The journey of Rachelle Matthews, also known as the 49th Mystic, continues in Ted Dekker’s “Rise of the Mystics,” the second novel in his “Beyond the Circle” series.
“Rise of the Mystics” picks up four months after the prior novel. Now 17, Rachelle, her father and the rest of the Eden residents have left the Utah compound, being reprogrammed by DARPA. The officials who are working closely with Rachelle and her father David have attempted to completely reboot her memory, to the point where they’ve made Rachelle believe she’s schizophrenic to explain away her mysterious powers like telekinesis and auditory hallucinations.
She is also no longer dreaming of her life in Other Earth, where war is brewing between the two peoples — the Elyonites, who believe in the holy Elyon, and the Horde, who worship the evil Teeleh.
In both worlds, she has been tasked to find the Five Seals of Truth — having found the first three in “The 49th Mystic.”
With the help of scientist Steven Collingworth, she scrambles to reclaim her identity on present-day Earth. Facing dangerous roadblocks from America’s highest office, she must also face her fears to defeat the evil Vlad Smith who is determined to use her to destroy the Realm of Mystics on Other Earth, crushing the world of Yeshua, also known as Justin.
“Rise of Mystics” is written in typical Ted Dekker fashion — deeply spiritual, scientific, philosophical and political. It is a massive love letter, helping the reader to dive deep into their relationship with the Almighty God. This is a tale of love, identity, strength, overcoming fear, transformation and faith, revealing who is the way, the truth and the life.
It also reveals several other lessons, like you suffer the same fate you inflict in life; struggles are opportunities for salvation; bad news is only a matter of misperception; don’t be anxious for tomorrow; with faith anything is possible; judgment of ourselves only puts us in prison; the necessity to deny one’s self while letting go of attachments; and the renewing of our minds. It also stretches our mind to question how do we truly know what’s real.
The main theme that runs throughout both novels is love. Love of one’s self. Love of our fellow man. Love of our enemy. And love for our eternal creator.
This series is a fantastic addition to Dekker’s original Circle series. It will truly blow your mind, taking you to places deep within your soul. However, you must read “The 49th Mystic” before reading “Rise of the Mystics.” You don’t necessarily need to read the original Circle series, but it may provide some background.
Fans of Shawn Smucker’s “Day the Angels Fell” series or even authors like Stephen King will love Dekker’s novels.
Disclaimer: this story does contain quite a bit of violence and brutal situations.
Five stars out of five.
Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.
“Rise of the Mystics” (Beyond the Circle series, #2) by Ted Dekke