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Christian Novel Review

Having always been an avid reader, since becoming a Christian I have found a wealth of reading material in Christian bookshops and in various second hand bookshops. I have found that in Christian novels one often finds truths that help in one’s Christian walk. I enjoy reading about how the various characters deal with life, and I also find I am the richer for reading a really good Christian novel. Certain authors, through their books, give you a real insight into their joys and struggles, which I find very interesting. The books which I am going to review are those which I have really enjoyed, and have read at least twice – some books, for example the “Mark of the Lion “ series by Francine Rivers, I have read at least five times each. The first books that I am going to talk about are the latest two novels by Francine Rivers,


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Monday 9 January 2012

THE TWELFTH IMAM & THE TEHRAN INITIATIVE BY JOEL C. ROSENBERG

THE TWELFTH IMAM & THE TEHRAN INITIATIVE by JOEL C. ROSENBERG can be read as stand alone novels, but I suggest that you will get more out of them if you read them one after the other.  These two books are very interesting as they are full of end time prophecy, both Christian and Muslim, politics - Middle Eastern, American and Jewish - and they take place mostly in Iran, America and Israel.

The Twelfth Imam starts in Iran with Charles and Claire Harper escaping Iran during the student uprising of 1979 and taking Dr Mohammed Shirazi and his wife with them.  David Shirazi and Marseille Harper meet when their fathers take them on an annual fishing trip in September 2001.  Claire Harper is killed in the 911 disaster and it affects both families very badly.  We follow David and Marseille's story through both books.
David goes through a rough patch, but he is recruited by the CIA due to the fact that he is an Iranian and speaks the language fluently.  He is a very patriotic American citizen and is thrilled to be serving his country in this way, and he also feels that he will be avenging the death of Marseille's mother.
The Iranians have built nine nuclear warheads, and have detonated one, causing an earthquake.  The Americans send out their agents, David Shirazi, who goes by the name Reza Tabrizi, and Eva Fischer, who have been told to find out where the warheads are and all they can about the situation.  David goes in as a German businessman selling state of the art phones to the Iranian Government.  These phones can actually be tapped by American intelligence, but the Iranians believe David when he assures them that they are absolutely secure.
David finds out as much as he can about the Twelfth Imam, and is sent by the head of Iran Telecom to an expert on the subject, Dr Alireza Birjandi.  Dr Birjandi is a secret follower of Jesus Christ, and he shows David the truth and urges him to accept Him as his Saviour.  However it isn't until David is going through all kinds of life threatening situations that he eventually surrenders his life to Christ.
The Twelfth Imam comes onto the scene, performing all kinds of "signs and wonders" and successfully drawing most of the Middle Eastern countries into the Caliphate, an autocratic Shia Muslim body ruled by him.  He radiates terror and expects absolute obedience.  He makes no secret of his hatred of the Jews and the Americans, but pretends that he is a man of peace!  He has the American president completely duped.
David saves the lives of the Malik family and helps them defect to America.  Najjar Malik is  the top physicist in the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran after his father in law is murdered.  Najjar wasn't aware that his father in law was in fact producing warheads and that Iran was going to use these weapons to annihilate first the Jews and then the Americans.  The Lord appears to him and to his wife and mother in law at the same time, although they are not in the same place, and he is miraculously delivered from those who are hunting him down. Once in America, he bravely and illegally leaves the safe house where he is staying and goes to two radio stations to tell the world what is happening in Iran and to tell his beloved Iranians that the Twelfth Imam is an imposter and that they should follow the One True God, before it is too late.  Many followers of Islam are converted to Christianity when they hear him speak to them in Farsi and other Middle Eastern languages.
The Tehran Initiative is the name given by the Iranians to their plan to wipe out Israel and America.  In this second book we see the world on the brink of war. The Americans are afraid that the Israelis will strike against Iran first in order to stop a second Holocaust, and the Israelis are disappointed in the non-committal attitude of the American president, who is more interested in not rocking the boat in order to make sure of an extra term in office. There is also the problem of the escalating oil price. David is upset that he is putting his life on the line getting information for the American government, and nothing is being done with it. 
He has to keep his cover and is not allowed to tell anyone that he works for the CIA, but he tells his father in confidence as his mother is dying of cancer and he feels awful that he has to give so many excuses as to why he can't stay with his parents at this very difficult time.  To his amazement and great relief his father is very proud of him and gives him his blessing.
He is sent back to Iran after a brief visit to his mother and father and an even briefer one with Marseille, his childhood sweetheart.  All hell is about to break loose in the Middle East and David bravely goes through torture and danger in order to stop the destruction that could be caused by Iran's nuclear warheads being loosed upon Israel and the rest of the world.  
The story is well told and is full of scriptural truth.  We are kept in suspense all the way, wondering when war will break out and who will strike first.  It is action packed and full of intrigue. We get an insight into the rise of the Antichrist and the struggle that will take place in the last days.  I feel that although these books are works of fiction they should be read by anyone who takes freedom seriously, and also by those of us who take Christianity seriously, who realize the importance of Israel and the Jewish people in God's plan for mankind, and who are interested in End Times prophecy.



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