Max Moment: Reviews and Interviews

The past couple of weeks saw two new reviews of The Astonishing Adventures of Missionary Max hit cyberspace.
First up, a review that originally ran in the bulletin of our home church in Lakeland Florida, written by the associate pastor (also…my brother).
Money quote: “…the action, romance and multi-layered plots will keep just about anyone turning the digital pages.” Thanks, bro!
Next we have a review that ran in the blog Fundamentally Reformed, owned and operated by Bob Hayton.
Money quote: “The twists and turns of the plot, characters with depth and reality, and a locale where almost anything can go, keep one guessing throughout the book.”
As Bob is one of the administrators for SharperIron–a site I have contributed to from time to time–the review appeared there the following day. As an added bonus, they also published an interview with me with several in-depth questions about the book, and writing in general. The following is one of my favorites:
Q. The book seems to be written from a guy’s perspective, and some of the themes, such as the chemistry between Max and Ilana, seem more suited to older teens and adults. What is your target audience for the book?
A. My target audience is teens to young-adults…especially guys. I remember reading Tarzan books as a kid, and then immediately going out to try my hand at being “king of the jungle” in the little patch of woods behind our house. In a recent documentary it was shown how, after the first Indiana Jones movies were released, there was a spike in the number of young men entering the field of archaeology.
The woods behind my house is far different from Edgar Rice Burroughs’ romanticized Africa, an archaeologist’s work is far different from that portrayed on the screen by Harrison Ford, and my ministry here in Brazil bears little resemblance to that of Maxwell Sherman.
Yet, it is my hope that The Astonishing Adventures of Missionary Max, in presenting somewhat of a romanticized ideal, will stir the hearts of young people—young men in particular—to pursue the genuine article.
If you have not yet immersed yourself into the exciting world of Missionary Max, what are you waiting for?

The Astonishing Adventures of Missionary Max, Parts 1, 2 and 3 are now available for Kindle and Nook!