tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post4514441116650212779..comments2021-07-04T11:13:21.005-05:00Comments on Reuben Horst's Blog: Forbidden by Ted Dekker and Tosca LeeArkatoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11039709923343918989noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-53769804554823738422012-05-08T10:08:23.293-05:002012-05-08T10:08:23.293-05:001. But Saric didn't use the emotions for good,...1. But Saric didn't use the emotions for good, because he wasn't capable of doing so. His urges for blood and sexual desire, and don't forget his feelings of hatred, anger, etc. were far too strong for any possible good to come anywhere near the surface. Basically, he felt only "evil" emotions, as I said.<br /><br />2. You didn't finish the context. Characters experienced confusion when they weren't feeling fear, meaning in those cases confusion *wasn't* an attribute to fear.<br /><br />3. I admit Steven James writes a lot of uncensored gore, but he always has a thrilling, can't-put-down story to go along with it. As for Immanuel's Veins, the gore in that was nothing to Forbidden, IMO.<br /><br />4. For your last point... I don't really get what you're asking.Arkatoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11039709923343918989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-84949157792583762292012-05-07T23:01:01.700-05:002012-05-07T23:01:01.700-05:00The antagonist is a man named Saric. He was given ...The antagonist is a man named Saric. He was given a serum by alchemists that brings back some of his emotions, but only the horrible ones. Basically, he was turned into a beast in a world that knew only fear. He sickened me to the point that I truthfully say I have never hated anyone, real or fiction, more than I hated Saric. That is not how to write a good bad guy! A well-written bad guy is one who you can see reason behind; one you can sympathize with. Ted Dekker has a trend of writing antagonists who are mentally unstable and/or retarded, and no offense to him, but that is the most annoying kind of bad guy in any story. By the end of Forbidden I literally wanted to butcher Saric.<br />I can't help remember that once you said that Dekker's villains were stupid because they were flawed. Now, in this review, you are saying the opposite. And no, the emotions that Saric received were not all evil ones. The emotion of wanting someone can be good if it is used in the way God created it. <br />You said, "Among the characters who could only experience fear, I saw other emotions as well, such as confusion and desperation. Those could be considered attributes to fear, but that's irrelevant, because they're also emotions separate from fear." WHAT? Horrible argument. I could say that the fact that they're separate emotions, but that is irrelevant because they are attributed to fear. <br />And if you have a problem with the violence that was in Forbidden, than I wonder why the heck you are reading Dekker's other books. Immanuel's Veins, anyone? A vampire slitting a woman's throat with his finger nail, and then bleeding someone to death against a crucifix isn't more violent than someone getting cut in half or their throat slit (not very descriptive). And what about some of the other books you have read such as Steven James? Prologue, of The Pawn: Two teenagers slitting their wrists in a bathtub and the description of the blood shooting across the tub like a jet? Yeah, I am pretty sure that's more descriptive than Forbidden.<br />And how else did you expect Ted and Tosca to write the intimate scenes? As if they have felt passion before? They are discovering what has been given to us as human beings.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-54565986323812894942012-05-07T20:22:23.721-05:002012-05-07T20:22:23.721-05:00There was a lot of sexuality in IV, true, but at l...There was a lot of sexuality in IV, true, but at least Vlad wasn't a pervert like Saric. :PArkatoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11039709923343918989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-82603684366977704262012-05-07T18:06:12.059-05:002012-05-07T18:06:12.059-05:00So far, this is the only Dekker book I gave less t...So far, this is the only Dekker book I gave less than 5 stars. (I gave it 4.) I'm going to agree with Heather about liking blood and gore in books--to me, that makes a novel more exciting. <br /><br />Part of my trouble with Forbidden was visualizing the setting. I kept imagining it as medieval-like and it was hard for me to combine that image with the advanced technology. I don't mind sexuality in books as long as it isn't over-the-top (like in Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy); I actually really liked the scene where Rom and his lady friend (I forget her name already) discovered honest-to-God romantic feelings for each other.<br /><br />And yes, Immanuel's Veins was awesome. What were we saying about sexuality? ;)J. S. Baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01905434045617670439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-74729570645818463862012-05-07T17:47:32.559-05:002012-05-07T17:47:32.559-05:00Heather, of course I've read Immanuel's Ve...Heather, of course I've read Immanuel's Veins. THAT was a great novel. :)Arkatoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11039709923343918989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-40028560847188831502012-05-07T17:40:52.632-05:002012-05-07T17:40:52.632-05:00I actually loved the book. I thought the premise w...I actually loved the book. I thought the premise was great and very Ted-like. The love in the story was well-written--some parts even better than The Circle, I think. Its a good thing we're all allowed to have our own opinions!Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16182940987652083099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1961560095998372579.post-28223115230876783232012-05-07T17:26:40.422-05:002012-05-07T17:26:40.422-05:00:0 i thought the book was amazing. i love having b...:0 i thought the book was amazing. i love having blood, gore, and sexuality in a novel. and the more mentally unstable bad guy, the better. i love creepy dark bad guys doing horrible things such as almost rape, but then being stopped. i will agree with you though that i did see Other emotions besides just fear. have you ever read ted dekkers Immanuel’s Veins ?? that was an amazing book with great characters.Heather Unraunoreply@blogger.com