Genesis Rider by Will Cade
Leisure Books  -- October 2000
ISBN: 0-8439-4785-3  -- Paperback

Reviewed by Jo Rogers, MyShelf.com
 Buy a Copy

I am not a great western fan.  I particularly dislike the soapy horse opera.  But I do like the good, old-fashioned western such as Zane Grey wrote; he is followed closely by Louis L'Amour.  If GENESIS RIDER is any indication of his skill, you can add Will Cade to the list of great western authors.

GENESIS RIDER is a story with a moral - lying is wrong, and it can hurt people you don't even know.  Micah Ward, a young preacher from Kansas, learned this lesson the hard way.  When Micah was a young boy in a California mining camp, he was the only eyewitness to the murder of Jim Sneed by Tipton Barth.  But when Leroy Barth, Tipton's brother, caught Micah alone, he threatened to cut Micah's eyes out and kill his parents if Micah sent Tipton to the gallows.  As a reminder, he cut a T in Micah's cheek so he would remember never to tell what he saw.  Micah lied on the witness stand, and Tipton Barth went free.  Micah turned to God to deal with his guilt.  He eventually became a minister, and put the incident behind him.

Then a stranger, whose wife, daughter and son had been killed by Tipton Barth, came to Micah's church.  Micah learned many people had died at Barth's hands that he could have saved if he'd told the truth.  How could he atone for his lie?  Micah's atonement took him on a strange, but purifying journey to face his past.

GENESIS RIDER is a story that will haunt you long after you finish the book.  The damage a lie does cannot be undone when it leads to death.

©Copyright. MyShelf. All Rights Reserved.