9/2/09 Newcastle Pacer Review

09/02/09  

BY DARLA WELCHEL

Certain Cure
Review: End of Days Thriller compelling

Jennifer Valoppi's pre-apocalyptic science/religion thriller, Certain Cure - Murray Hill Press - is a thought provoking work of fiction, as it was meant to be.

Valoppi, a multi-Emmy Award winning television journalist, combines man's quest for spiritual truth with his thirst for immortality - a dangerous union on the best of days.

This page-turning novel centers on Claire Cummings, a woman dying of inoperable liver cancer. Cummings, who refuses to give up hope, finds her "salvation" in a young American doctor from China. He promises to save her life and even offers her something likeing to immortality at no cost - or so she thinks.

Although Cummings' cancer is the main emphasis of the book, there are at least six other character stories going on simultaneously. At first, these seven characters seem to have little if nothing in common with each other, but as the story unfolds, their lives become inexplicably entwined.

Certain Cure's pages are full of murder, mystery, religion, greed and corruption - in other words, something for everyone.

Valoppi uses her keen real-life journalistic talents to cast a new twist on ancient Biblical end-of-days prophecies - prophecies that have long been thought of as fact by many Judeo-Christian denominations.

Although I thoroughly enjoyed this story, there were a couple of things that nagged at the back of my mind while I was reading it.

First, I was put off by the obvious attempt to make this story sound like it came from hard living New Yorkers - I'm speaking mostly about the vulgar language. It is hard enough, as a Christian, to hear people use these words on a daily basis in the work-world, but I've found that when I have to read them, they become ingrained longer in my brain.

This of course is a purely personal objection, but one that never the less almost caused me to shut the book after the first few chapters. I pressed on and was glad that this language was the exception and not the norm.

There was a second issue that had me questioning whether I wanted to write a review on this intriguing work of fiction. Because the plot was surrounded in some facts, I feared that some people might take it as literal truth.

Case in point: The Da Vinci Code has a cult following to this day, and with the new Angels and Demons film due out this year, I expect the fanaticism to only climb. Although this is another pure work of fiction, many have built a religion around it.

I urge readers, that if they decide to read this book, to keep in mind - IT IS FICTION.

Like previously mentioned, Valoppi uses actual Biblical scriptures in her book (in fact, she lists the references at the end of the work). Although she obviously knows her Bible, her interpretation on those scriptures shouldn't be considered gospel - pun intended.

If you like a good mystery with the thrill of science fiction mixed with man's never-ending search for God, then you will enjoy this book.

You can find Certain Cure at Amazon.com or Barnesandnobel.com for around $16.
(LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE)