My review of Mort(e)- War with No Name
This week, as part of my continuing quest for great fantastical Christian fiction . . . or in the case of this book, fantastical fiction which Christians might enjoy, I made a foray behind the lines of the War with No Name. I did make it back to friendly territory . . . barely. But I’m still spitting fur while waiting for the results of the rabies tests. Anyone have extra flea powder?
Mort(e)- War with No Name is an Amazon Editor’s pick for best Science Fiction and Fantasy, and highly touted by the likes of Slate and The Washington Post editorial boards, among others. All those highly trained editors couldn’t possibly be wrong, could they?
Sadly, yes. They could, and often are.
Mort(e) is well written, technically, but fails to engage. The protagonist embarks upon a quest for which, in the opening scenes of the book, the author failed to establish sufficient motivation- leaving me less than interested in the outcome.
To make matters worse, the book insists on force-feeding the author’s worldview down the gullet of the hapless reader. Perhaps if I concurred with said worldview, the story would be more resonant for me. I suspect it would. If I did share that worldview, I might be turning pages eagerly, cheering for the animals as they march forward on their mission to wipe all humanity from the face of the earth- a secret dream of many in today’s secular culture, I fear. Here are sample quotes from the book and from the back matter:
- “The “war with no name” has begun, with human extinction as its goal”
- “. . . forever eradicate the destructive, oppressive humans . . .”
- “. . . this utopia will be free of the humans’ penchant for violence, exploitation and religious superstition . . .”
- Humans as ” . . . partially evolved monkeys that they were . . .” who should be eradicated because “they don’t respect nature.”
The author’s view of religion, and it seemed to me, particularly Christianity was painfully clear:
- ” . . . human prophesy and magic books and witch doctors . . .”
- Religion as ” . . . an anti-science that animated the humans, driving them to greater and greater destruction . . .”
- And ” . . . a ridiculous belief in God, and old man in the sky . . . another world when they die . . .chanting to Him asking for favors . . . a belief which has corrupted, is evil . . .”
So, is it any wonder I must report that this quest returns with naught but an empty bag of cat treats to show for the effort?
I read this book so you didn’t have to. You are welcome.
J. A. Webb
“Thrilling Christian fiction . . . where the seen and unseen worlds collide.”