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This novel features a young man named Bruno, who is struggling with his own religious truths. He has discovered the spiritual practices of journeying and has some success with separating the body from the spirit. Meanwhile, a sibling of Christ—the goddess Jesuette—is seen holding a debate among the apostles and saints, looking down on humanity with despair. Asmodeus the Beast, the Fallen One, has returned and is outstripping them in his efforts to corrupt those on earth. The goddess sees in Bruno a possible solution. Bruno, at first, is privately hesitant, even if he fits the bill of the spiritual warrior the goddess requires. Discovering that he has been aided in his religious exploration by his own patron saint and namesake, though, he accepts the mantle.
Landry opens his novel with a detailed rundown of all the major spiritual tracts and religious dogmas of each major culture and era. He leaves the reader to earnestly dissect the various concepts and find their commonality. Though never heavy-handed, the message is clear: there are overlapping beliefs among the different faiths, a humanist uniformity among all the profound truths. In a literary age of high fantasy spin-offs and young adult space odysseys, few novels attempt to tackle the complexity of personal faith. Landry's uncompromising and ambitious work doesn't shrink from the challenge, reaching out to the rich world of realistic inner monologues and cosmic threats. Not burdened by the limitations of traditional fiction, the author is free to take his time in this slow, burning narrative. It unfolds masterfully and is an engaging passion project.