Thelo

by Sean Russell

On the day before his 30th birthday, James Erikson is visited by a being named Thelo. James is told that his wife and kids are going to die in a car wreck, but Thelo also gives James a ring that allows him to travel through his own life and create new timelines, such as one where his family lives to see his 30th birthday. James uses the ring for it's original purpose, but the temptation to pursue life's various what-ifs eventually becomes too much for him to ignore.

75,924 words

248 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 21, 2023

About the author

Aka Sean Thomas Russell

Sean Russel has co-written, with Ian Dennis, a mystery series called "Memoirs of a Bow Street Runner". The first volume of the series was published by Bantam under their joint pen name, T.F. Banks.

Sean Russell was born 1952 in Toronto. At the age of three his family moved to the outskirts of the city, where they lived in a cottage at the beach of Lake Ontario. At the age of ten he decided to become an author, and the fantasy genre caught him years later, while reading J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. After university, he moved to Vancouver, and two years later to Vancouver Island, where he still lives with his family. He published his first novel in 1991.His first historical naval novel Under Enemy Colours, published in 2007, introduced a new Royal Navy hero, Charles Hayden, and HMS Themis, a fictitious frigate.

Mr. Russell cites history as one of his passions, collects old yachting and sailing books, skis, sails and travels. Past interests include caving, rock climbing, hiking, and racing sailboats.

Reviews

[Matthew French · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a genuine page turner, and I do not say that lightly. The premise of the book is an altogether average-in-every-way, soon-to-be 30 year old is visited by a time traveling being who tells him his wife and sons will die in an accident that day. The being, named Thelo, gives the main character, James, a ring that allows him to travel to any point in his life backwards in time, as many times as he wants, for as long as he wants. Doing so will create alternate timeline branches, which leads to a whole manner of interesting questions to be raised.

I loved the theological implications within the book (especially the end), and can relate to James' struggles in many ways, especially as a veteran. While this is book is coming from a Christian background/perspective, it is not your typical sappy Christian fiction. This book has grit, some language, and some graphic moments (nothing too detailed or untoward) that might put off those with a lesser constitution. While it seems to have especially been written with men as the main target audience, any woman willing to pick this up and read it will be richly rewarded with a satisfying story.

[Chance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! Christian, allegorical, theological fiction is probably how I’d describe the genre. A very entertaining read and one I’d highly recommend! As others have noted, it is “gritty” and will appeal especially to dudes in their 20s/30s. But the storyline and the conclusion are well worth the read.

[Jesus Salgado · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a few months since I read and finished Thelō so I have time to reflect on what stuck with me and what were the key points I took from the book. Like most people that have read this book, I had a hard time putting the book down, I didn’t finish it in a day but I did finish it quickly, there was never a dull moment in the book every aspect of the book was exciting and entertaining, very movie-like.

So with that being said I did have some thoughts I had from the book or more like small nuggets I got from the book without being much of a spoiler. James Erikson is considered an average man, living an average life which is the reality of the majority of men today, so the book already can apply to the majority of men in the world. One day James is presented with some news from a creature name Thelō and without giving much detail this creature gives James some very bad news concerning his family but James does have a chance to save them and is given a ring that he can use to save them and also give him power to change his timelines and “control” his life. This is exactly the dream of the average man. I just need the power and I can be so happy with everything. So the book deals with the reality of having power, the battle of having everything and more and does having “control” enough to be satisfied. James goes through a series of events and on his journey there appears to be a battle between understanding contentment and self-satisfaction. What is the right way to live and what does it look like to have the power to “control” your life? This book will demonstrate that in a way that is entraining, insightful, practical, and most importantly helpful. I will say this book is for a certain audience, I wouldn’t recommend this be read or read to immature audiences (children mainly) but other than that, this book will be a great addition to your library.