For most of his life, John Creed never gave much thought to an afterlife. That all changed the day he died. He'd been clinically dead for ten minutes. At least, that's what the doctors told him when he woke up in intensive care. It had been a freak accident, they said. A school bus suddenly turned in front of his red convertible, smashing it to bits. By all odds, that should have been it. John's injuries had been grave. His heart had stopped and been restarted. He'd flatlined. His brain showed no signs of activity. Only sheer stubbornness kept the doctors from pulling the plug. Then, days later, he suddenly, mysteriously woke up - confused, in pain, but very much alive. At first, he didn't remember much of what had happened. But then, the dreams began ... The accident itself, in vivid, second-by-second detail. The face of the woman who had been driving the bus - a face twisted with pure hatred. The long hours in the trauma center, as he hovered over his own shattered body, watching the doctors desperately laboring to bring him back. And the light - a faint but steadily growing glow at the end of a swirling vortex. A brilliant incandescence filled with joy, love, peace that beckoned him closer... But there were other dreams as well... A frightened, heartbroken boy from a desperately troubled family running for his life. A pretty, red-haired woman whose life was crashing around her, tempted to end it all. An embittered, broken man whose heart smoldered with despair, hatred, and murderous rage. These lives were somehow intertwined with his own, in a way he did not fully understand. With the visions, John Creed received a remarkable gift. He could share the pain of other souls, take their suffering and transform it into peace. But this same gift also opened him to darker forces. Forces which could shift the balance between good and evil for ages to come.... Exciting, suspenseful, moving, and inspirational PARTING THE VEIL is a powerful testament to faith, hope, and the triumphant human spirit.
I don't normally read fiction but the tag line caught my eye...I am a slow reader but I blasted thru this one in just a few days! well written, kept my interest and intertwined all the NDE, spiritual cliches but still very enjoyable. Am looking forward to the next two...if I can only find them!
We're All Connected
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 19 years ago
I really loved this book. It is well-written and cohesive. I couldn't put it down, even when I was crying (most embarrassingly) by my apartment's pool. And then I read it all over again...which means I read it twice in a period of four days. As I said, I loved this book. It does touch on some heavy themes, but rather than being objectionable, I found that they made the book feel truer-to-life. And the story's spiritual content informs these gritty and horrifying situations, placing them in a completely different light. Ultimately, this book spoke directly to my heart and left me feeling how connected we all are...something that isn't so easy to believe in a huge, isolating metropolis like Los Angeles. It's one of the better gifts I've ever given myself. I would prefer to end my review here, since this is an accurate detailing of how I experienced the book. However, if I had never read this book before, I would be very perplexed by the range of reviews on it. What I think it boils down to is this. Some readers are critiquing the religious or spiritual aspects as they read; whereas, others find these same elements inspiring. In other words, I believe that some of the reviewers are reading more with their heads and others are reading more with their hearts. Neither way is wrong, but you probably know which kind of a reader you are and should choose accordingly when weighing whether or not to purchase this book.
Entertaining and thought provoking
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 20 years ago
I thoroughly enjoyed Jay Davis' book on many levels. It was a great read with sympathetic, well-developed characters and a well-paced story. I couldn't put it down. Moreover, I couldn't stop thinking about the subject afterwards and have continued to seek out other books on the subject, both fiction and non-fiction. If this is truly a trilogy, I wish Jay luck and hope the next books come soon.
Stirring & Suspensful
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 20 years ago
The beauty of this book is that it can be read on so many levels. Clearly, it can be read in a spiritual vein, though it's a work of fiction. The author has done his homework, and has a strong grasp of the phenomena upon which several of the book's events are based. But this story is also wonderfully suspensful. The last 100 pages real fly past as you race to the conclusion, which surprises even jaded readers. It's obvious that Davis' other books have given him a robust writer's toolkit with which to craft his tales. Most impressive to me personally, was the degree to which I sympathized with even the antagonist characters. This is perhaps my strongest recommendation of the book. Davis doesn't draw caricatures just to facilitate his book's movement and pacing. Instead, the reader is able to witness the development of certain pathologies in his "bad guys." Wonderful! Readers of a variety of genres will enjoy this book.
A winner
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 20 years ago
John Creed was driving his convertible when a school bus made an abrupt turn smashing his vehicle. John was clinically dead as his heart stopped beating and his brain showed no activity. His doctors manage to get the heart pumping, but he lived because of a machine. Pull the plug and he would be dead. Ten days later, a miracle occurs when John awakens in the ICU. After a time his memory of his fatal day and aftermath begins to return in vivid detail. Soon he begins to see the pain of other people whose lives seemed desperate. John has gained a gift from his time on the other side. He might be able to provide solace to some who are suffering, but the dark knows about John and plan to use him to shift the balance between good and evil to those of the malevolent. PARTING THE VEIL is an exciting inspirational suspense laden tale of hope that will remind readers of the King work The Dead Zone (book not TV series or Walken's 80s movie) The story line is fast-paced and at its loftiest when John struggles with helping people cope with their problems not an easy task to achieve. When the tale leaves the psychological spiritual life after death environs into a good vs. evil thriller it increases the excitement and suspense, but loses a piece of what makes Jay Davis' tale a unique homage to humanity's ability to win against overwhelming odds. Harriet Klausner
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