Investigating

Reviews

Ted Dekker is not an incredibly famous author, but he is still a well respected and entertaining author. Skin is a New York Times best seller, and has been very popular with fans. Ted Dekker is an author known for his twists. I have read other books of his, and I his stories never cease to amaze me. As one review says,

By the end of the book Dekker managed to surprise me yet again with a twist I didn't see coming. He also employs an excellent technique--revealing a small twist, to which you say, "I saw that coming," only to reveal an even bigger twist that catches you by surprise. It's misdirection at its best"

A review by a blogger:

This book delivered what I love about Ted Dekker's books: plenty of suspense. Toward the end of the book, I was so into it that my heart rate had risen fairly high, I was sweating, and I couldn't put the book down.

Dekker had some great twists that I never saw coming! :) Which is great, because I was afraid I had gotten to the point where I could somewhat guess where he was going. But these were totally unexpected. And, just when I thought it was all over and I could (somewhat) relax, he pulled the biggest twist of all! I'm still going back and reading to find the clues and try to figure this thing out! It's great! :)

I highly recommend this book to readers of speculative fiction, suspense, thrillers, etc. :D

Skin is also popular with fans. On Barnes and Noble, Skin has a four star rating (out of 89 reviews), but on Amazon it was given three and a half stars (with 89 reviews). One reviewer, who gave the book a two-star review had this to say about Skin,

I have read all of Ted Dekker's books and thought that his insight into the human condition is exceptional. I loved the way he was able take a story and weave an examination of how I relate to God. For example, the children eating the worm slime in Showdown as an allegory for our appetite for sin despite how it destroys our lives. Another example is the whole Circle Trilogy. His description in White when people have to inhale the water, i.e. give up their lives in order to live.

Lately, Dekker has rushed to put out books every couple of months and has lost his originality. He is stuck in a rut. His last three books have suspense and gore but lack the originality that led me to list him as one of my favorite authors.

Skin is a rehashed story of Showdown and Saint. Revealing the killer at the end left me flat with no impact.

The teaser at the end of the book revealing an upcoming 6 book series based on the Horde seems more like a threat than a promise.

I hope he changes his mind and takes a sabbatical to work on a new storyline. The sad part is that I am a Ted Dekker fan but wish he would get back to being a creative writer instead of continuing to try capitalizing on the success of Black, Red and White.

I agree with this reviewer on some points, but while I can see where they are coming from, I have to disagree with them on some other points. I completely and totally agree that Ted Dekker is absolutely exceptional at writing about the human condition. He weaves in wonderful glimpses of who we are as human beings; sinners who desperately need God to save us. I agree with everything the reviewer had to say on this. I do however disagree that he is stuck in or rut or becoming unoriginal. I can see where they might think this; some of his books pull on themes from others or even tie them in with others, and yes, in some ways they are similar. I don't think that he has lost his originality. Skin is still just about the most unique book that I have ever read, and I have read some of Dekker's other books. So, while I understand where this reviewer is coming from, I still highly recommend anyone and everyone to read this book.

About the Author-

Ted Dekker is a New York Times best-selling author of more than twenty novels. He was born to missionary parents who lived with the headhunter tribes of Indonesia. Dekker says that his unusual childhood forced him to use and cultivate his imagination, therefore laying the groundwork of his amazing stories. Ted's books have sold over five million copies worldwide and two of his books, Thr3e and House, have been made into movies. There are plans to turn more of his books into movies as well. Dekker is an author known for his amazing twists and turns, and is popular for his suspense thrillers.

I found a great interview with Ted Dekker on CBN. In this interview, he talks about growing up, why people label him controversial, and about his writing style. This interview really helped me understand why he writes the way he writes and it made me like him even more than I already did. If you are at all interested in this book or Ted Dekker as an author, I highly recommend that you watch the video.