Belief System – DaneCobain.com

Title: Akhnaton

Author: Agatha Christie

Type: Non-Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 157

Rating: 8/10

Agatha Christie – Akhnaton

I wasn’t too sure how to classify this one – it’s a play that’s based on a true story, the story of the renegade pharaoh Akhnaton, who tried to change the Ancient Egyptians’ belief system to focus on just one god, the god of the sun. Oh, and his son was a pretty famous pharaoh called Tutankhamun, who’s a character in the story.

It actually makes for a truly fascinating read, especially if you’re interested in Egyptology – I am, but only as a passing interest and not as a scholar, and I thought it was fantastic. It’s made particularly interesting when you consider that Christie befriended Howard Carter, the archaeologist who unearthed the boy prince Tutankhamun, and she also married an expert on Egypt and its history. It looks like the two of us have some shared interests – that’s fricken awesome!

Agatha Christie

Click here to buy Akhnaton.

Paul Beaumont – A Brief Eternity | Review

Title: A Brief Eternity

Author: Paul Beaumont

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 274

Rating: 10/10

Paul Beaumont – A Brief Eternity

Disclaimer: While I aim to be unbiased, I received a copy of this for free to review.

It’s very, very rare for me to give a book a 10/10 – this is only the second time that a book that I’ve been sent has managed it, and it’s a first for a work of fiction. But then, this is a very, very good debut novel.

Of course, I don’t want to go into the story-line too much for fear of spoilers, but I can tell you that broadly speaking it follows the story of Christ’s second coming, right in the middle of rush hour. Beaumont was a Christian for many years before discovering overnight that he no longer held his former faith, and this book is born from his frustration with the religious dogma that formed the majority of his religious belief system.

It might sound like a dry subject, but Paul has managed to turn it in to a thrilling and, quite frankly, hilarious piece of satire, which could fit in to the genre of a black comedy, too. It keeps you guessing throughout, and Beaumont’s depiction of heaven and some of its residents is, quite frankly, hilarious.

My favourite character? Why, it’s Jesus Christ himself, of course – he’s a bad-ass, who smokes cigarettes that are smuggled in from hell and who’s responsible for such immortal lines as, “I’m the lord of the universe – I can do whatever the fuck I want.” This really is a cracking book, and one that everyone should read.