Song of Fire

by Joseph Bentz

Through the breaking ice, in a vortex of brilliant light, energy, and sound, Jeremy plunges into a dangerous and mysterious new world. It is a world where music is absolutely prohibited--on pain of death. And Jeremy breaks that law when he arrives in Persus Am in a swirling cloud of light and music. A stranger in a strange land, he does not know why he has been sent here. But it soon becomes clear that he must risk everything to help his new friends in this weary and war-torn world. Song of Fire is a powerful tale of the triumph of good over evil, and healing love in a fantastic world that feels as real as the one we live in.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Christian Fantasy

448 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1995

About the author

Joseph Bentz's books span a variety of genres, including a fantasy novel, three contemporary novels, four non-fiction books on Christian living, and one book/DVD package. Bentz is a frequent speaker at writers conferences, churches, and other venues. He is a professor of English at Azusa Pacific University. He earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in American literature from Purdue University and a B.A. in English from Olivet Nazarene University. He lives with his wife and two children in Southern California. More information on his writing and speaking is available at his website, www.josephbentz.com. His blog, Life of the Mind and Soul, also appears at that site.

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a combination of Christian/Fantasy/Sci.Fi and is full of action. Good vs Evil. I would especially reccommend this book to anyone who is called to be a worshipper.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous fantasy story! One book I could get my young adult sons to read and reread.

[April Klein · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is rare to find an author who is equally gifted in writing both compelling fiction and non-fiction. After enjoying a few of Bentz's non-fiction works, this was the first of his fiction I've read. I was blown away. I avoid most Christian fiction because of the saccharine, oozing-with-optimism plot lines that pervade so much of it. But in Dreams of Caladria, Bentz found the elusive balance of a captivating, brilliant storyline that is unapologetically Christian. And the fantasy elements are just the right amount—not over the top, but enough for those who love the genre.

As someone who feels most closely connected with God through music, I was drawn in by Bentz's imaginative, inventive construct of a world where music is a physical presence infused with the very Holy Spirit. Following Jeremy through this fantasy land, foreign to both the reader and the character himself, gave me fresh insight into a Spirit whose work and power are unfathomable and cannot be contained. I love the idea of exploring how Jesus' story of redemption might look in another world. You can tell that Bentz chose each and every word carefully in order to capture the power of our familiar God in this fantastic, Narnia-esque land. His depictions are beautiful, striking in their simplicity: "No one doubted that the light—electrified strands of blue and red and yellow, twirling and twisting to the beat—was the Lord's own breath whispering, 'I am coming. I am coming'" (311). Sentences like this gave me chills.

The complex story kept me engaged for all 400 pages. The level of detail provided regarding the history of this world is cohesive and impressive. Though at certain points in the novel, Jeremy's character was a little flat for my taste. I wanted more detail about what he was thinking and feeling upon the sudden transportation to a strange universe. He only yearned for his love, Anne—I wanted to know, what about his family? his friends? the entire world and context which have been taken from him? He seemed to embrace his unexplained new world a little too easily. I would have liked a more developed progression of the longing for his old life to the acceptance of the new. Apart from this small detail, though, Jeremy is an interesting and believable hero, fumbling through God's call on his life just like the rest of us.

Overall, this is an incredible work of fiction, Christian or not. I will gladly recommend Dreams of Caladria to believing and non-believing readers alike.

[Joshua A. Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dreams of Caladria is a sprawling fantasy epic set in an alternate world where music is prohibited. From the start, it is a well-paced tale, filled with action, drama, political intrigue, romance, and a memorable cast of characters. Bentz has a great attention to detail in his world building, with a thorough geography (I wish there was a map!), sociology, and theology to go with his storyline. My only disappointment, really, is the ending, which I will try not to spoil but which left me wishing there was more to this tale. Alas, given how long it's been since the book was first written, I don't know if that will happen... although I'd be thrilled if there was. Still, a solid read.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dreams of Caladria is compelling and enchanting. A world where music is forbidden forms the basis for this poignant journey. Bentz's writing, specifically through his vivid descriptions, immerses the willing reader into a new world and makes Dreams of Caladria a memorable experience. Recommended for fantasy fans.

[S.n. Blackmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fabulous story and one of my all time favorites.

