The first time I came across this book was about four years ago. I had just finished reading a book by one of the authors and that particular book became one of my favourites. Naturally, I jumped on another book by the same author when it came my way but for some reason, I didn't complete it four years ago. After wrapping up the book this time, I think I know why I couldn't get myself to do so back then.
About the Book
The book “Forbidden” by Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee is the first book in a three book series, the other two titled “Mortal” and “Sovereign”.
In the book titled “Forbidden”, the story takes place in a future world where humanity has been genetically engineered to live in an “ideal” world with no emotions or free will.
In this world lives Rom Sebastian, an oddity who drank from an ancient vellum, leading to a rare genetic defect that allows him to experience raw and true emotions. As Rom navigates this world with an awakened perspective, he, alongside an alchemist, decodes the writings on an old journal from the past which reveals the truth about humanity.
With the new information, Rom vows to redeem the human race from their current state of being but as he seeks to redeem humanity, another partially awakened human named Saric desires the exact opposite.
This book is one which everybody can interpret differently due to our separate and different perspectives. Personally, Forbidden is a really thought-provoking and captivating novel that delves into the complexities of human existence, love and the nature of evil.
Like every book out there, it has its pros and cons. One perk to this book was its ability to highlight emotional depth. During the course of this book, the authors explored the beauty and complexity of human emotions, highlighting the importance of love, connection, passion and even hope.
On a few occasions, I stopped to ponder what the world we currently live in would feel like in the absence of every emotion except fear. Imagine not being able to feel remorse, passion, joy or love. It certainly would have been a gloomy world. The theme of emotional depth carefully crafted by the authors easily creates the residual feeling of gratitude; gratitude that we can feel all emotions as emotions are essentially what makes us feel alive.
The theme of morality was also explored in this novel as it delved into the nature of good and evil and how power could change a person. The idea of power changing a person isn't a new topic of discussion but I like how the author's showed two sides to it. There was a character from the royal lineage who wielded so much power but obviously used his power for evil. Still from the same lineage emerged yet another character with enormous power who wasn't evil in the slightest.
The issue of pacing however is one that cannot be easily overlooked. There were chapters that covered twenty pages and there were also chapters that ended after a page and a half. Some sections of the book felt overly rushed while the others felt dragged; this disrupted the overall flow of the narrative in a way.
Also, I would like to believe that since the book was a little over five hundred pages, the authors didn't have sufficient time to develop certain characters. Because after reading the book, it felt like every other character aside from Tom, the protagonist, was underdeveloped. Take Avra for instance. She seemed to be a very significant part of Rom's life but all we know about her is that she knew Rom since they were children and she was willing to do anything for him. Apart from this, no other significant information about Avra, who Rom absolutely adored,was revealed.
Nevertheless, I like how every character introduced had an intricate role to play. They were either for or against “the order”– as the emotionless predicament was tagged in the novel.
Recommendation
Forbidden is a gripping introspective novel that would appeal to fans of philosophical thrillers and those interested in exploring the conditions of human nature. While it has some a few cons, they can consequently be ignored as the book's thought-provoking themes and strengths makes it a compelling read.
In general, the book is quite a refreshing one of which I would give a 4/5 rating. I look forward to reading the other books from this series just to know how it all ends. Would I recommend the book? Yes but only to people who like psychological and physiological thrillers or those who are critical thinkers.
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Love 🤍
