REVIEW: Magic Stones, planets, and Christianity

Markus McDowell received this book as a review copy from the publisher, to read and write an honest review.

cover, DOWNFALL, by Caleb ward. reviewed by Markus McDowell.

Caleb Ward. Downfall (The Creativity Stone Series). Elk Lake Publishing, 2022. 332 pages.

Introduction

Downfall is described by the author and publisher as a “Christian fantasy,” meaning it is a fantasy novel with Christian elements, message, topics, or settings. Based on its style, plot, and characterization, I would describe it as a morality (theology) tale written as a fantasy novel for young adults or teens.

Summary of the plot of Downfall

The setting of the story is a distant planet in the future, which had been settled by Christian groups seeking to escape Earth and set up a theocracy. Some go the flashbacks are back on earth, years earlier, when a scientist (and Christian) discovers a way to quickly travel between planets.

There are two sects on the planet, each representing two sites of an age-old Christian debate: those who focus on works (actions) to achieve salvation, and those who focus on God’s grace as the result of salvation. The protagonist is a teen boy, Joshua, whose parents are leaders of the latter group. He has two friends, Namid (a girl whose parents are leader of the Judgement sect), and Dedecus (a boy from the “wrong side of the tracks”). When the three discover a powerful stone/gem in a cave, Dedecus wants to use it to right the wrongs done to himself. This creates a crisis among the community.

The stone you see before you is the Creativity Stone and has the power to create and destroy—the power of God. In a world divided between mercy and judgement, a stone believed to hold the power of creation is discovered by an outcast named Dedecus.

Dedecus uses the power to get revenge on the Fides village, killing hundreds of people. Then he disappears. Now, it’s up to his two friends, Joshua and Namid, to take charge to rebuild what he destroyed.

Can a settlement so divided and destroyed ever come back together again? Will the actual God of justice and mercy show his true self and save them?
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Plot, character, setting

The plot is intriguing, and the world building is well-done. The plot progresses nicely, keeping the reader interested, with setbacks and surprises. The message of “works versus grace” is an ancient one that has been addressed in so many ways for well over two thousand years. The message here is not anything new, but useful for new Christians or the YA crowd.

The chapters are structured well, and the endings of chapters often leave the reader wanting to go on—an excellent technique to keep the plot moving. The primary characters are fairly well fleshed out, but the antagonists are a little flat and formulaic as “the bad guys,” though some do experience growth.

Literary aspects

As stated above, the book reads like a YA book, with the requisite simplicity for that age group. It moves quickly, with enough twists, turns, and interesting characters. The message of the book is Crystal clear, some might think even a bit heavy-handed at times. Still, it is well-written and structures.

Some dialogue sounds like a caricature of faith, which I surmise is no accident: it is part of the author’s purpose to address the issue of “works versus grace” theology. Some might find the occasional theological discussions pedantic, as if the book is merely a vehicle for a more important purpose: the author’s sermonizing.

Changes in voice perspective is a bit jarring at times. While I have written in multiple perspectives at times (see my novel, To and Fro Upon the Earth, for example), I tried to structure it carefully, so it made sense in the whole. Most of Downfall is in limited third person (from the perspective of the protagonist), yet it occasionally and unexpectedly switches to the perspective of a major secondary character, and sometimes to the perspective of a minor character. I thought there might be a thematic or narrative reason for these shifts, but if there was, I could not discern it.

Discontinuities

The plot progresses nicely, with the protagonist failing, learning, and growing. His mentors are helpful, and he and other show some character development. The fantasy elements (magic, elemental forces, etc.) seem to unravel slowly, but present a nicely thought-out universe different from our own.

There are a some unrealistic elements here and there, which are common in YA fiction, which often focuses on entertainment and lessons above all else. For example, one of the friends of the protagonist, a teen girl, is required to memorize the entire Old Testament in one night, which would be impossible. Another character is able to jump in front of a piece of stone catapulted from an explosion to protect Namid, again, quite unlikely. In one fight scene, people are fighting off throw rocks and boulders with broomsticks. Steven’s parents have a fancy house, and he says he choked when he found out how much it cost, and also that his friends were put off by the wealth. This doesn’t seem accurate to most human nature—children don’t usually question such things when they grow up in it (though maybe later in adulthood), and kids often are drawn to the wealthy kids.

There are also some discontinuities in the story. A scientist seems to know that the lightning and storm on their planet is because it’s connected to what one of the protagonists, Daedalus, was doing on another planet. How did he know this, and how did he know it so quickly?

Other plot events come and go rapidly without enough background. For example, Steven goes to join one of the Christian groups, he had been seen as an enemy. But a brief conversation, and they accept him into their group, seemingly far too quickly.

Summary and recommendation for Downfall

Having said all that, most of my critiques are from a literary perspective, and YA books are not intended to be highfalutin’ literature, but entertainment with a message. Certainly, this book succeeds in that way. It is quite entertaining, with some nice mystery and the plot developments, and a couple of characters that a reader can get behind and have sympathy from.

My sense is that this is a self-published book, and could probably use some outside professional developmental editing. The manuscript itself is clean, with very few typos or formatting errors.

A reader should be aware that this is an that unashamedly Christian novel, intended for Christian readers. A non-believing reader might feel “preached to,” as some dialogue and explanations read like a sermon.

Downfall is a novel that embodies good, formulaic writing, in a unique setting and fantasy world, that would be a thought-provoking and entertaining read for young Christians.

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