ABOUT THE BOOK:
Some say the great mystery of how one can live in two worlds at once died with Thomas Hunter many years ago. Still, others that the gateway to that greater reality was and is only the stuff of dreams. They are all wrong.
Rachelle Matthews, who grew up in the small town of Eden, Utah, discovered just how wrong when she dreamed and awoke in another world. There she learned that she was the 49th Mystic, the prophesied one, tasked with finding five ancient seals before powerful enemies destroy her. If Rachelle succeeds in her quest, peace will reign. If she fails, the world will forever be locked in darkness.
In The 49th Mystic, Rachelle found the first three of those five seals through great peril and mind-altering adventure. But two seals remain hidden and the fate of both worlds hangs in their balance.
As Rachelle Matthews sits deep in a dungeon, Vlad Smith is just getting started. Thomas Hunter's world is about to be turned inside out. The mystics say that there is no defense against the Fifth Seal--but finding it will cost Rachelle everything.
So begins the final volume of high stakes in one girl's quest to find an ancient path that will save humanity. The clock is ticking; the end rushes forward.
Ready? Set?
Dream.
"Rise of the Mystics" is the second book in the Circle series. At times I was lost but I have a feeling it is because I didn't read the first book. Ted Dekker had a catch-up section to refresh and summarize what happened in the first book.
Rachelle is at war between the mind and heart. She is learning what it means to live without judgment including self-doubt. Our society makes us feel like we have to hide behind masks. Rachelle and other supporting characters seem to have some growth. This book feels relatable with real-life struggles such as fear, doubt, and uncertainty. There is a lot of spiritual depth. It has a New Age vibe to Christianity. Derrek does a wonderful job explaining spiritual truth in an easy way to understand. His characters are relatable.
This is a faith-driven speculative thriller that makes you use your brain. I'd advise you not to skim the pages because you will get lost. At times the plot seems to be moving at a nice past and other times it moved really slow causing me to be bored. At times the dialogue seems forced and doesn't go along with the characters. Maybe it is just how I envisioned the characters in my head. When I got to the end of the book I felt like things weren't wrapped up. His recap on what important events that happened from book one "The 49th Mystic" at the beginning. When it comes to book series I always love authors doing a recap, glossary and character descriptions. For not reading the previous books I didn't mind it. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't outstanding either. It was an interesting read. The Rise of the Mystic is full of heart and is very intense.
The book was provided to me by Revell Publishing Company for an honest opinion of the book.
Ted Dekker is a multiple award-winning, New York Times and international bestselling author of over 40 novels. His work has reached tens of millions worldwide and has been translated into numerous languages and adapted into major feature films (Thr3e and House). In 2013, NPR readers nationwide named him as one of the top suspense writers of all time.
Ted's passion is simple: to explore truth through mind-bending stories that invite readers to see the world through a different lens. Story is the shortest distance between the human heart and truth, and to this, he has devoted his life.
Dekker was born to missionaries who lived among the headhunter tribes of Indonesia. Because his parents' work often included extended periods of time away from their children, Dekker describes his early life in a culture to which he was a stranger as both fascinating and lonely. It is this unique upbringing that forced him to rely on his own imagination to create a world in which he belonged.
After leaving Indonesia, Dekker graduated from a multi-cultural high school and took up permanent residence in the United States to study Philosophy and Religion. Upon earning his Bachelor's Degree, he entered the corporate world and proceeded to climb the proverbial ladder. But his personal drive let him restless and, after many successful years, he traded corporate life for a wide range of entrepreneurial pursuits that included buying and selling businesses, healthcare services, and marketing.
In the early nineties, while visiting a friend who had just written a book, Dekker decided to pursue a long-held desire to be a novelist. Over the course of two years, he wrote two full-length novels before starting from scratch and rewriting both.
Now fully enamored by the process and the stories, he realized that storytelling was in his blood and a new obsession to explore truth through story gripped him anew.
He sold his business, moved his family to the mountains of Western Colorado and began writing full-time on his third novel. Two years and three novels later his first novel was published. He has been exploring Truth through story ever since.
Dekker resides in the Nashville area with his wife Lee Ann.
