Brad Meltzer is no stranger to the comic book genre. Having written for a number of comic books most notably Justice Leagues Identity Crisis which turned the DC Comics world upside down. In his latest novel Meltzer ventures back into the world of comics as he ties together the age old biblical story of Cain and Abel with the historical beginnings of the Man of Steel himself, Superman. When I first read the back cover of this ARC I was intrigued to see how Meltzer would pull this story off.
The second most famous murder in the Bible is found in Genesis 4 and is the story of Cain murdering his brother Abel. The Bible does not tell us how Cain murders his brother; however there is much speculation on the weapon of choice. A similar mystery is brought to light when Mitchell Siegel, father of Superman creator Jerry Siegel, is found murdered by two gunshots to the chest and the murder weapon has never been recovered. Meltzer melds (pun intended) these two stories together in his page turning thriller The Book of Lies as he creates a wonderful historical fiction novel that will appeal to comic book fans and history buffs alike.
This was my first experience in reading an actual novel from Brad Meltzer and it was an enjoyable introduction to his writing talents. Being a fan of comic books and a pastor who loves reading the Bible I feel that this book was written just for me. Quite honestly this is the first novel I have read in a long time that I had a hard time putting down. Overall, I would highly recommend The Book of Lies to anyone who enjoys a good fictional historical mystery novel. Brad Meltzer has written a book that I wouldn’t be surprised to see at the top of the New York Times Best Seller list and eventually as a big screen film. I would encourage you to get this one when it first comes out so you can be one of the firsts to be on the band wagon.
Reviewed by Jeff Holton
