The Righteous Men
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| Author | Sam Bourne (Also known as Jonathan Freedland) |
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| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Religion, Thriller, Crime, Mystery novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins (UK) |
| Released | 18 March 2003 (U.S.) & 1 July 2003 (UK) |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 448 pages (UK Hardback), 568 pages (UK Paperback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 13-978-0-00-720330-7 |
The Righteous Men is a novel written by Sam Bourne, a pseudonym of English journalist Jonathan Freedland. The story is about a half-British news reporter, Will Monroe (Jr), Jewish Occult Mysticism, Kabbalah, Hasidic Judaism, and the nefarious Christian sect known as Church of the Reborn Jesus.
It has been described as "The biggest challenger to Dan Brown's (author of the infamous Da Vinci Code) crown" by the British newspaper The Mirror.
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[edit] Plot summary
Monroes normal life is disrupted when his wife is kidnapped whilst he is reporting on a story of a militia man found dead in his isolated log cabin. Further investigation into the death brings Will to the conclusion that the dead militia man shared an attribute with a New York pimp, also recently murdered. They were both described as being 'righteous'. As more murders of 'righteous men' happen across the globe, time seems to be running out for Will and the old and current friends he has enlisted. With a series of clues from a mysterious source, absurd twists and religious factors Will soon finds himself in the middle of a plot to bring about nothing less than Judgement Day.
What the book centres on is that we have several people been killed in (what can only be described as) a humane way. What each of these dead have in common is that they have been described by folk who knew them as "righteous" (hence the title) although they lead some mundane or unethical existence (i.e. pimps, drug barons or even call centre employees). Nothing seems to fit each murder together. A rookie NY Times reporter is sent on a murder case (the pimp) and is then sent of to do a story in Seattle - he finds another victim here whilst trying to report on freak weather conditions. Whilst away, his wife gets kidnapped by what turns out to be the Hassidic community in Crown Heights (New York).
What these "Righteous Men" turn out to be are based on a Jewish folklore: 36 men who perform righteous acts to others. They themselves may not know that they are one of 36 and will always lead a life so far removed from what they are about. But without these men - the world will not be spared by God. So while the killing continue on what are the real 36, the world (according to this story) is in grave danger. But the killings seem to be made in the name of God but as it is a Jewish story, why would they want this to happen? What it turns out to be is a faction of the Christian Church (The Church of the Reborn Jesus) who hold the notion that the Jews have forfeited their role as the chosen people (replacement theology) and by killing the 36 should bring about the Second Coming (something the Jews do not believe).
[edit] Trivia
- The Righteous Men features Wikipedia as an academic style encyclopedia, instead of an open-contribution online encyclopedia. In this meaning that it is an "open-contribution online encyclopedia" but that academic references are needed to make a quality sholarly article.
- Coeur d'Alene was mentioned in Sam Bourne's novel: The Righteous Men as a spot that the main character quickly drove past. It is stated that Coeur d' Alene is the home of the Aryan Nations. However, the Aryan Nations' home was in nearby Hayden Lake, not Coeur d'Alene specifically. The compound is no longer in Hayden Lake due to a heated lawsuit and the bankrupcy of the Aryan Nations.
- In 2006 the book hit Richard & Judy's Summer Book Club.
[edit] See Also
[edit] External links
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