Review: Foundlings

Foundlings by Matthew Christian Harding

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



The Peleg Chronicles

Matthew Christian Harding can tell a gripping tale. This trilogy imagines life on earth after the flood and before Abraham, when real giants and dragons roamed the earth (see Genesis 6:4; Joshua 13:12; Isaiah 27:1; Job 41). He portrays well the antithesis, the intense spiritual and physical battle between the sons of light and the sons of the serpent. There are evil men, followers of the dragon, who persecute followers of Noah’s God. The latter must encourage each other with God’s Words and fight together to save the princess and survive. Orphans discover their real identity. Dragon priests seek to kill and destroy, and they hold great sway over the king. Graveyards, live burials and human sacrifice are involved, but no gratuitous gruesomeness is depicted. Intense for very young ones, but generally if you can read at this level you can handle it. I wouldn’t recommend reading out loud to your 3-5 year old, but it’s perfect for 9-12 year old boys. Girls, too, but… well, it isn’t Jane Austen. Excellent pacing, plot and character development. He holds forth forgiveness and redemption by God's mercy, even after heinous sins.

Harding is keen to show the power of the Word of God to encourage, and so he liberally suffuses the trilogy with Scripture not actually written until later. A bit strange, but suspension of disbelief (ironically!) goes a long way. This shows well how the godly are to meditate on, find strength in, and have the Word much on our lips in our speech with others. Also, he has a strong polemic against magic. The bad guys use it, try it, and entice the good guys with it, but the sons of light must resist it. This is perfectly appropriate and good in a book reimagining the real world of Genesis 10-11.

Though self-published these books deserve more attention from readers. Word to the wise: get all three, because they are one story together, with cliffhangers at the end of the first two. See for yourself, here – www.MatthewChristianHarding.com



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