Book Review: The Book of Wisdom

The Book of Wisdom (The Harmony of the Spheres 1). Jeremy Falcon. CMP-Press, May 13, 2015, 581 pages.

eviewed by Sue Roupp.

The Book of Wisdom is really two books within the same story. The first is set in Evanston and Dublin in 2011, where readers are drawn into a mystery about deciphering what begins as an excavated musical text but turns into something unexpected. The other story, set in 66-68 A.D., is a carefully researched historical story regarding the Romans marching on Judea and the Essence tribe with Brothers who are known for their wisdom.

The first story, centering on a Northwestern University professor, is less compelling than the second is. The characters are flatter, and the scene details, while often very good, do not consistently or clearly build tension. The dialogue is often not natural, and we never really get to know the NU professor, so it’s hard to root for him.

In each of the stories, the characters are interesting, the plots unusual, and the scenes fascinating. While I was jarred by the change in both the narrator’s point of view and the tenses between the stories, I found the historical story to be naturally told and the narrator’s voice seamless.

The book is rather long and could be shortened. I could see the author tuning the story into two books, with the historical story taking the lead in delivering wisdom and then following the protagonist’s background and adventures in an embellished story. I also think there is room for improvement in editing, as some of the errors jarred my reading experience out of an otherwise fine narrative. The reading experience must be seamless.

A lot of work went into this book, and I commend the author for putting in so much time and energy. It is clear he has a lot of skill in storytelling. The historical scenes—which include sensual detail, what people ate, how they related, a longing for belonging, and how they traveled—are very interesting.

The Book of Wisdom is a good first book to kick off the series.