and extend to the unreached.  Much like Matthew 28:19.

March 29 marked the release date of Robert’s newest suspense fiction Deadlock.  This book is a continuation of sorts, but not a sequel.  It follows a group of characters Robert developed in his 2007 release Deadfall.  John Hutchison – or Hutch – lives in Denver, Colorado working as a reporter for a local newspaper.  It has been almost a year since the terrible events he witnessed in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada.  Something is brewing between Hutch and Laura Fuller, the girl he met in Canada.  Dillon is Laura’s son, who Hutch has developed a close bond with since saving his life in Saskatchewan.  Hutch has two kids of his own, Macie and Logan, who we don’t know much about until this book.  Hutch has been obsessed with a guy named Brendan Page, who is the father of Declan Page, the main bad dude in Deadfall.  Brendan Page owns a company that develops software and trains soldiers for combat.  His company is big and very well financed.  Hutch believes that Mr. Pages’ company is somehow behind the attacks in Northern Canada that claimed the lives of his friends.  Things get pretty intense when Hutch decides to persue his suspicions and confront Page.

Deadlock is a page-turner.  It is what any good suspense novel should be, it should make you want to stay up late at night and make you not want to got to the bathroom.  It is intense, exciting, and thrilling.  Mr. Liparulo has seriously crafted a story that could easily become a blockbuster movie.  He has done an incredible amount of research on the many topics covered in this book.  The effect of video game indulgence on youth, the terrible damages of divorce, even the simple fun of dining at a kid-oriented restaurant, these are some of the topics covered in Deadlock.  This book is not for the faint of heart, however.  There is a scene where arrows pierce skin, a scene of kidnapping, and another death that involves a 6-story fall.  The descriptive nature of the book make it hard to read certain scenes, but isn’t this suspense fiction at its best?  Isn’t a good book supposed to bring up current issues, make you think, and make you cringe?

Sometimes obsession leads to habit.  Sometimes habit is a good thing.  In author Robert Liparulo’s case, habit is beginning to pay off.  Deadlock is an amazing addition to an already outstanding library full of gleaming gems.  Long live the suspense novel.  Long live the Liparulo.

— Luke —

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