Jim Thompson, chief game warden of the Masai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya, has a major problem. Three of his prized elephants have been gored to death in the past month. The only clues left are mysterious tracks reportedly belong to a creature long thought extinct. Thompson suddenly finds himself on a tumultuous adventure as he travels across the African continent, hoping to convince himself and the world that he is on the verge of an incredible discovery. He is not alone. On the other side of the world, Professor Stephen Gregory is embarking on an adventure of his own. Forced to resign over his unpopular scientific beliefs, this once-distinguished professor gets the chance of a lifetime when he is offered an expedition into the heart of Africa in search of a creature that could prove his theories true once and for all.
My Review:
I have been fascinated by the thought of dinosaurs possibly still being alive in our rainforest areas since seeing the movie Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend WAAAYYYY back in the late 80's, so when I had a chance to review Behemoth how could I refuse?
There are two story lines in this book, two different ventures to discover/uncover proof that dinosaurs are still living and breathing on this planet. Both ventures combine fact and creationist views. Creatures that resemble our constructs of "ancient" dinosaurs have been described and identified via drawings by local dwellers, this is fact. Creationists (of which I am) believe that this is another piece of evidence supporting God's accounting of the creation of the world in that dinosaurs and man could and did coexist.
The book stumbles a bit at the beginning in the writing style, way to much name calling. (Mike said....then John said......then Mike said......then John replied.... type of thing) Once you get past the first chapter or so it picks up quite a bit, like Leicht found his stride. There also is a lot of theology in the book. I know several readers have commented that they felt like there was to much conversation about creationist beliefs but I really felt like it added to the story. Why is the rich guy shelling out tons of money to find this possible dinosaur? Why are these scientist entering an area where they feel a need to bring heavy duty weapons due to the hostile atmosphere in search of a dinosaur? You need to understand their belief system to truly get it. Leicht also does a good job of planting an "unbeliever" on the scientific journey, although he is portrayed as being very mule headed and that might turn some readers off I feel like he is a good representation of the population that is determined not to see God in creation even when evidence stares them in the face.
The story line does jump from group to group quite a bit, often without warning and you spend a few paragraphs trying to figure out what is going on before that "ah ha" moment when you realize that you are with the other group now. Still, a great blend of science fiction, dinosaurs and creationism. As of this writing it is available on Kindle for around $3, with a steep hike in price for the paper versions. Well worth the money to purchase for an e-reader!
Buy it here for Kindle or paper books
Thanks Booksneeze.com for the review copy!
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