Adam
by Ted Dekker
Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2008, 388pp., hardcover.

Ted Dekker got quite a bit of negative response to Skin, along with the usual praise. While I enjoyed Skin despite some flaws, I think Adam is definitely an improvement.

Daniel Clark is a divorced FBI behavioral psychologist who despises religion and lives to track down serial killers. His current target, known as "Eve," has killed fifteen young women and left virtually no trace. We learn about Eve's background through monthly installments from a crime magazine that Dekker intersperses through the book.

Without giving away too much of the plot, suffice it to say that Clark's worldview is shaken as he sees the power of evil forces at work in the life of the killer. I was somewhat disappointed by Dekker's unqualified positive references to the works on demon possession by controversial Roman Catholic Malachi Martin, and his use of a Roman Catholic priest to attempt an exorcism.

Adam keeps you turning the pages late into the night--whether you can sleep after that is another issue. I had a good time reading the book, and appreciated how it emphasized the reality of evil. The Christian bookstore special edition includes an overtly Christian bonus chapter, as well as an interview with controversial Christian author John Eldredge, a major influence on Dekker.

Existing Dekker fans will enjoy Adam, and it may gain Dekker some new fans who enjoy supernatural-oriented thrillers by authors like Koontz and King.

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