Jeff Overstreet recently posted a news item regarding Left Behind co-author Jerry Jenkins’ new contract with Tyndale; apparently he’s going to write 15 new novels for them in the next five to six years — that’s a rate of roughly three novels per year.
One thing Jeff does not mention is that Jenkins has apparently already begun cranking out prequels to the Left Behind series, which we all thought — apparently mistakenly — had ended last year with The Glorious Appearing. (Or maybe Jenkins, a former ghostwriter, now has ghostwriters working for him?) That’s right, The Rising: Before They Were Left Behind is now upon us, and the official product description on the Left Behind website is a hoot:
Marilena Carpathia has only one dream: to be a mother. So when a mysterious clairvoyant promises the fulfillment of this dream, Marilena does not hesitate. Through genetic engineering and the power of the prince of darkness himself, Marilena is about to become a chosen vessel, one who will unknowingly give birth to the greatest evil the world has ever known.
Halfway around the world, God’s plans are subtly being carried out too. Young Ray Steele is determined to avoid one day taking over the family business. Instead, Ray sets his heart on becoming a pilot….
Soon Carpathia’s and Steele’s lives will intersect. And good and evil will clash in an explosion that will shake the world.
Writing a novel allegedly based on biblical prophecy about the birth of the Antichrist is one thing. Writing a novel based on biblical prophecy about how a young man doesn’t want to do what his daddy wants, he wants to be a pilot … and pitching it as though this young man were somehow going to be the Antichrist’s personal nemesis, with the full force of Fate or Providence behind him … well, that’s just ridiculous. Possibly even more ridiculous than revealing that Darth Vader built C-3PO when he was a boy.
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