[Abigail Bucks · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first saw this book on the shelf, it reminded me of "The Arena" by Karen Hancock. I had a few issues with the ending of that book, but I overall enjoyed it, so I decided maybe this one was worth a try too.
I'd say I'm left with... A lot of mixed feelings about this book. Overall, I would say the story itself is pretty good, but the execution left quite a bit to be desired.
It was hard to get into, at first. The beginning... I am not sure how else it could have been executed, but all I know is that I did not exactly like how it was, in fact, executed. It seemed somewhat jagged, fast. Confusing. Not only was there that, but it took me a LONG time to get used to Bentz writing style. I am not a big "fan" of first person writing, first of all, furthermore, the whole first-person writing style Bentz has was not one I enjoyed. It left me feeling weird, as I read the story. It took a long time to adapt to it.
It took me a long time to get through the first half of the book. The whole time Jeremy was at the Persus Am palace with Umbriel and the family was very hard for me. Jeremy, in general, was kind of a character who I thought was naive and conflicting. I do not understand how anybody would agree to live with Umbriel, after everything Tarius Arc told Jeremy in their meeting. Look, I get being skeptical, I'm good with that. But Jeremy was not skeptical. He was absolutely oblivious. With everything. Not only that, but also with his love life. He says he loves Anne. However, if I were Anne and I saw how confused he felt because of Tracian or Danuta, etc, I would question how much he really loved me. I did not understand Anne's placement in the story either. It was why he wanted to go back to Earth, but something about her just didn't quite fit in with the story.
Once we got to the halfway mark, and Jeremy actually finds his brain, the story was a lot more enjoyable. The whole plot Bentz had was very unique and creative, I liked that. It was merely the execution that left me unfulfilled. I liked the journey that was symbolized throughout the book, the triumph and the trials. I loved how God spoke through music. How music could be colors. That was all great.
And then, the story went downhill again in the last two chapters. The whole ending left a lot to be desired. I felt no closure, once so ever. I honestly did not feel like there was much of a "climax" either. Their time in the Grey Desert felt more like a climax than anything else. Tarius's sudden turn was unaccounted for. It was completely out of character. Why did he sacrifice himself? I read his and Jeremy's conversation several times, I still don't understand what conviction Tarius had. Not only that, but we are also unsure on the conditions he was on when he died. Did he sacrifice himself? Did something go wrong? If there's nothing I hate more, is a death that does not seem to have a clear purpose. There were so many unanswered questions... What about Will? What happened to him? Where is he? Are their bodies still on Earth, but their spirits in Persus Am/that world? How does that work? There was lots of things that weren't clear to me. Does Will come back like Jeremy does? What happens to Jeremy and Will's relationship, if it does? How did Anne know where Jeremy was? What happened back to the world Jeremy had gone too? There was no tangible goodbye said between anyone. There was no closure between Jeremy and the friends he made. I didn't like that. He states things, about how they didn't need to say that. But wouldn't you want to spend more time with the friends you had made? When you knew you were going to leave? Jeremy was snatched so abruptly, to me, despite everything, that I felt like his time was not completely over. Why did God even send Jeremy there? I get he helped them find Caladria with Will. Once that was finished, Jeremy seemed kind of purposeless. They probably could have found it without his help, in truth. He could just be snatched away so quickly, why did he need to be there in the first place?
So, yes, there was a lot of unanswered questions. Practically no closure. However, there were some memorable parts, particularly in the Grey Desert, that I really enjoyed. The history wrapped around the world was excellent, the politics/government were rather REALISTIC! Some of the characters I really enjoyed, especially Taron and Rickeon. I wish it had been executed better, but it is as it is. I would recommend this to someone, but only if I thought they could push through it.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one of the first big books I read after goosebumps. It was one of the books that helped start my lifelong love of reading.

After I read it as a preteen, I didn't look for it until I was like 18. It took me years to finally locate the book. When I finally found it, I bought it. It was as good as I remember and my kids loved it too!

[Barbara Lynn Seibel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second time I've read this book. Creative fantasy about learning to follow the Spirit against great temptations as well as overcoming guilt of past failures.

[SparksofEmber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book once when it had just come out back in 1995 so I was 15 or 16 at the time. While reading it, I absolutely loved it. The main character, Jeremy, falls through the ice off a frozen lake and finds himself transported to a world where music is outlawed. He learns that he is essentially a prophet sent to bring music back (which is more than the music we know but something filled with God's Spirit, light & colors). It was a highly allegorical book and I absolutely loved it. And then he woke up from a coma, the end. Now, I've seen some people defend the ending stating that he really went to this land and freed the people and so on. However, halfway through the book when he was really struggling with missing his fiancee, Jesus had appeared to him and he was even able to speak with her for a few minutes. So when he woke up from his coma, I was expecting her to remember their communication. The fact that she had no idea what he was talking about (and I reread the last few pages desperately hoping i was misunderstanding) confirmed to me it was seriously all some kind of bizarre, pointless dream. I have only one other time ever been so angry at a book (when I thought Tolkien had killed Frodo at the end of The Two Towers and then discovered it was a fakeout). Let's just say I may have thrown the book across the room and never read it again.

Edit: 08/2015 - I hear the newly released edition has a different ending. I am going to have to find out how that goes and update my review accordingly.

Edit: 2016 - Got the book and the one thing about the book that had completely ruined it for me is different. I don't know what the original publishers were thinking. It's a much better ending this way, the way the author had intended.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved everything about this book ... the plot, the main character, the music, the drama! I had read several other books written by this author (but in different genres), and I had enjoyed them. This fantasy book had an epic sense that also felt a little allegorical in a Biblical way. It was satisfying to read, and long after I finished it, I kept thinking about it!

[Jennie Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A long book, but interesting, and overall, good. It took me a long time to read it-not a book you can just breeze through (not easy reading). I thought it was quite an original idea- not the traveling to another world, but the music. I like it! It is a bit wordy in places, but, I guess, what can you expect from an English teacher? :)

[Carl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Been way too long since reading this, so the five stars is a guess (and possibly influenced by Professor Bentz's befriending of me at the Mt Hermon Writers conference). I hope to reread it again at some point and will post a more thorough review then.

[Mitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fairly interesting novel. It was obviously allegorical in spots but fortunately it pulled off okay. I found at a relatively creative spin on the fantasy genre incorporating Christian themes.

[mom2wah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really ended up like the book. It has a slow start taht to me wsn't riveting or that oow I have to read. I ended up likeing that it was religious in nature and an uplifting story of how one can go from good to evil and the fine line here is to cross that path

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this novel in a goodreads drawing.

A young man falls through the ice of a frozen lake into a world where music is forbidden. Unfortunately, the man's fall is very tuneful, and he's in trouble before he even starts.

An interesting lost land book, full of allegory.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book with a wonderful message. So true as to what's going on today.