the book of names by jill gregory & karen tintori

Within each generation, there are thirty-six righteous souls. Their lives hold the key to the fate of the world. Now someone wants them dead.
 
When a childhood tragedy comes back to haunt Professor David Shepherd, he finds himself in possession of knowledge that holds the world in a delicate balance. He uncovers the Book of Names---an ancient text originating with the biblical Adam, and thought lost to history forever. By Kabbalistic tradition, the book contains the names of each generation’s thirty-six righteous souls---the Hidden Ones---by whose merits alone the world continues to exist. Legend holds that if all thirty-six Hidden Ones were eliminated; the world would meet its end.

When the Hidden Ones start dying of unnatural causes, the world grows increasingly unstable: war in Afghanistan, massive flooding in New York, brutal terrorist attacks in Melbourne, a tanker explosion in Iran. David finds himself battling against the Gnoseos, a secret religious sect whose goal is to destroy the world by eliminating all of the righteous souls. David’s involvement quickly turns personal when his stepdaughter’s name is discovered to be one of the endangered. With the help of a brilliant and beautiful Israeli ancient texts expert, David races to decipher the traditions of the Kabbalah to save the righteous souls, his stepdaughter, and perhaps the world.

 

Reviews

From Booklist
According to Jewish tradition, each generation produces 36 righteous souls who hold up the universe. In this page-turner, a Gnostic group that wants the world to end, thus defeating God and paving the way for their own spiritual ascension, has murdered 33 of the 36. Ever since he was involved in a childhood accident, David Shepherd has been compulsively writing down names. When he learns through a kabbalistic rabbi that he is the keeper of the names of righteous souls (and realizes that his stepdaughter is one of them), he finds himself in the middle of a nightmare filled with killings, natural disasters, and the knowledge that the fate of the world in his hands. Coauthors Gregory and Tintori use the now-common Da Vinci Code formula of short chapters and steadily building suspense, but their intriguing premise--also behind Sam Bourne's The Righteous Men (2006)--helps separate this tale from garden-variety religious thrillers. And where others have tried and usually failed, the authors give succinct explanations of the principles of kabbalah and Gnosticism, both complex and often misunderstood. Compulsively readable. Ilene Cooper

"WATCH OUT DAN BROWN. . .  an intelligent suspense thriller that combines the Kabbalah, tarot and the forces of good and evil into a tense murder mystery . . .The Book of Names self-assuredly fulfils the requirements of the religious thriller."
          --The Economist

 “Convincing characters and a rapidly moving plot combine to create an enjoyable religious thriller….”
          --Library Journal

“Intricately plotted historical suspense . . . an intriguing synthesis of Jewish mysticism and modern murder mystery. A swift, intelligent thriller.”
          --Kirkus Reviews

 

About the Authors:

jill gregory & karen tintori are writing partners who have been best friends for more than twenty years. Jill Gregory is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has written more than thirty books of women’s fiction. Karen Tintori is an award-winning author whose most recent book is Unto the Daughters, a family memoir.

 

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