THE ANGEL MAKER

4 stars out of 5

Ever read a book and wonder most of the way through how anyone can possibly concoct such a complex story? Well, this is one of those - and well, it's maybe a little too complex. Put another way, this isn't an easy read, in large part because there are many characters and timelines to keep straight.

But it is worth it - at least for those who have any interest in the pros and cons of what we old-time Presbyterians would call "predestination" (a topic of heated debate back in the 1960s, when I was a Sunday School teacher). In its simplest form, if you believe in it, you believe that every single thing we do has been pre-ordained. Needless to say, it's often discredited simply because that would mean everything is inevitable (so why try to be "good?") This story doesn't really resolve that debate, but it does showcase the downside of believing that what people say and do are guided by a higher power who knows what's going to happen before it does - and that they have a responsibility to carry out that inevitability.

Anyway, Katie Shaw is all grown up and married with a young daughter, but she's never shaken the notion that she's responsible for the attack on her brother Chris back in their growing-up years. Since then, the disfigured young man has struggled with addiction and basically disappeared from his parents and Katie. Now, it appears he needs her help - but no one seems to know where he is. Meanwhile, Detective Laurence Page and his partner, Caroline Pettifer, are investigating the murder of wealthy but dying Alan Hobbes, whose only child died in a house fire years ago. Video footage shows Chris in the man's home while he was still alive, thus making him a suspect. 

Cut to Edward Leland, Alan Hobbes's older brother, who used to help his father "make angels" as, his father says, "God has written." In the center of it all is an old book written long ago by one of the predestination believers; how it ties in with all the characters - including a big secret known only to Katie's mother - consumes most of the story from that point on. All told, it's quite an adventure - one I recommend to those who don't mind expending a little more effort than usual to get through. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy. Well done!

The Angel Maker by Alex North (Celadon Books, February 2023); 336 pp.)