My review of Fury by Jack Cavanaugh and Bill Bright

Fury starts out with a bang and doesn't let up! Set in 1825-1826, Fury captures the message of repentence and forgiveness through Charles Finney's preaching, when the revival now referred to as "The Great Awakening" shakes upstate New York. The main character, Daniel, is running for his life. As the reader, your pulse will pound with his as he tries to evade a killer hot on his trail. If only he had obeyed his uncle and stayed in bed. If only he hadn't been out that night, he wouldn't have seen his coworker murdered. Thus the story begins...

Daniel cries for help so many times, but no one believes his story about being pursued by the killer. He's angry with God, his uncle, and just about everyone for his losses. Daniel has also hardened his heart by resisting the Holy Spirit, but as he runs from the killer, he discovers that God had been there with him all along.

Fury is an engaging story demonstrating the power of deep faith, and the discouragement that often comes from battling fear, such as the real threats perceived by Daniel's gut instinct. Many difficult choices have to be made, and often without much time. When Daniel is dragged to church by friends to hear Finney preach, his world is altered...permanently.

Riveting and thought-provoking, Fury leads the reader down a dark path paved by the enemy, and places readers in various situations alongside the deceptive killer, the concerned uncle, the forsaken aunt, the runaway teen Daniel, and even Daniel's wimpy boss. From each of their points of view the reader gets a healthy dose of each characters' perspective.

There are light moments as well, to help break up the intensity of the story, like when Daniel pretends to be a tree come to life to scare off some boys who were picking on a younger brother, whom Daniel fiercely identified with. There were also tender moments like when Daniel realizes for the first time that beauty in a woman is much more than skin deep.

Fury is a passionate story about life during hard times, death nipping at the heels of a young man, the redemption of lives, and the impact revival can have on an entire community. Fury comes with my highest recommendation, especially to history buffs. The anticipated release date is September 5, 2006 and the title is published by Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster.