Michael Modesto is a rising rock star. He has been to his fair share of parties, had a number of groupies following him, he drank, but drew the line at drugs. Drugs weren't for him. He likes to be in control.
Ambassador Anthony Stolz is a powerful man. His personal secretary is Selene, an exotic beautiful young woman, who is used to doing the ambassador's bidding.
At a band party, a young woman named Mary, demands to see Michael Modesto. At first she is barred from seeing him by his agent, but Michael sees her and lets her come inside and talk to him. Why is Michael drawn to a religious, do-gooder like Mary, who comes to him wanting him to do a fundraiser for at risk children born of drug users? But drawn to her he is, and he accompanies her to the hospital where she works. She takes him into the nursery and he sees the poor helpless children, most of whom don't have a chance. She hands him one dying baby to hold, and suddenly he is in searing pain and passes out, but the baby is suddenly well. When Michael comes to, he doesn't understand what happened, but knows he wants to leave the hospital and Mary. Mary had driven him and they go to her car. Thugs start to torment them, but something akin to a lightning bolt saves them and vanquished the thugs. Michael later has a vision. God comes to him and tells him, he is to be his messenger. Michael wants nothing to do with any of this. He thinks God must be mad if he chose him to bring a message to the people. He's not religious, and has done things he is not proud of doing. Mary keeps after Michael to do a fundraiser.
Michael decides to show both Mary and God that he is not the person to deliver a message. He goes to church with her. There, he delivers a sermon that he did not realize was in him and had not prepared. He is asked to speak again. This time a parishioner in a wheelchair approaches him. Michael touches the woman and she is cured, but Michael is again beset with pain, taking on the person's problem for a while, descending into blackness. Reluctantly, Michael returns to the church at the request of the parson. He is becoming known as a faith healer. Selene, at Stolz's command also begins attending that church, and her beautiful singing voice is noticed and she becomes a choir member. Almost anything Ambassador Stolz wants he gets, but why should he develop an interest in Michael? Stolz worms his way into the church's business and convinces the pastor that he ought to have a larger church, a cathedral, and Stolz appears interested in promoting Michael as an evangelist. Why? I'll not go further with the story.
Robert L. Hecker has done it again. He has written another engrossing page-turner. This time about good versus evil. I think no matter what your religious persuasion, and even if you are not in the least religious, you'll find this a wonderful read. Each character is well drawn, and we get to know them very well, especially Michael Modesto. He is very real, his plight is a quagmire that sucks him into a maelstrom that is beyond his control. He wants to do the right thing, but he is reluctant. Can God really believe Michael is the right person? Michael doubts it. Perhaps, he is losing his mind and there was no message. Michael doesn't know. He doesn't even know what the message is. He fights this challenge, but knows it must run to its conclusion. He has doubts, but there is one person he trusts, Mary. Can they find a life together and why does Ambassador Stolz want to destroy him, or does he?
Jaye Dee Tyrack, Reviewer, gottawritenetwork.com
May 8, 2006
c JDT & GWN
