Thoughts of God

by Michael Kanaly

From Library

First novelist Kanaly alternates a gruesome tale of two hunters, a serial killer of young girls pursued by a licensed vigilante, with vignettes of life on other planets, and God's diary entries considering the experiments he's set in motion and their implications for good and evil.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Caleb Edison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too self important

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rarely have I encountered such highs and lows in the same book. To be clear, for me, the high points were much more memorable -- had they not raised the bar as high as they did, the sections of mediocrity would not have bugged nearly so much. In contrast with the structural experimentation and the profundity of philosophies the story explores, confusing the meanings of "affect" and "effect" or a first-novel reliance on archetypes bordering on stereotypes, sometimes to the point of cliche, are eventually, for me, forgivable. That being said, this whole enterprise would have benefited greatly from a more attentive proofreader, if not a more enterprising editor as well.

Still, it's been a while since I've looked forward to the chance to get back to reading a story with as much enthusiasm as I did this each night. My personal taste strongly favoring works that aspire greatly despite their flaws over the "unambitious masterpieces" others sometimes prefer, please take my praise with a grain of salt unless your heart, as well, is warmed by contrasting styles of subject and treatment, not to mention experimentation in structure and tone. If that's the case, THOUGHTS OF GOD will likely fall somewhere near the heart of your (Cloud) Atlas.

[Warren M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the chance to read this book before it went out of print. Kanaly posits the thought that God created man as an experiment to gauge moral issues. Pretty much what modern day Christians believe, but done on a more scientific method-approach...with God chiming in (in computer-text futuristic text). An interesting novel with a decent story and even further reaching implications.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique story -- this novel is a sci-fi thriller about a serial killer of children and a vigilante. The book includes transcriptions from God's own diary (or rather, lab notes, as God is an experimenter). We, as we have long suspected, are living in one big lab experiment.

[Tm Buffalo · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far this book is really quite good and unusual and I'm slowing down my reading to enjoy a well told story .
The ending was a bit of a letdown but overall really enjoyed the story and the original way of writing it

[Julianne Babb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading about the other "evolutionary experiments" and the ups & downs of these from the standpoint of the experiments designers.