Review of Illusion by Frank Peretti (2012)

Bottom line: A fascinating and intriguing story about love, time-travel, and magic.

Rating: Strongly Recommended

Blurb:

In a world where nothing is as it seems, anything is possible.

DANE AND MANDY, a popular magic act for forty years, are tragically separated by a car wreck that claims Mandy’s life—or so everyone thinks. Even as Dane mourns, Mandy awakes in the present as the nineteen-year-old she was in 1970. Distraught and disoriented in what to her is the future, she is confined to a mental ward until she discovers a magical ability to pass invisibly through time and space to escape. Alone in a strange world, she uses her mysterious powers to eke out a living, performing magic on the streets and in a quaint coffee shop.

Hoping to discover a new talent, Dane ventures into the shop and is transfixed by the illusions that even he, a seasoned professional, cannot explain. But more than anything, he is devastated by this teenager who doesn’t know him, is certainly not in love with him, but is in every respect identical to the young beauty he first met and married some forty years earlier.

They begin a furtive relationship as mentor and protégée, but even as Dane tries to sort out who she really is and she tries to understand why she is drawn to him, they are watched by secretive interests who not only possess the answers to Mandy’s powers and misplacement in time but also the roguish ability to decide what will become of her.

Review:

A friend lent me this book, and I’m so glad she did. It’s not the type of thing that I would have sought out on my own. I’ve never been all that fascinated by magic, and the innate frustration of the storyline – I know you, why don’t you know me? Or am I just crazy? – is the kind of thing that could easily drive ME crazy. And yes, there was definitely some frustration in all of that, but was a remarkably well told story. I found myself racing through the pages, frantically trying to figure out a solution that would let Dane and Mandy be happy and together.

I guess the only issue I really had with the book was that there were a lot of characters, and I had a hard time remembering who was who. Genre-wise, I’d say it was kind of sci-fi light – there aren’t an excruciating amount of details given about the mechanics of the time/space travel, in fact, I could have used a little more explanation myself, but it wasn’t all that important. This is a story about love.

The writing and storytelling were excellent. I seem to vaguely remember reading some of Peretti’s other works as a child, but I can’t remember what. I’ll have to do some research. I’m not very good at names: real people, characters, or titles, so I’ll have to dig into some of his storylines and see if they ring any bells. I’m very interested in trying some of his other works (or retrying as the case may be). This was a book that captivated me from page one.

Side note: The pain and loss felt by Dane at the opening of the book when Mandy dies is vivid and real. I teared up several times during the story – something that is rare for me. Because of that, I wouldn’t recommend this book to someone who has recently lost a loved one. There are also strong Christian elements in this book, again, this was something that was handled remarkably well. It felt very natural to the story and the characters, which is not always the case.

Available: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Have any of you read the book? Read any of Peretti’s other works?

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