Review: The Incendiaries

The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fascinating story/book. On a college campus, Will, with a troubled childhood behind him and secrets of his own, meets Phoebe, a Korean born immigrant, daughter of an estranged Christian Reverend and strong, supportive mother, recently deceased. Will spent his childhood trying to "save" souls and save his mother.

A third character sneaks into the life of Phoebe, feeling out the hole she has from her survivor's guilt, her anger at her father, her aimless life. He fills it with religion which quickly turns dangerously cult.

So many aspects to explore. So many ideas to inspect. Will is the skeptic yet has a huge hole where God used to reside within him. He is such a complex character, as is Phoebe. Most of the book is narrated by Will with only a few snippets from Phoebe and John Leal. But Will provides the most meat with his POV. He wants to please Phoebe yet he wants to be true to himself. He looked to God, loved God, burned of God and then burned out. I got the feeling that Will hasn't stopped yearning for God, he has simply been completely disappointed and can find no reason to believe in God. Which leaves him empty.

Phoebe is empty in another way with the added layer of the estranged father who is a leader in a Christian church. Then enter John Leal, a mystery character. Charismatic and well studied in human behavior, he weaves stories of his time in North Korea as a prisoner being tortured, giving details that seem to change yet those who are devoted to him will do whatever he asks. Sacrifice everything.

Very fascinating book.

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