Using the four horsemen of the Apocalypse to symbolize the four Gospels, four transcendentals, and four forces of the universe (air, water, earth, and fire), Sweet and Wagner weave a fast-paced, end-times tale of good vs. evil and the promise of a new dawn for humanity.
Set in 2048, when planet Earth is suffering from the damaging effects of years of misuse and abuse, cultural history professor Paul Binder receives a mysterious letter that leads him to examine a lost 2nd-century Diatessaron manuscript. Ancient prophecies, cryptic letters, and strange events set him on a course to uncover the missing clues that could lead humanity into a new age. Each character embodies elements of the four horsemen in a race to save the world from total destruction. Layered with forgotten symbolism from the ancient Jewish and Christian traditions, the book is a story in which the main character's journal serves as a guide to the reader in interpreting clues and understanding the conclusion.
MY THOUGHTS
Reading that this was a post-apocolypse novel with the four horsemen, I really wanted to read this book! It reminded me alot of The Davinci Code by Dan Brown but with more. The main protagnist is a professor who gathers a team and they work to make sure what has happened, won't happen again. There are subtle clues throughout the book and although it will please the reader to catch them, it all comes together at the conclusion. The characters are pretty much leading you to where you should be, or think you would be. The ending left alot to be desired. Although the premise is for how the world could end or maybe not, as a devout Christian, I didn't agree with it. Good versus evil is a tried and true format but when it comes to the end of the world, only God will judge.
Heavy on symbolism, religion and new age thinking, The Seraph Seal will keep your attention as these nine individuals' lives intersect. I loved the journals and notes of Paul Binder, the history professor. I used it alot to check different things like maps and news clippings. At the back of the book there is also an Alphabet of the Apocalypse: Reading the Signs of the Times which is also interesting reading. This book would make for a great discussion!
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The old grey donkey, Eeyore stood by himself in a thistly corner of the Forest, his front feet well apart, his head on one side, and thought about things. Sometimes he thought sadly to himself, "Why?" and sometimes he thought, "Wherefore?" and sometimes he thought, "Inasmuch as which?" and sometimes he didn't quite know what he was thinking about.
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