False Witness

False Witness

by Randy Singer

Professor Wang Dagan has created the abacus algorithm, a mathematical formula that has the power to cripple the internet. The Chinese mafia gets wind of its existence, and will do anything to get ahold of it. They kidnap Jessica Shealy, wife of bounty hunter Clark Shealy, in order to force Clark to track down Dagan and the algorithm. The Shealys are able to escape, but are forced to go into witness protection. Enter Jamie Brock, Isaiah Haywood, and Wellington Farnsworth, all law students working at a legal aid clinic. The Shealys approach them with an interesting request. What will happen to the Shealys and the algorithm? What happens to Wang Dagan? I can’t go into a lot of detail on this book, because too much of the plot would be given away.

I did struggle with the intense violence in the beginning of the book. A less sensitive person may not be bothered by it, but I had a hard time not squirming in my seat at certain parts. However, I was intrigued by the age old struggle between good and evil that was represented in this book. I found myself asking myself how far I would go to protect someone I loved. Would I inflict violence on someone else? How much worth can you place on each life – is it okay to torture and kill someone in order to save another? The author did not create a Christian character in Clark Shealy. His character did have some morals, because he did experience some hesitation before the violence. But it made me wonder how differently the story would have turned out had Shealy been a Christian.

I highly recommend this book that I could barely put down!

**After note: I wrote this review, then went to post it on Amazon. Curious about what others had to say, I read through some of the reviews and was confused when I saw some reviews that talked about the book’s treatment of the Indian Dalit Untouchables. It made me wonder if I had read the same book as them. Then I discovered that the new Tyndale edition had been revised. Professor Dagan was now Professor Kumari, and the Chinese Underground Church was now the Dalits, the lowest caste in Indian society. It doesn’t appear that the storyline was changed any more than that. I do wish that I had known of these changes before I read the original, though.