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.
Paul Beaumont
