Fallen Idols
 J. F. Freedman
 (Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan)
 2003 Time Warner
 ISBN: 0446531898

What if everything we thought about our parents was all wrong?

Sr. Associate Reviewer Narayan Radhakrishnan writes:

I am a big fan of Freedman works, rating The Disappearance as one of the best legal thrillers I have ever read. Key Witness & Above the Law were also superb reads. So it was with great expectation that I started reading Fallen Idols. But I was disappointed, it just isn't up to the mark--the hallmark ;“Freedman touch” is missing.

Fallen Idols is the story of Walter & Jocelyn Gaines, husband & wife archaeologists, digging deep into the ruins at the Mayan La Chimenea site. Together they make a formidable team, both intellectually & otherwise. They are devoted to their work & to each other.

In an accident, rather a massacre, at the site Jocelyn is killed & Walter's life is changed forever. He becomes a changed man, his passion & vigour are things of the past.

For the Gaines' children, the loss is even more for it seems they have lost their father also. He has stopped talking to them & begins living with a young woman.

The three sons discover another facet of their father, which they have never seen before, or knew existed. One thing they are sure, the change in their father is not solely due to the death of their mother, it is something that happened in La Chimenea itself.

What follows is a journey of a search for truth, a voyage of self-discovery where three sons learn the truth about their parents, & about themselves.

Fallen Idols, as I said, lacks the Freedman touch. However, if you are an uninitiated Freedman reader, you might enjoy the book. As an off the block thriller, Fallen Idols is good. But from a master craftsman--it's disappointing.

More from J. F. Freedman:
Bird's Eye-View
Against the Wind
The Obstacle Course>
House of Smoke
(07/27/03)

Narayan
2003©Narayan Radhakrishnan
A RebeccasReads.Com Sr. Associate Reviewer

Reviewer's Bio:
I am a 26 years old lawyer practicing in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Along with my legal practice, I have finished post-graduate studies for both Business Law & Human Rights. I am a self proclaimed numero-uno legal thriller lover & am the proud owner of all of Grisham's & Turow's novels. I enjoy John Mortimer's Rumpole & relish an occasional Martini & a rare Scot(ch)t-oline with a Patterson on the side.

My work A FICTION OF LAW is now about 500 pages in length & features 500 lawyer authors & 2000 legal thrillers covering a 300 year period - inclusive of entries from the USA, UK, Asia, Europe, China, Middle East etc. Still in search of a publisher.
www.keralatourism.org