Prophet Reborn by Diane M. Johnson

I received this book for free from NetGalley to facilitate my review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Failed satanic high priest Lucas seeks redemption for his sins in a Christian commune. The day comes when the commune leader learns of Lucas' past as well as his connection to a celebrity faith healer who is rumored to be an atheist. Lucas must now prove his spiritual worth in order to remain a member of the commune. In order to save himself, he must save someone else, but his warped sense of right and wrong puts the faith healer and his family in mortal danger.
'Prophet Reborn' is a thrill filled sequel to Diane M. Johnson's 'Perfect Prophet.' The works raise questions about the morals people value, and those they do not by telling the story of two brothers who are anything but perfect.

CW: Profanity, death, suicide, violence, religion, religious cult

When I read Perfect Prophet last year, I kept hoping there would be a sequel. The book had left off perfectly for a sequel and while I had a feeling there would be one, I wasn’t positive. I was glad I was right.

Prophet Reborn picks up a bit after Perfect Prophet leaves off and this time, the book focuses more on Lucas, who wants to see if he can be redeemed for the things he’s done in his past. He has a pretty good idea that he can’t but he at least wants to try.

While he doesn’t exactly go about getting his redemption in the right way, I can relate to Lucas. I think many of us can. While most of us haven’t done anything as bad as Lucas, we should all be able to relate to wanting redemption and not being sure we can get it. I’m sure a lot of us have also gone about getting our redemption the wrong way.

As with the first book, the book is well written. I found the book to be action packed and difficult to put down, just like the first one. Sometimes you get the “sophomore slump” where a second book just doesn’t live up to the hype of the first. This book isn’t that way.

We do see Alec, Lindy, and Jake in the book as well. There are some issues with the family and frankly, it’s nice to see a perspective that isn’t just the normal “Oh we’re having issues.” The issues aren’t tied to just infidelity, alcohol, or drugs, but also to Alec’s neurotic behavior.

There’s also a huge twist in the book that I honestly didn’t expect at all. It’s a great book that is difficult to describe without giving spoilers.

If you like a good mystery, thriller, or horror novel, I’d say this duo is for you. I actually kind of hope there will be a third book, just because I want to see how life turns out for all of the characters.