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Light the Night
Gangs. Violence. Innocent people hurt.
Everyday headlines. But the people of Los Angeles are determined to take back the city from criminals. Is it possible?
When Paul Thomas adlibs on the morning news, he has no idea that his words will change a city. Unexpectedly, people respond to Paul Thomas' off-hand challenge to his morning news show audience to light the city every night to take their neighborhoods back from violent street gangs. The profound changes force Paul to take seriously his Christian witness as his personal and professional lives collide.
Everyday headlines. But the people of Los Angeles are determined to take back the city from criminals. Is it possible?
When Paul Thomas adlibs on the morning news, he has no idea that his words will change a city. Unexpectedly, people respond to Paul Thomas' off-hand challenge to his morning news show audience to light the city every night to take their neighborhoods back from violent street gangs. The profound changes force Paul to take seriously his Christian witness as his personal and professional lives collide.
408 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 21, 2024
A big disappointment (2 stars)
Los Angeles is in a downward spiral of growing crime, with rising murder and thefts fueled by gang warfare, the only beneficiaries being the TV news stations who get to broadcast the bad news on a daily basis. But one day Christian news anchor Paul Thomas makes the on air suggestion for a "Light the Night" scheme, in which the people of LA rise up to light the city and fight crime.
That's the main premise of this novel, and what happens next is entirely implausible: citizens band together to successfully reduce crime. Is it really that simple in real life? In John Culea's novel, that's all it takes, and this flimsy plot-line is accompanied by cardboard characters who are good or evil to the point of complete cheesiness.
It's hard work making it through the 389 pages of this book. The only real redeeming quality being the way this novel shows how TV stations have an all-consuming obsession with ratings. The author is a TV reporter, so this is a world that he knows, but its unfortunate that the story and characters are dreadful. Don't bother.
Los Angeles is in a downward spiral of growing crime, with rising murder and thefts fueled by gang warfare, the only beneficiaries being the TV news stations who get to broadcast the bad news on a daily basis. But one day Christian news anchor Paul Thomas makes the on air suggestion for a "Light the Night" scheme, in which the people of LA rise up to light the city and fight crime.
That's the main premise of this novel, and what happens next is entirely implausible: citizens band together to successfully reduce crime. Is it really that simple in real life? In John Culea's novel, that's all it takes, and this flimsy plot-line is accompanied by cardboard characters who are good or evil to the point of complete cheesiness.
It's hard work making it through the 389 pages of this book. The only real redeeming quality being the way this novel shows how TV stations have an all-consuming obsession with ratings. The author is a TV reporter, so this is a world that he knows, but its unfortunate that the story and characters are dreadful. Don't bother.
Displaying 1 of 1 review