THE OATH

By Frank Peretti

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I have reviewed a couple of other books by this author, which are listed in the Metaphysical category because they are primarily books about religion and religious faith, and the battle between Good and Evil.. This one is listed under the horror section because it is much more "mainstream".

Steve Benson, A wildlife biologist, goes to Hyde River, a remote mining community in the mountains of Washington to investigate the death of his brother who was there on a camping trip.

The local law enforcement officials blame the death on a Grizzly bear, But Steve isn't too sure. Turns out that the locals have a secret that dates back to the founding of the town a hundred years earlier. Teaming up with Tracy Ellis, a local Deputy Sheriff who seems to be an honest cop; They dig deeper to find out what really happened.

Harold Bly is the last scion of the Hyde family that founded the town, owns the mining company and most of the town. Harold is not the nicest guy around- in fact, he is a petty despot who runs the town with an "iron hand" and is the only one completely privy to its secrets.

Levi Cobb is the local religious nutcase- He tells Steve that the killer wasn't a Bear, but a "Dragon". He helps Steve and Tracy with their investigation, saving their lives a couple of times along the way.

I'm not going to tell you too much more about the plot- I don't want to spoil it.

This is kind of a departure for Peretti- Fundamentalist Christianity is the primary theme in most of his books, but it is "soft-pedaled" in this one.

An entertaining story, in the style of Peter Straub or Steven King, this one will appeal to the more secular of us. I found it less inspiring, however, than the ones I read previously.