"It has become my sad duty to inform you that your federal government has finally, officially, been forced to declare the entire state of California a disaster area. Due to the impossibility of rebuilding her great cities on unstable ground under the unrelenting onslaught of the sun, we have sadly deemed it, "Uninhabitable, irreparable, and verboten to citizens."
Hard to believe that the once glorious and lively state of California would be declared uninhabitable, but after 14 years of drought and earthquakes, it resembles the desert landscapes so prevalent in the east like the Mohave and the great skylines are now nothing but rubble. The increasing heat is doing nothing more but burning up what remains of the golden state and now it resembles nothing more than ash and dust.
There are a few that have given up their rights to stay in the state simply because they are unable to leave due to finances or illness and these are the very people that a band of rag tag holdouts feel is their ministry to help reach them for Jesus. Led by Reverend Robert Gill who along with his wife and 14 others have taken an underground bunker and turned it into a self supporting facility to house them and provide for all their needs. However when Pastor Bob reveals that his wife Jennie is dying of stage 3 cancer, they feel they need to move on to spend what time she has remaining in the company of family and friends in other states. That leaves an opening for the next person to step up to lead the group. It will take a vote of those who are eligible to see who that will be.
Ezekiel (Zeke) Thorppe Sr has been hearing strong voices from God calling him to be His voice to the people. But Zeke isn't sure if he is prepared to do what God tells him and knowing just what to say when called. In the midst of upheaval in their group with Pastor Bob's news, how will the group deal with the fact that God is speaking directly to him. Won't they simply believe he is trying to gain an upper hand in the vacancy that Bob is leaving? Or does God have a different plan in purpose that overlaps the ancient prophet Ezekiel from the Bible?
I received The Valley of the Dry Bones by Jerry B. Jenkins compliments of Worthy Publishing and Net Galley for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation aside from a eBook copy of this novel in exchange for my honest and personal evaluation. The premise for this novel is amazing considering the ongoing and increasing drought in the state of California currently. It makes for the perfect background for the novel as you consider what would happen if California continues to experience no rain and loses the ability to make water? What would that do to the entire infrastructure of those living in the state? The only disappointing thing I have to say regarding this novel is how much time was spent on the build up of the story only to rush the ending into a small epilogue. As a reader, this is such a disappointment when I had hoped for so much more than it delivered. It's like getting your hopes up and then offering little in the way of a great and climatic ending one would expect from Jerry B. Jenkins. In that case I can only give this one a 4 out of 5 instead of a full 5 stars.
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